|
(Washington Post) - A flurry of tricorn hats in various shades of pink marched up and down Constitution Avenue today, kicking off two days of protests marking the fifth anniversary of the war in Iraq.
About 60 Code Pink antiwar demonstrators held aloft a living room-size copy of the preamble to the Constitution, beat drums and held up peace signs as they marched from the National Archives to the Justice Department and to the Internal Revenue Service, occasionally disrupting traffic.
About 30 police officers on bicycles and motorcycles and in cars followed them.
"You're blocking traffic," a police officer yelled at the protesters as they veered off the sidewalk and into the street.
"We're well aware of that," one protester yelled back.
No arrests were made.
Families, school groups and other tourists snapped pictures and posed with the more flamboyantly dressed demonstrators as Code Pink co-founder Medea Benjamin rallied the group over a bullhorn.
"Those who said no to this war from the beginning are the true patriots," she said.
Later today, beginning about 5:30 p.m., the protesters plan to have hundreds of activists standing in silence at Union Station. Protest organizers say that activists will go inside in small groups and mingle, then "freeze" for five minutes in "creative and unique positions."
Tomorrow, the organizers plan dozens of actions designed to disrupt businesses and institutions they say are responsible for the continuing occupation of Iraq. Among the targets are several K Street firms, the IRS and the American Petroleum Institute. A demonstration against torture is planned for Lafayette Square outside the White House.
© 2008 The Washington Post Company
FAIR USE NOTICE:
This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of foreign policy, politics, peace, and social justice issues, etc. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.
|
