***50,000 PRESENT AT LOS ANGELES "SUPPORT OUR TROOPS" RALLY***

LA CHAPTER | 3/2/03 | Diotima

[diotima]

The Free Republic Chapter of Los Angeles (also known as The Hollywood Resistance Force) along with a coalition of other conservative organizations held a "Support Our Troops" rally in Los Angeles this afternoon.

The LA Chapter of FR with the Liberty Belles, FitAimAct, College Republicans and BOND met early this morning downtown for our rally, listened to great speeches from the likes of Ted Hayes, of FITAIMACT and Dome Village, Jesse Lee Peterson of BOND, Joe Lauria of the Liberty Belles and FR's own RON DOG.

After the speeches were given we began our march around downtown. A large group of people carring giant American Flags, Bush/Cheney signs, Support Our Troops signs, and the compulsory "France Should Be Ashamed" signs, desended upon the LA MARATHON. As we marched we chanted "Liberate Iraq!" and other marching slogans.

****WE ACTUALLY MARCHED IN THE MARATHON ALMOST TO THE FINISH LINE**** We heard cries of support, thumbs up and many thanks from the LA Police force! (One of them leaned over and said to the person marching next to me 'I am so gald to see you guys here!') When we finished our march, we had interviews with KABC, channel 7 (we have already been on TV) and several other media outlets, I couldn't keep them all straight. If anyone else knows please post them.

When we were finished, marched back along the streets to horns honking and thumbs and returned to our original location.

I'll let eveyone else who was there come in and post their comments. Today's rally was a great success and ai think the key was joining up with other organizations in the area to combine forces and make an impact.

Thanks to the hard work by everyone involved!! Thanks Everyone!

[FIT-AIM-ACT-1]

He quoted me wrong...I said sometime like "we are against war, but even more than that, we're against terrorism. Sometimes war is necessary to stop it. If threatened, we'll fight." It's my standard response when asked about being pro-war.

[W04Man]

Ping! Good Job in L.A. .....

And In DC, here was one Iraqi immigrant who supports the US:

http://W-04.com

[FIT-AIM-ACT-1]

Better yet...if you haven't mailed out the CD, give it to me this Saturday at the meeting. Thanks.

[Bob J]

Okay.

[dsahargun]

Sorry Guys, but there was not 50,000 people there. In fact, about only 30-50 people showed up. The 50,000 must have included the runners in the marathon. I sure would have liked to have seen 50,000 there, but it simply is not true. Congrats to those in texas and cleveland who rallied last weekend with numbers in the thousands. Go America!

[Auntie Mame]

Bumping it up.

It's never too late to read this outstanding afteraction report.

[Joy Angela]

[FIT-AIM-ACT-1]

No, no, no...The number for Los Angeles is wrong...we had about 50 marchers, not 50,000. That's a mis-read of the thread information. We were in the middle of 50,000 spectators at the L.A. Marathon. However, we had one big advantage, our leader Ted Hayes. He took over the finish line crowd and took no prisoners. It was inspiring.

[FIT-AIM-ACT-1]

No, no, no...The number for Los Angeles is wrong...we had about 50 marchers, not 50,000. That's a mis-read of the thread information. We were in the middle of 50,000 spectators at the L.A. Marathon. However, we had one big advantage, our leader Ted Hayes. He took over the finish line crowd and took no prisoners. It was inspiring.

[wm25burke]

All over Southern California a voice is being raised against the Anti-War drones.

We're taking back ground in Brea.

Come show your support on Saturday's throughout the month of March - at the intersection of Brea Blvd and Imperial Hwy.

Click here for the thread on the Brea opposition: ^

Excerpt:
Anti-War Protestors put on an ugly face Saturday Afternoon - being pretty much confined to a single corner at the intersection of Brea and Imperial Hwy.

Apparently, they don't like sharing the intersection with people who don't agree with them.

[Darling Lili]

Sorry Guys, but there was not 50,000 people there. In fact, about only 30-50 people showed up. The 50,000 must have included the runners in the marathon. I sure would have liked to have seen 50,000 there, but it simply is not true.

Are you serious? It sure looked like a lot more than 50 people to me. Can anyone clarify this?

[FIT-AIM-ACT-1]

We're having a big strategy meeting this Saturday for the anti-terror rally at the Oscars, but we'll try to make it to your event if possible. When does it start and end? Of course, you are welcome to come to our on Sunday March 23rd event. It should be fun with all the celebs and fans.

[FIT-AIM-ACT-1]

No, no, no...The number for Los Angeles is wrong...we had about 50 marchers, not 50,000. That's a mis-read of the thread information. We were in the middle of 50,000 spectators at the L.A. Marathon. However, we had one big advantage, our leader Ted Hayes. He took over the finish line crowd and took no prisoners. It was inspiring.

[Darling Lili]

No, no, no...The number for Los Angeles is wrong...we had about 50 marchers, not 50,000. That's a mis-read of the thread information.

A misread of the thread information?

How could that be a "misread of the thread information," when THAT information was never provided to the reader in the first place?

Thank you for being the one to come on this thread to clarify the misunderstanding, 2 days after the fact. (I just noticed that you have been trying to correct the record here since 3/4)

Accuracy and honesty, when presenting one's organization's activities, goes a long way toward building an organization's credibility.

[wm25burke]

>>When does it start and end?

Last week I got there at 12:00, noon, and left at 5:00pm

There were people there when I arrived, and people still there when I left.

This is pretty much just a grass roots effort – as far as I know, there isn’t any “official” organizer – people are just showing up.

I did overhear the Anti-war crow discussing their need to pump up their numbers.

So... your participation will matter – we need to hold our ground.


Thanks,
Bill

[FIT-AIM-ACT-1]

We'll try to show up to your next Saturday event. We'll trying to build a group to go to the Academy Awards for a Pro-American rally there on the 3-23. Of course, all of you are invited.

[FIT-AIM-ACT-1]

Thanks for the encouraging words. We're hoping the FReepers will come out in big numbers for the Academy Awards pro-American rally. We made some good contacts at today's Sean Hannity Show. I hope you'll be there on the 23rd. Go to www.fitaimact.org for details.

[Darling Lili]

Thanks for the invite, but unfortunately, the Kodak Theatre is a bit of a drive for me.

Best of luck to you guys, though!

[Republic]

I wuv :^) that picture of the Iraqi child with the flags! IMHO it is the perfect selection for FR honorary photo shot (if there were such a thing-there should be!) and it is fit for the cover of National Geographic. That picture is what our nation is all about! That little face....a treasure! And you captured it.

[MissBaby]

50,000!!!!!! WOW!!!! Great job to all!!!!

Actually, I think that is the estimate that was put out by the anti-war orgainizations. The actual number - using sophisticated overhead imaging - was closer to 800,000.

Now that number may be a bit high but I do know it took the winners of the race a little over 2 hours to get through the crowd that showed up to Support Our Troops.