Marches, loud music and sit-ins in downtown D.C. yesterday were used to protest the five-year anniversary of the start of the Iraq war as hundreds of demonstrators took to the streets in defiance of the unpopular conflict.
United for Peace and Justice, a grassroots anti-war coalition, led the protest, which included more than 30 activist groups from across the country.
Michael Canning, a senior in the School of Public Affairs, said he was excited about the unique organization of yesterday's demonstration.
"This is the first time they're having different actions throughout the city, different groups doing simultaneous things on the same day instead of one big march," Canning said.
Andrew Bobbyn, a sophomore in the School of Public Affairs and the College of Arts and Sciences, said the goal for the day was to disrupt recruiting stations and the offices of organizations considered "war profiteers."
Protesters spread out around the city, blockading buildings that included the Internal Revenue Service and the Armed Forces Recruiting Center. They also organized a "Waropoly" walking tour of the K Street corridor, encouraging "creative street theater and peaceful disruption." Students gathered en masse and played music on loudspeakers, dancing in the streets during an event called "Funk the War," according to an Eagle reporter covering the event.
Passersby stopped to watch the events and resulting conflicts. Police officers, who served as a human barrier between the protesters and counter-protesters, denied them entry to the buildings they blockaded and even carried away people sitting in the middle of intersections, an Eagle reporter observed.
Protesters carried on, chanting "Our street, their war" and "Shame on you" as they distributed fliers to cars stuck in traffic,.
Canning said he saw the street disturbances as a tangible benefit of the day's activities.
"People have to actually stop and say, 'Why can't I go where I want to go right now?' and then, of course, to think a little bit about the war or what they're passively consenting to do as a part of the war," he said.
Leslie Cagan, the national coordinator for United for Peace and Justice, said she was pleased with the turnout but was not sure of exact numbers because protesters never gathered at the same place and time. Approximately 600 demonstrations occurred across the country yesterday. The protests in D.C. were only part of the day's events nationwide, she said.
