After the invasion began, the anti-war movement predictably declined. So, movement organizers retreated and tried to think about what to do next. On May 17-18, 2003, International ANSWER held a national conference which "850 activists and organizers" attended, according to ANSWER ("Notes on the UFPJ Conference [June 6-8, Chicago]," June 13, 2003, <http://mailman.lbo-talk.org/2003/2003-June/015660.html>). United for Peace and Justice held a national conference on June 6-8, 2003, which attracted "over 500 participants attended, from 38 states and approximately 350 organizations," according to the conference organizers ("Notes on the UFPJ Conference [June 6-8, Chicago]," June 13, 2003, <http://mailman.lbo-talk.org/2003/2003-June/015660.html>). Both conferences must have been organized for the purpose of keeping the anti-war movement alive at least in some fashion, and holding conferences to work out campaign plans at that point was very timely, for which both ANSWER and UfPJ organizers ought to be applauded.
Then, the anti-war movement began to pick up the momentum again, as it became clear -- last October if not sooner -- that the occupation of Iraq wasn't a piece of cake:
<blockquote>A summer of continuing attacks on American soldiers in Iraq, the failure so far to find weapons of mass destruction there and Mr. Bush's recent request for $87 billion to pay for military operations and reconstruction in Iraq and Afghanistan have taken a toll on public support for his administration's Iraq policy and on views of his ability to handle such issues in general.
The poll found that just 45 percent of Americans now have confidence in Mr. Bush's ability to deal wisely with an international crisis, down sharply from 66 percent in April, and half now say they are uneasy about his approach. Nearly 9 in 10 Americans say the war in Iraq is still going on, and 6 in 10 say the United States should not spend as much on the effort as Mr. Bush has sought. Three-quarters of Americans, including a majority of Republicans, say the administration has yet to clearly explain how long American troops will have to stay in Iraq, or how much it will cost to rebuild the country. (Todd S. Purdum and Janet Elder, "Poll Shows Drop in Confidence on Bush Skill in Handling Crises," <em>New York Times</em>, October 3, 2003, <http://archives.econ.utah.edu/archives/pen-l/2003w39/msg00141.htm>)</blockquote>
ANSWER and UfPJ co-sponsored a national march and rally in D.C. on October 25, 2003, drawing "40,000 to 50,000 " according to D.C. Police Chief Charles H. Ramsey and "100,000" according to the organizers (Manny Fernandez, "In D.C., a Diverse Mix Rouses War Protest," <em>Washington Post</em>, October 26, 2003, p. A8 , <http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A17636-2003Oct25.html>).
On March 20, 2004, "upwards of 2 million people took to the streets," in more than 60 countries throughout the world -- from Japan to South Korea to Spain to Australia to South Africa," with activists in "at least 300 U.S. cities and towns," as well as in "more than 275 other cities throughout the world," holding anti-war protests on the one-year anniversary of the invasion of Iraq (cf. <http://www.veteransforpeace.org/Over_two_million_032104.htm>). Here are a couple of articles about the March 20, 2004 events in Columbus, Ohio:
<blockquote>Columbus Dispatch (Ohio) March 21, 2004 Sunday, Home Final Edition SECTION: NEWS; Pg. 03A LENGTH: 458 words HEADLINE: HUNDREDS DENOUNCE IRAQ WAR; Local rally, vigil mark anniversary of U.S. invasion BYLINE: Janice Podsada, THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
It would have been unthinkable for Laura Barndt to have skipped yesterday's prayer vigil at the First African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church on the Near East Side.
"I have been active in the peace movement since I was 12," said Barndt, 87, of Worthington. "It's always seemed terribly important to stop war."
The vigil marked the first anniversary of the invasion of Iraq. For many, it was a day of prayers, marches and rallies in support of peace and the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq.
More than 70 people attended the church's interfaith vigil that had Sikhs, Buddhists, American Indians, Muslims, Hindus, Christians and others sitting shoulder to shoulder under a stained glass dome.
Muna Al-Aseer, a Muslim, and Norma Hurt, the mother of Margo Doers, a U.S. soldier injured in Iraq, lit two candles at the start of the service.
Al-Aseer recited a Jewish prayer for peace. The Rev. Ron Atwood, a Catholic priest, called for the end to human-rights violations in the war's aftermath. Donna Hamilton offered a Buddhist prayer.
Barry Thomas offered an American Indian prayer. "We know after 500 years the one that has the biggest stick isn't always right," he said.
Tarunjit Singh Butalia, one of the vigil's organizers and a follower of the Sikh faith, said he could not in good conscience have skipped the day's activities.
"I have an 8-year-old daughter, Jasjit," Butalia said. "What if she comes to me 20 years from now and asks, 'Dad, why were you silent?' "
Many participants wore tennis shoes and rain gear, anticipating the march from the church at Bryden Road and 18th Street to the Statehouse, where an afternoon anti-war rally was scheduled.
A score of peace groups sponsored the rally, which drew 300 people.
But a handful of people stood apart from the crowd. Their banners read "Victory first, then justice."
"As long as we're there let's finish the job. World War II did not end with appeasement, it ended with victory," said Jeff Hall of Worthington.
Hall denounced the crowd's simplistic cry for peace.
