Anti-Iraq War Demonstrators Seek Momentum

March, 17, 2006 — -- When anti-war activists mark the third anniversary of the invasion of Iraq this weekend, their demonstrations will be aimed not at Washington but at communities across the country. Organizers hope this strategy will turn declining public support for the war into a grass roots movement to end U.S. involvement.

"This will allow people to participate directly without traveling, to be involved in the anti-war movement right where they live," said Brian Becker, spokesman for The Answer Coalition.

There will be one protest in Washington, D.C., outside Vice President Dick Cheney's house. But nothing in Washington will evoke memories of the mass gatherings at the White House, Pentagon and on The Mall during the Vietnam War.

There are many differences between the Iraq and Vietnam wars. One is the number of casualties three years into the conflict. By this time in the Vietnam War, casualties were more than five times the number of Americans killed so far in Iraq. And then there was the draft during the Vietnam War. Today, servicemen and women voluntarily serve in the military.

Anti-War Movement's Ambivalence

Though many polls that show that fewer than half of Americans support the conflict -- and more than half now believe the invasion of Iraq was a mistake -- the anti-war movement hasn't caught fire.

In fact, demonstrations since the conflict in Iraq began are smaller than those which preceded the war. In Seattle, 3,000 people once formed a human chain encircling Green Lake, about three miles in circumference. Today, demonstrators aren't numbered even in the hundreds.

"Part of the reason that Americans are ambivalent is they still feel it's important to get the war right, and don't want to completely withdraw support," Eric Larson, senior policy analyst for the RAND Corp.

Free Republic, a conservative organization that supports the war, is mounting counterdemonstrations in several places this weekend.

"When you make a commitment to a foreign country like Iraq, you need to keep it" said Free Republic spokesman Kristinn Taylor. "If you don't, you'll sentence the Iraqi people to a living hell."

Military Families Seek War's End

But some of this weekend's demonstrations are being organized by the parents and relatives of those who face the ultimate sacrifice in Iraq: military families.

Military Families Speak Out expects 3,000 demonstrators in 26 states and Puerto Rico. The relatives of those demanding the troops be brought home immediately have sons or daughters on duty in Iraq or ready to redeploy, who have returned with physical or psychological wounds, and who have lost their lives. They will be joined by Iraq Veterans Against the War and Vets For Peace.

Members of Military Families Speak Out believe it is more important now than ever to bring an end to the war, especially with troops currently engaged in the largest air assault in Iraq since the war began and with support for the war increasingly waning.

"Our objective is to build the movement that will bring this war to an end," said Nancy Lessin, co-founder of Military Families Speak Out. "We're moving into the fourth year of a war that should never have happened."

"We now see an escalation of war that is based on lies." Lessin added. "And what we have said from the beginning is that the war was wrong from the beginning and continuing it will not make it right. It will only lead to more deaths among our troops and the Iraqi people. Focusing on members of Congress and senators, asking them to show some leadership and speak out to end the war, bring our troops home now and take care of them when they get home. They've been complicit in the past."

Demonstrator Perception May Be Key to Anti-War Momentum

In addition to protester turnout on the anniversary of the war in Iraq, Eric Larson said it may be noteworthy to see how the demonstrators are perceived.

"What will be interesting is to see what happens and if the demonstrators come off as mainstream or if they come off as being on the fringes," Larson said. When the demonstrators became more mainstream, it was the tipping point for support of the war in Vietnam.

Several days ago, 35 anti-war demonstrators marched down Main Street in Winfield, Kan. The city of 12,000 is on the Kansas-Arkansas border. On Monday, the Arkansas City Traveler newspaper noted the demonstration in an editorial:

"That 35 people in Winfield would march through town protesting the Iraq war speaks volumes about public opinion."

"One expects war protests in blue states and bigger cities. Here in the Heartland, we don't kick up too much dust.

"But the daily carnage combined with the detached rhetoric we get from Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld and Rice has emboldened citizens. The march though Winfield illustrates what public opinion polls show -- the president has lost Main Street."

Even though the protests will not focus on Washington this weekend, Washington will be watching.