Posted on 03/02/2003 6:19:03 PM PST by 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!
One of them leaned over and said to the person marching next to me 'I am so gald to see you guys here!'
Now you made me cry. Long distance honks and "whoo hoos"! (^;
GREAT movie...MUD
...and now this from USC's DAILY TROJAN Newspaper:For the record, I did NOT "almost start a fight," and I do not recall "running over and shouting" at that "No war for oil" bozo, although I DO remember confronting him with something like,
'Demonstrators show support for possible war'
http://www.dailytrojan.com/article.do?issue=/V148/N31&id=01-demon.31c.htmlDemonstrators show support for possible war
Protest: Three groups gather in downtown Los Angeles to demonstrate solidarity with president
By DIDIER DIELS
Staff Writer
A group of about 30 protesters marched a half-mile of downtown Los Angeles on Sunday to voice support for President George W. Bush's stance against Iraq and the need to help the homeless, who organizers said were often poorly supported veterans.The protest, which began 9 a.m. at the corner of Olympic Boulevard and Figueroa Street, drew mostly positive responses from crowds gathered for the Los Angeles marathon but nearly produced a fight when a man flashed peace signs and chanted "No blood for oil."
Ron Smith, who runs promotion for the Los Angeles chapter of FreeRepublic.com, a conservative news forum, ran over and shouted at the man but soon rejoined the march.
"All I know is we have to get rid of Saddam," said Smith, 47. "People think this is going to piss off the Arab world. They're pissed off anyway."
Ted Hayes, founder of the antihomelessness group, Justiceville USA, arranged for the rally to be held at the Dome Village, a collection of domed housing units for homeless people, which Hayes helped found in 1993.
Hayes said he believed military action to aid the Iraqi people would be hypocritical if the U.S. government did not also take action to aid America's homeless
"I'm saying liberate the people over there, but we must bear in mind that there are people here in the U.S. living in the streets, and a lot of them are veterans," Hayes said.
"The most important people of any society are the soldiers that defend it," he added.
The rally was also sponsored by FIT-AIM-ACT, which stands for a Fully Intact & Trained military, Annihilate Incoming Missiles and Attack & Crush Terrorism, an activist group, which supports an increase in military funding, the Bush administration's proposed missile-defense system and strong action against terrorism.
Ronnie Guyer, a spokesman for FIT-AIM-ACT and a Vietnam veteran, said his group believed that diplomatic solutions had failed and agreed with Bush that it was time to invade Iraq.
"I think we've been at war since Sept. 11," Guyer said. "Every nation that hates the U.S. needs to be democratized. After Iraq is Iran, then Syria, then Lybia, and so on. It's our own best defense."
Guyer said he fought in the battle of the Iadrang Valley, the subject of the recent film "We Were Soldiers," and that he agreed with Hayes about the poor treatment veterans had received from the government.
Other speakers at the rally included the Rev. Jesse Paterson, who founded the Brotherhood Organization for a New Destiny, a group to combat the impressions figureheads such as Louis Farrakhan and Al Sharpton give of the black community, Paterson said.
"I am disappointed with black leaders like Farrakhan who are trying to distance the black community from the rest of America," he said. "They're anti-American and bigoted demagogues."
Paterson said he was involved in a lawsuit against Jonathan Jackson, the Rev. Jesse Jackson's son, for physically attacking him in November 2001. He added that the lawsuit was in the California Superior Court and he hoped it would come to trial within the next year.
BOND, Justiceville USA, FIT-AIM-ACT and a number of other groups planned to stage another joint rally March 22 outside the ceremonies for the Academy Awards at Kodak Theatre.
Copyright 2003 by the Daily Trojan. All rights reserved.
This article was published in Vol. 148, No. 31 (Monday, March 3, 2003), beginning on page 1 and ending on page 6.
"Oh, yeah?!? What about flying airplanes into buildings? Is THAT O.K.?"And, I do not remember using the words "pissed off," although I may have.
Fortunately for us, this article was only printed in some rinky-dink college newspaper, but I can now understand the need to have a CLEAR, SIMPLE, consistent message prepared - just in case we get approached by reporters at FUTURE events.
The Free Republic Chapter of Los Angeles (also known as The Hollywood Resistance Force)
The Free Republic Chapter of Los Angeles (also known as The Hollywood Resistance Force)
Nam Vet
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