Local lawyer who served in Afghanistan nervously watches country fall to Taliban
By BETSY WEBSTER
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KANSAS CITY, MO (KCTV) — Shawn Lee practices law in Kansas City. Some of his practice focuses on pro bono services for veterans. But before he went to college and law school, he was an Army infantryman for eight years. He was in the 101st Airborne in 2010 when he was deployed to Afghanistan.
“It was emotional watching the country fall,” Lee said on Monday. “I’m still emotional.”
Lee’s perspective now isn’t so much about a war as it is about a nation of people.
“I recall intimately how much of a bond I started to develop with the people there,” he said, “because I started to realize that despite what was reported about them, they’re all just human beings and a lot of them didn’t make the mess that they’re in. They just inherited it.”
Lee now worries for them, particularly those who aided the US military.
“This is a mess,” Lee said. “There’s a lot of people right now who don’t have access to clean water, who do not have access to timely health care. Who are in fear for their lives against political repercussions.”
He described the current situation as a humanitarian crisis and was hesitant to start portioning out blame.
“I don’t ever think there was a neat way to get out of Afghanistan,” he said. “Now that this government is in place, the next step I think for them is to prove that they’re not going to go out and just start murdering people.”
He acknowledges today’s Taliban might be different than the one he encountered in 2010, but his experiences then put a strain on any fleeting feelings of optimism.
“I just don’t believe that they’re going to carry on with the act of governing without trying to seek vengeance,” said Lee. “A lot of those people are just sick and hurting, and they are going to make some really poor choices, and unfortunately they are all armed. And now they have a bunch of tanks. And a bunch of bombs. And a government at their disposal.”
“I’m fearful. Definitely afraid.
I would also say that I’m somewhat hopeful. It’s not been a total massacre yet,” he continued.
He noted that 20 years is essentially an entire generation, a generation that didn’t live under Taliban rule. He’s open to the idea of diplomacy with the Taliban but still tensely watching to see how it unfolds.
“My biggest fear is that my son is going to have to fight my war,” Lee said, as his 3-year-old poked around a playground. “If this is what the people of Afghanistan want and this is what’s going to end the war, this is what’s going to bring peace, I’m happy. If this is just the start of a new era of violence, then I’m sad. But at this point, I’m still waiting to see what the final outcome is going to be.”
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