Why
we joined the Washington D.C. anti-war rally
In
response to the call for the International Day of Action, coinciding with
Martin Luther King’s day, the Dallas Peace Center organized a bus ride from North
Texas to Washington D.C. for a national anti-war rally on Saturday, January 18.
Several UTD students, including myself, along with more than 50 other North
Texans participated in this enduring around-the-clock bus ride. The bus trip
included many activists, students, and professionals from all age groups.
For
many in the bus this was going to be their first public protest. Majority of
people were admitting that they had never been to a large rally. A few others
could recall the massive anti-war rallies in 60s. Yet, in spite of different
previous experiences, everyone was very excited and energized. Although no one
knew what to expect from the rally, everyone seemed to have a clear reason for
protesting war on Iraq. “The issue is massacre of thousands of innocent
civilians in Iraq,” one college student explained. “This war is not about
liberating the people of Iraq or national security. It is about oil and
controlling the resources in the Middle East,” he continued. A young man was
worried that Bush administration’s policy on war would mean that domestic
priorities, like education and healthcare, would suffer. A middle age lady, who
had been laid off a few months ago, said, “we need money to create jobs not
killing people in other countries.” Another frustrated young student said, “I
am sick and tired of hearing that Americans are supporting this war! I am here
to tell the world that I for one is against this clear aggression against the
people of Iraq.” With all the ongoing conversations the long journey ahead did
not seem to bother anyone.
The
bus ride continued through the flat roads of Texas toward Arkansas. We stopped
in Hope, Arkansas. After a quick lunch the bus continued its journey toward
curvy roads of Tennessee covered by snow. Through the darkness of night,
driving across Virginia, we could see the thick layers of snow covering the
sides of the highway. We only had a few hundred miles to Washington D.C. The
bus driver reminded us that the temperature had dropped by 50 degrees since we
left Dallas. A young man responded “Then, I guess we have to shout louder in
the rally to stay warm!” Nothing seemed to discourage this high-spirited crowd.
Finally,
we arrived to D.C. It was hard to sit still. Everybody was becoming impatient,
wanting to get out of the bus and join the growing crowd. The bus stopped a few
blocks from the Capitol building and we got out. A grandmother who was being
accompanied by her two young grandchildren asked them to get her gloves and
wheel chair, getting ready for a 6-hour march.
As I was getting out a young man came to me and after he found out that
we were from Dallas he cheered and held up his “Impeach the moron” sign.
Shortly
after, we lined up behind our large banner of “War is not the answer” and
marched toward the Mall. The temperature was just a little above 20-degrees.
The streets were still blanketed in a light covering of snow. Everyone was
braving the bitter cold. As we got closer to the Mall the crowd was getting
larger and larger. We could hardly stay together. Eventually, I lost the group
and started wandering around. The first long block of the Mall was packed with
demonstrators standing shoulder-to-shoulder. At first glance it seemed like
everyone in the crowd was student. As I was pushing my way into the packed
lines of people I found myself next to “Mad Grandmas for Peace.” Two old ladies
sitting on wheelchairs were holding the banner. Behind them “Veterans for Peace” were standing tough.
My
toes and fingers were slowly freezing when Jesse Jackson started addressing the
crowd. When he said, “The world is cold, but our hearts are warm!” the crowd
applauded and cheered. I felt as if something is draining the cold out of my
body! Ramsey Clark and Al Sharpton were among other speakers. Sharpton was
saying that when it comes to Social Security, healthcare, and education Bush
administration says the government has budget deficit and we don’t have money
but they plan to spend a trillion Dollars to wage a war against the people of
Iraq.
The
second block of the Mall was also packed with people. I saw a young man
standing in his underwear and talking to reporters. His shivering body had been
painted by peace signs and other anti-war sentiments. He was speaking of the
surging grass-roots political power and making the sacrifice to stop senseless
killing of Iraqi people. The scene was touching and everyone wanted to see this
brave activist.
The
march had already been started and the crowd was moving toward the Washington
Navy Yard, about 3 miles away. The number of hand written signs and banners in
the march was innumerous. Some of my
favorite cynical signs were “Bomb Texas! They have oil too,” or “Regime change
starts at home!” Along the way I saw a man from Austin with a sign saying “I
came all the way from Texas to take George back!”
There
were countless numbers of ethnical groups: Palestinians against violence, Jews
demanding peace, Monks for peace. An Iranian student was holding a sign saying
“Iranians against war on Iraq.” She was explaining to me that for over ten
years Iranian and Iraqi governments were fighting. The only losers in that
devastating war were people on both sides. When Iraq used chemical weapons
against Iranian troops the U.S. made no objections. When they gassed over 5,000
Kurds, the U.S. rewarded Saddam with 10 Bell Helicopters. “Sanctions are
weapons of mass destruction” a sign held by an Arab-American said. “Over
1 million Iraqi civilians, 4,500 children under 5 are dying each month from
hunger and disease while bombings in the no-fly zone occur almost daily,” the
sign continued.
As we reached the scheduled destination point we encountered about 20 anti-demonstrators standing behind police barricade. They were holding sings like “Go home hippies” or “Go home communists.” The demonstrators dismissed their ignorance by shouting “This is what democracy looks like.” One of the demonstrators approached a man that was howling, “We gave enough chances to Saddam; it is time for action.” She pointed out to him that none of the 9-11 terrorists were Iraqis and they were from Saudi Arabia. The man immediately responded, “then we should bomb them too!” A few blocks down several people were passing out flyers inviting everyone to the next mass action on February 15. One of them was shouting, “We can stop the war by turning up the heat!”
It was time to head back to the bus. As we were
gathering around the bus we were hugging and shaking hands. Everyone looked
exuberant, intoxicated with what they had experienced. We started the game of
estimating the crowd size numbers. A man said that he had heard in the news it
was “the largest anti-war demonstration since Vietnam era.” That seems to be
satisfactory to everyone.
On
the way back people were constantly talking about the march and their
engagements with other demonstrators. Seeing such a large crowd demanding peace
was empowering. We were no longer just 50 people. We were part of a growing
global movement that is standing tall against
“Caesars of war” and saying “No” to aggressive world domination. A girl
with a flamboyant voice was saying, “I can’t wait to go back and tell my
friends what happened. I am going to write all my friends. I am tired of people
sitting and just criticizing. It is time to get up and force the government to
listen to us. It is time to act!” Several high school seniors were discussing
the idea of writing about the march in their school newspaper. Some college
students in the back of the bus were planning for February 15. The isolated
discussions and singing poetries and peace songs continued as the bus traveled
overnight.
As
for me personally, I must admit there was nothing thrilling about riding on a
bus for more than two days or walking in the sub-zero temperature for 6 hours.
What attracted me to participate in the anti-war rally was the fact that I
refuse to be a part of a reckless war that destroys the world. I wanted to join
the voices that resent Bush’s quest for conquering world oil at the cost of
the lives of my brothers and sisters. I wanted to pledge that I would no longer
be a passive citizen of this world. I wanted to move beyond my own
insignificant life and demand justice for other human beings no matter how
“uncool” I may appear. I wanted to vow that I would not allow the ruling
warmongers to hand me a wrecked future. I wanted to believe that I could
contribute to a better future, to a proud history, and to a peaceful world ….
and so are my dreams!
January
18, 2003
SAY
NO TO WAR ON IRAQ
Student
Labor Coalition - UTD
http://members.fortunecity.com/slcutd/