Peg Mullen

In 1970, Peg Mullen's 25-year-old son Michael was killed by friendly fire when a U.S. artillery shell struck near the South Vietnamese village of Tu Chanh. His mother, brokenhearted, did what any other mother would--or should--do when her child is killed in an illegal and immoral war: she went on a search for the truth. Mullen, an Iowa homemaker who died on Oct. 2 at 92, spent more than two decades probing her son's death. In 1995 she published her findings in a book called Unfriendly Fire: A Mother's Memoir, which painted a scathing portrait of a U.S. military that stonewalled her efforts to investigate the episode. "I think she'll be remembered as somebody who asked a lot of questions, somebody who wouldn't take a pat answer," another son, John, told the Associated Press. Peg continued to oppose our wars of aggression, and in 2008 the Women's International League of Peace & Freedom honored her efforts with an award. As we struggle for peace, we can all take immense inspiration from Peg's life.

Sheehan is an activist and author. Her son Casey was killed while serving in Iraq in 2003