By Jon Krampner

A bicycle ride along the historic Natchez Trace Parkway led by veterans but open to the public will marshal support for Bradley Manning in late March and early April.

The “Rebel with a Cause” ride will begin in Natchez, Mississippi, on March 21 and arrive in Nashville on April 8, just in time for Bradley Manning Solidarity Weekend April 9 and 10. Both actions are designed to honor the alleged WikiLeaks whistleblower, imprisoned in the brig at the Quantico Marine Base for more than six months under conditions generally acknowledged to constitute psychological torture.

Jacob George, who served three tours in Afghanistan, winding up as a sergeant in the Army’s special forces, conceived of the ride along with Ramsey Sprague. Both are members of Ride Till the End, a politically engaged cycling collective anchored in the veterans’ community. It celebrates Manning’s alleged actions, raises awareness of his situation, challenges his brutal and inhumane treatment at the hands of the U.S. military and raises money for his legal defense.

“We were going to go up the Natchez Trace in the spring anyway,” says George, a 28-year-old native of Fayetteville, Arkansas. “It’s one of the best ways to go north – we were heading back to Arkansas. And we thought, ‘Hey – why don’t we do the Trace for Bradley Manning and raise some funds for him and tell people about his situation?’”

Veterans, artists, and other supporters of Manning’s cause are invited to join the ride in its entirety or just a part. George notes there will be three different legs of the ride with varying levels of difficulty, so people with different abilities can participate in the parts appropriate to their skills. Potential participants should have a suitable bicycle, appropriate clothing, resources for food, a personal tent, sleeping bag and the time.

Artists in particular are encouraged to join the ride, as many veterans in Ride Till the End have an artistic bent themselves. George and his younger brother Jordan, for example, are both poets. And George says art will play two roles in these events: creating a positive image of Manning to counter the government’s efforts to malign him and raising money for Manning’s legal defense with a series of artistic events during Bradley Manning Solidarity Weekend.

There will be a silent auction in Fayetteville, Ark., with plans for a chamber-music concert in Seattle. There may be an event in Summertown, near Nashville, where the ride will conclude, and others are being planned. In addition, the riders will play music along the route and solicit donations for Manning.

“Rebel with a Cause” co-organizer Ramsey Sprague says it’s important to put the magnitude of what Manning is accused of doing in perspective.

“I think he should be celebrated as a hero, as someone who’s done something extraordinarily heroic,” Sprague says.

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