Westlake Center was unusually full last night as more than 1,000 protesters showed up to protest war and for a “call for actions of protest and resistance” sponsored by a group called Not in Our Name.
Protesters also gathered in San Francisco, Central Park in New York and a few other cities to protest President George Bush’s war against Iraq. Protesters in other cities may have totaled in the tens of thousands, according to a Not in Our Name coordinator.
Signs read: “Help stop American imperialism” and “Don’t let Bush call the shots.” Last night’s protests started at 1 p.m. at Volunteer Park on Capitol Hill and arrived Downtown around 3 p.m.
Speeches and songs carried the demonstration into the evening.
“We can’t pay a teacher money, as we should, but $50 billion for war, now that’s understood,” sung one protestor near Westlake as hundreds watched.
During the speeches, a “Pledge of Resistance” was read. The pledge was written and supported by Not in Our Name.
“We believe that as people living in the United States it is our responsibility to resist the injustices done by our government, in our names,” the pledge starts out.
There were a series of No War protests on Saturday as well, including a speech by Scott Ritter, former chief U.N. weapons inspector, in the U-District.
The “Pledge of Resistance” and more information about Not in Our Name can be found online at www.notinourname.net.
thedaily.washington.edu/action.lasso?-database=DailyWeb.fp5&-layout=List&-responE-mail this article