"There are people who want to kill us," he said. "After victory, we can all march for peace."
Chris Kaiser, 49, of Alabama, happened upon the Downtown rally. He found himself in agreement with the students and musicians who spoke and sang for peace.
"I think this war is a waste of time," Kaiser said. "They need to bring the troops home so they can take care of their families."
A similar protest took place in Cincinnati, where more than 250 people gathered for almost two hours at downtown's Fountain Square. Protesters, some dressed in tie-dye T-shirts, carried signs such as "Bush Lies. Thousands Die."
Information from the Associated Press was used in this story.
GRAPHIC: Photo, ERIC ALBRECHT DISPATCH/, Tarunjit Singh Butalia helped organize yesterday's interfaith vigil on the, Near East Side and attended the rally that followed at the Statehouse.</blockquote>
<blockquote>Columbus Dispatch (Ohio) March 19, 2004 Friday, Home Final Edition SECTION: NEWS; Pg. 10A LENGTH: 536 words HEADLINE: IRAQ: A YEAR OF WAR; PEACE ACTIVISTS STILL COMMITTED, PLAN WEEKEND STATEHOUSE VIGIL BYLINE: John Futty, THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Nearly every Saturday afternoon for more than a year, Janet McLaughlin has stood on a Worthington street corner, joined in her vigil by a few other central Ohio residents who hold signs and banners promoting peace during a time of war.
"Our feeling is, OK, we didn't prevent the war in Iraq, but we're still committed to peace," she said. "A commitment to peace isn't a one-time event. It's a lifetime commitment."
The Northwest Side resident is a member of Central Ohioans for Peace, a group formed in February 2003 when about 100 people met at a Worthington church to express their concerns about the impending war in Iraq.
The resulting peace rallies at the corner of N. High Street and Rt. 161 didn't stop when the war began March 19.
And members of the group say the organization won't go away, even after the troops come home.
Although the number of demonstrators has declined, the group attracts about two dozen people to its weekly organizational meetings and is seeking nonprofit status.
It also has seen its mission broaden.
"There is social injustice all over the world, and our group is concerned about that," said Sue Simon of Westerville, another regular at the Saturday demonstrations.
"If our mission is to promote peaceful resolutions to problems, we can't discriminate about where."
At 10:30 a.m. Saturday, they will join with other peace advocates for an interfaith prayer service at the First AME Zion Church, 873 Bryden Road, marking the first anniversary of the war.
It will be followed at noon with a rally outside the church and a march to the Statehouse at 1 p.m., organized by the Central Ohio Peace Network.
The prayer service is sponsored by Faith Communities Uniting for Peace, which formed after more than 200 people attended a similar service the day after the war began.
"We're very much grounded in our faith traditions," said Tarunjit S. Butalia, a co-director for Faith Communities. "Our responses aren't about politics."
The group, which includes Buddhists, Christians, Hindus, Jews, Muslims and Sikhs, sponsors a monthly gathering at the Main Library to pray for peace and promote dialogue about social justice.
"The issue of peace and justice is not just about Iraq," Butalia said.
At its monthly meetings, Faith Communities discusses and takes action on a variety of topics, including AIDS/HIV funding for Africa and vandalism to churches and synagogues.
Yoshie Furuhashi of the International Student Forum at Ohio State University said the peace movement lost some momentum when the war began, but gained supporters when the United States met guerrilla resistance and failed to uncover weapons of mass destruction.
And local peace groups still battle the perception that they don't support U.S. troops.
"When we started our rallies, we heard from a lot of people who thought if we wanted peace, we were against our soldiers," Simon said. "That was hard, because it's not how we feel."
She said negative reactions have become rare at the weekly rallies and passers-by seem increasingly supportive.
"We plan to continue indefinitely," Simon said. "If we can make one person think every time we're out there, it's worth it."
GRAPHIC: Photo, ERIC ALBRECHT DISPATCH/, "A commitment to peace isn't a one-time event."/, Janet McLaughlin peace activist</blockquote>
My own estimate of the number of activists at the Columbus rally on March 20, 2004 is 600-800.
The events listed above are mobilizations on the national scale. The last big mobilization happened on March 20, 2004.
At the local level, we've held weekly demonstrations (on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays), educational events, prayers (organized by Faith Communities Uniting for Peace), etc., as activists in other cities have. Such local events have been continuing, though less frequently and with fewer in attendance since March 20, 2004.
Things are just now picking up again, however. Ballot access and voter registration efforts are mostly over, so more activists are beginning to think about post-election activities. -- Yoshie
* Critical Montages: <http://montages.blogspot.com/> * Greens for Nader: <http://greensfornader.net/> * Bring Them Home Now! <http://www.bringthemhomenow.org/> * OSU-GESO: <http://www.osu-geso.org/> * Calendars of Events in Columbus: <http://sif.org.ohio-state.edu/calendar.html>, <http://www.freepress.org/calendar.php>, & <http://www.cpanews.org/> * Student International Forum: <http://sif.org.ohio-state.edu/> * Committee for Justice in Palestine: <http://www.osudivest.org/> * Al-Awda-Ohio: <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Al-Awda-Ohio> * Solidarity: <http://www.solidarity-us.org/>