Protesters March on D.C. to End the War in Iraq

By George Agathos
Managing Editor

(Joy Dutta)

Amidst the drone of helicopters and the beating of drums on Saturday, what may have been the largest anti-war rally in the capital in recent history took place in Washington, D.C., attracting buses from all parts of the country and amassing what is estimated by some to be more than 100,000 people. 

Stony Brook was represented by a busload of people organized by members of the local chapter of the Social Justice Alliance, and a van organized by the Graduate Student Employees Union. The march also received support from regional labor groups including the Professional Staff Congress of the CUNY system. 

The march organized by United for Peace and Justice (UFPJ) served to galvanize the growing opposition to the occupation in Iraq. The movement has been re-energized in recent months by the emergence of Cindy Sheehan as its public face and spokesperson. In addition to Iraq, further disapproval of the Bush administration has resulted from poor federal relief effort in the aftermath of hurricane Katrina. 

The protest was peaceful and mostly uneventful, despite the heavy police presence. The police helped contain the march route and also provided a buffer between the protesters and counter-protesters. 

The main confrontation with counter-protesters occurred on the sidewalk of Pennsylvania Ave. North near the FBI building, where a barricade flanked by a line of police officers was located. 

From the sidewalk, counter-protesters accosted anti-war demonstrators with bull-horns and shouts of “F**k you, you communist mother-f**kers,” and “You suck!” 

The other side responded with middle-fingers waving in the air and chants of "Shame!" 

A perception held by some, including Stony Brook student Michelle Wenderlich, is that there were new people attending who hadn’t marched before in the movement. “It showed the new strength in the anti-war movement,” she said as she chatted with other exhausted riders on the Stony Brook bus as it pulled out of the parking area. 

Counter-protesters on the side of Pennsylvania Avenue (George Agathos)

Most of the busses parked at Greenbelt, a suburban Metro station just outside of the District of Columbia. The buses from Long Island took around five hours each way. From places further away, such as Massachusetts, buses left in the early morning hours on Saturday or even from the day before. 

Demonstrators attended the main rally on the field behind the White House and then embarked north on 15th street, weaving around Lafayette Park, southwest down Pennsylvania Avenue, and west across Constitution to return to the Mall where a concert was scheduled for 3 p.m. 

In addition to the main rally and march, the organizers have other events planned throughout the weekend, including an interfaith service on Sunday and acts of non-violent civil disobedience planned for Monday.

Photo gallery coming soon.