PROTESTERS MARCH ON HOLLYWOOD ANTI-WAR RALLIERS MARK 2ND YEAR OF U.S. IN IRAQ.Byline: Rachel Uranga Staff Writer HOLLYWOOD - Chanting ``no more war'' and carrying mock coffins, thousands of anti-war demonstrators marched through the fabled streets of Hollywood on Saturday to mark the second anniversary of the invasion of Iraq. Holding signs that read ``Bush: Liar'' and ``warmonger,'' protesters stretching for three blocks danced, chanted and waved umbrellas as they made their way peaceably peace·a·ble adj. 1. Inclined or disposed to peace; promoting calm: They met in a peaceable spirit. 2. Peaceful; undisturbed. from Hollywood Boulevard For uses other than the original street, see Hollywood Boulevard (disambiguation). Hollywood Boulevard is a boulevard in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, United States, beginning at Sunset Boulevard in the east and running northwest to Vermont Avenue, where it straightens out and Vine Street
``There's no justification for the deaths of men and women in this war,'' said Serge Louchnikov, a 24-year-old Iraq war Iraq War: see under Persian Gulf Wars. Iraq War or Second Persian Gulf War Brief conflict in 2003 between Iraq and a combined force of troops largely from the U.S. and Great Britain; and a subsequent U.S. veteran from Sherman Oaks who helped lead marchers. ``We are here to defend this nation, not to serve the interests of politicians.'' The protest was one of several held across the country Saturday, including marches in New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of and San Francisco that drew thousands. Police estimate that the hours-long rally in Hollywood drew 2,000. Organizers say the crowd was closer to 20,000. On the Westside on Saturday, a memorial exhibit honored the more than 1,500 U.S. soldiers and 10,000 Iraqi civilians killed in the Iraq war. The exhibit is titled ``Eyes Wide Open This article contains links, text or other information that has been inserted due to a business arrangement by the Wikimedia Foundation rather than the usual Wikipedia editing process. It may or may not comply with all of Wikipedia's normal editorial standards. : The Human Cost of the War in Iraq.'' Many who took to the streets in Hollywood were young people who have resisted the war since its start. Others came from a range of anti-war groups, including Veterans for Peace, as well as workers unions and a Chicano studies class at Mission College. ``We want to see our troops coming home,'' said Nancy Saldana, 24, a fifth-grade teacher from North Hollywood and part of Progressive Democrats of America The Progressive Democrats of America is a progressive political organization and grassroots Political Action Committee operating inside the Democratic Party. History . ``I am here for peace. I want to make sure my students aren't going to be the ones drafted later.'' Saldana and others expressed frustration with what they called aggressive military recruitment efforts in low-income schools. Others used the rally to rail against Palestinian and Israeli conflict as well as President George W. Bush's push to overhaul Social Security. But, for a few, the war was very personal. ``This war has got to stop,'' said Vickie Castro, who held up a poster of her 21-year-old son, Jonathan, killed Dec. 21 in the suicide attack on a mess hall in Mosul. ``I came because I don't want another mother to suffer.'' Jonathan Castro volunteered to go to Afghanistan to catch Osama bin Laden Osama bin Laden: see bin Laden, Osama. after 9-11, but he never believed Iraq was a threat - just a political ploy to control the region, she said. Organizers at ANSWER - or Act Now to Stop War and End Racism, an anti-war group that has organized more than a dozen protests since the war began - said they were hearing from more disgruntled dis·grun·tle tr.v. dis·grun·tled, dis·grun·tling, dis·grun·tles To make discontented. [dis- + gruntle, to grumble (from Middle English gruntelen; see veterans and their families. Over the coming months, ANSWER intends to stage more demonstrations to draw attention to what members say is growing dissatisfaction over the direction of the war. ``We are going to stop this war. This is only the beginning,'' Ron Kovic - a paralyzed par·a·lyze tr.v. par·a·lyzed, par·a·lyz·ing, par·a·lyz·es 1. To affect with paralysis; cause to be paralytic. 2. To make unable to move or act: paralyzed by fear. Vietnam veteran whose story was the basis for the Tom Cruise film ``Born on the Fourth of July'' - told a cheering crowd. Passers-by both favored and opposed the demonstration. One Vietnam veteran visiting the Highland & Hollywood shopping plaza was so swept up he staged his own one-man protest against the marchers with a single, obscene gesture in the air. Rachel Uranga, (818) 713-3741 rachel.uranga(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): 2 photos Photo: (1 -- 2) At left, Anita Hamlin of Sherman Oaks and Stephan Frank Gray of Van Nuys join in the peace march Saturday in Hollywood. Below, a picture of Jesus Suarez del Solar, a Marine killed in Iraq, sits besides 179 pairs of boots, representing the troops from the state who have died so far in the Iraq war, in an exhibit in Westwood. Michael Owen Baker/Staff Photographer David Sprague/Staff Photographer |
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