Matt Denner, of the Iowa Citizens Action Network, said several central Iowa groups worked for months to put together the protest at the corner of Lincoln Way and Grand Avenue.
To the cheers of protesters, many drivers rode by and honked their horns in support of the group that stood in front of the Lincoln Center and held up signs with slogans such as "Keep 'em safe, Bring 'em home" and "This veteran opposes preemptive unilateral war"
|
|
"President Bush should do time in prison as a war criminal for what he's done in Iraq," Gradwohl said. "I oppose the surge of American troops and throwing more money at this war. The Iraqis must take charge because this is a civil war, and we simply are not going to win a civil war."
Across the street from Gradwohl, about a dozen counter protesters, including Gregg and Pamela West, of Ames, held up an American flag.
"Nobody likes war, everybody wants peace," Pamela West said. "While we may not agree with the politics of the war, if we don't continue to stop the terrorism over there, it will come here to haunt us."
Iraq war veteran Luke Devine, of Ames, stood next to West and echoed her sentiments.
"These people protesting are under the impression that people in the Middle East just didn't get enough hugs when they were little," Devine said. "And, if we all just get in a big circle and hug each other, it will fix everything. Believe me, it doesn't fix anything. Those people in the Middle East want to kill us."
But rally organizer Gary Tartakov, of the Alliance for Global Justice, said the protesters just want to see an end to the bloodshed.
"We believe this war is tragically mistaken aggression and not a defense of our nation," Tartakov said. "We should evacuate our service men and women who are neither prepared nor supported in the dangerous tasks demanded of them."
Iowa State University student Michelle Wilkening brought her three daughters from Marshalltown to protest the war.
"I feel it's important that everyone, young and old, come together to publicly speak out against this unjust war," Wilkening said. "Our troops need to come home."
The protest ended with a rally at Ames City Hall where speakers, including family members of Iraq war veterans, Dr. Selden Spencer, of Huxley, and State Rep. Ed Fallon, of Des Moines, called for Iowa representatives and senators to end the war.
"Some members of Congress have said we should not attempt to micromanage the war from Washington," Spencer said. "We need to start by at least managing it ... it's a pivotal issue. And from my perspective, what we are doing is not working."
Danielle Duggan can be reached at 232-2161, Ext. 342,
or Duggan@amestrib.com.
