Photo by dstarr.
Posted on 01/16/2005 5:56:44 AM PST by clyde asbury
Published on: Sunday, Jan 16, 2005
On the one-year anniversary of the start of the war in Iraq, hundreds gathered in Fayetteville for what some called the city's largest peace rally since the Vietnam War.
Even more people are expected for the second anniversary.
A rally set for March 19 at Rowan Park is being advertised nationally by United for Peace and Justice. On its Web site, the group is promoting a ''major regional protest in Fayetteville, N.C.''
The day after the rally, Iraq Veterans Against the War plans to hold its national convention here. Mike Hoffman, a former Marine who lives near Philadelphia, is the group's national coordinator.
''People talk constantly about numbers and strategy,'' he said. ''They're forgetting the individual stories of people.''
Organizers said the highlight of last year's rally was the stories from veterans and military families. Chuck Fager said he expects veterans, military families and perhaps even active-duty soldiers to give talks this year.
Fager is director of the Quaker House, an organization that helps soldiers who want to leave the military. It helped plan last year's rally. This year, the Quaker House and Fayetteville Peace for Justice decided to invite people back. Other groups sponsoring the rally include the North Carolina Peace and Justice Coalition, North Carolina Council of Churches, Military Families Speak Out, Bring Them Home Now and Veterans for Peace.
Lou Plummer, co-founder of Fayetteville Peace for Justice, said one of the main reasons he supports the rally is that he has friends and family serving in the military.
''This is my hometown; I grew up here,'' he said. ''This war is not something abstract I read about in the newspaper. It touches my life in a small way every day.''
Plummer and Fager said this year's rally will be similar to last year's. It will start with a march and feature speakers, music, poetry, art and dancing. Fager is hoping for a celebrity speaker.
Last year, many people were scared to come to Fayetteville, Fager said. But the rally - and counterdemonstration across the street - passed without incident.
''People who wanted to come last time but were too nervous to do it probably won't be so nervous this time,'' Fager said.
Fager said it is difficult to measure the rally's influence, but he and other war protesters receive support whenever they are out.
They held their last Fayetteville peace vigil in November.
''We had the same reaction then that we've had since the summer of 2003,'' he said, ''more favorable responses than unfavorable. That reinforces our sense that there are a growing number of people uneasy about the war.''
Plummer said last year's rally was effective because it gave people a voice.
''It was not effective in that we're still in Iraq,'' he said. ''If this rally doesn't help stop the war, we'll have one next year, but I hope not. I want this to be the last one.''
Staff writer Allison Williams can be reached at williamsa@fayettevillenc.com or 323-4848, ext. 331. Copyright 2005 The Fayetteville (NC) Observer
Innocent children.....give me a break. There are none as you have described.
Voices of reason...... radical pacifists are completely unreasonable. Brains are closed with a 2" rind permittiing no rational thoughts to enter.
You have described the enemy, not someone worthy of hearing.
Life as you think it is over.
Sounds like he's criticizing the wrong people. Aren't the anti-war people the ones always throwing the number of dead and injured out there? Anyway, I know on FR we don't forget the individual stories. Maybe I'm just jaded?
Hey, I missed this part. I said last year that if we could make it *this* year, I'd be prepared to dance! Do we have a sound system?
No. We don't have a sound system. I don't know where the one last year came from. Did the DC Chapter bring one? I know they let me give my strange yell with it and really turned some heads.
Well, should I bring my Arabic music tapes and my dance outfit, or would that be too, er, liberal?
LOL! That is toooo funny. Girl, you can wear whatever you want. I'm going to wear as much red and cowboy attire as possible.
I'm planning to make matching jumpers for me and all the girls in a patriotic print. But maybe I'll throw in a dance costume, just in case the occasion looks right ...
Doctor Raoul will bring his sound system again!
Ping! I will be there!
That is good to hear. I was wondering what we would do. I'll bring my CD player and make some patriotic CDs if we want to bombard the "unwashed".
I'm so sick of these idiots. Families shouldn't have to listen to this crap. They really shouldn't.
Love your tag line!
Do we have a permit?
Are we going to have two locations this year as well?
We have a permit for an "undisclosed" location.
We would like to plan an organizational meeting for next week for all who are interested in organizing the event. Does anyone know how to set up Pal talk?
We have other groups involved, now, too.
The location is given on the permit I have.
It doesn't show very well on the triplicate, but it is for Rowan Park.
But, maybe you meant another one?
And I'd also be willing to be an "early adopter" of Pal Talk so we can figure it out, etc. Any others?
Cool. We're in the park. Excellent.
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