News
2006-03-21
War protesters
include gays and lesbians
Anniversary of
Iraq invasion draws protest
Gays and lesbians
around the world joined thousands of antiwar p
Tens of thousands
of antiwar protesters took to the streets around the
world on Saturday, marking the third anniversary of the
U.S.-led invasion of Iraq with demands that coalition
troops leave immediately. Several thousand protesters
in San Francisco danced in the streets, beat drums,
and carried signs that read "Stop U.S. Imperialism."
Among them were
many gay groups and gay rights leaders who denounced
President Bush for launching the war. "It's very painful to
me that our country is doing this and killing innocent
people," said 70-year-old Joan Emerson, who attended
with the group Old Lesbians Organizing for Change.
There were
large-scale protests in New York City and other major cities
across the United States. Rallies also were held in
Australia, Asia, and Europe, but many events were far
smaller than organizers had hoped. In London police
said 15,000 people joined a march from Parliament and Big
Ben to a rally in Trafalgar Square. The anniversary last
year attracted 45,000 protesters in the city. "We are
against this war, both for religious reasons and on a
humanitarian basis too," said Imran Saghir, 25, a
Muslim student who attended the London rally.
Britain, the United States' strongest
supporter in the Iraq war, has about 8,000 troops in
Iraq but plans to pull out 800 of them by May. The
British military has reported 103 deaths there. More than
2,300 American troops have died.
In Washington a protester wearing a
President Bush mask and bearing fake blood on his
hands waved to passing automobiles outside Vice President
Dick Cheney's residence, where about 200 people demonstrated
against the war. At Dudley Square in Boston, a few
hundred college-age protesters and baby boomers waved
placards that read "Impeach Bush" and "Stop the
War."
Protesters in several cities
worldwide carried posters showing pictures of
President Bush, calling him the "World's No. 1 Terrorist."
In Turkey, where opposition to the war cuts across all
political stripes, about 3,000 protesters gathered in
Istanbul, police said. "Murderer USA," read a sign in
Taksim Square.
In Stockholm about 1,000
demonstrators gathered for a rally and march to the
U.S. Embassy. One protester was dressed as the hooded figure
shown in an iconic photograph from the Abu Ghraib
prisoner abuse scandal. In Copenhagen more than 2,000
demonstrators marched from the U.S. Embassy to the
British Embassy, demanding that Danish prime minister Anders
Fogh Rasmussen withdraw the 530 Danish troops
currently in southern Iraq.
On Sunday up to 3,000 protesters were
expected in Seoul, South Korea, which has the
third-largest contingent of foreign troops in Iraq after
the United States and Britain. (AP)
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