Demonstrations are just...ok. Look at how ineffective the antiwar demonstrations were in 2003 and 2004. In the days of Walter Cronkite, demonstrations had a lot of sway but not so much anymore.
Off the top of my head I would guess Walter had pretty much a monopoly on the news...in 2003 and 2004 people had plenty of outlets to help them form their opinions. On this issue though, I'm not sure how many people were really paying attention until they saw those demonstrations. How sympathetic people will be is another question though, particularly in areas that aren't seeing their local resources exhausted by serving this community.