Thousands Protest Obama’s Wars

by Jeff Mackler / April 2009

The first Obama-era nationally-coordinated U.S. antiwar protests saw over 3000 antiwar activists rally in San Francisco's Civic Center on March 21. Associated actions of about 6000 and 3000 respectively were organized in Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles.

The spirited and significantly youthful mobilizations were part of a bi-coastal effort marking the end of the sixth year of the criminal U.S. war against the people of Iraq. Some three million Iraqis have been killed via U.S. military actions and U.S.-enforced sanctions since the beginning of the Gulf War of 1991.

The March 21 mobilizations were initiated by the National Assembly to End the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars and Occupations, the ANSWER Coalition, the Muslim American Society Freedom, and other national antiwar coalitions and groups.

In San Francisco, contingents of Palestinian and Arab American youth participated along with former soldiers organized by Veterans for Peace and Iraq Veterans Against the War. A few score US Labor Against the War-organized Bay Area trade unionists joined the effort. The march was endorsed by the Alameda and San Francisco Central Labor Councils. Buses came from Sacramento, San Jose, and surrounding areas.

The San Francisco event was formally sponsored by the ad hoc March 21 Coalition, which included some 30 Bay Area antiwar, social justice, labor, and socialist organizations.

Leading the march, and by prior agreement, were side-by-side contingents—one organized by the ANSWER Coalition, the other by the National Assembly to End the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars and Occupations. Both carried large banners raised high above the crowd.

The most prominent and numerous of the march placards were produced by the National Assembly and featured the NA's main demands: "Bring the Troops Home Now!" "Stop U.S. Wars: Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran, Palestine!" "Occupation is a Crime: Iraq, Afghanistan, Palestine!" and "Fund Jobs and Human Needs Not Wars, Banks and Billionaires!"

The day's event saw the main organizers—including ANSWER, which played a critical part in many organizational aspects of the day, and the National Assembly—closely and effectively collaborating. All pre-march agreements were adhered to, and solid and respectful working relations prevailed from the beginning to the end of the process of building and carrying out the protest.

The rally was co-chaired by Jeff Mackler, representing the National Assembly, Natali Hrizi of the ANSWER Coalition, and Elias Rashwami representing the Free Palestine Alliance. Featured speakers included Eric Mar, San Francisco Board of Supervisors; Tim Paulson, executive director, S.F. Labor Council; Clarence Thomas, ILWU Local 10; Mike Eisenscher, US Labor Against the War; Malik Rahim, founder, Common Ground Relief, New Orleans; Arturo Garcia, national coordinator, Justice for Filipino American Veterans; Dr. Hatem Bazian, Muslim community leader; and Dr. Jess Ghannam, National Council of Arab Americans.

A number of groups affiliated with the National Assembly were also represented on the speakers’ platform. Paul George, director of the Peninsula Peace and Justice Center, spoke as the National Assembly representative.

Other speakers associated with the National Assembly were Marsha Feinland, of the Peace and Freedom Party; Carole Seligman, representing Bay Area United Against the War; Millie Philips, Socialist Organizer; Jeremy Tully, International Socialist Organization; and Marc Rome, Socialist Action.

An ugly incident involving a police provocation marred the rally for a brief period of time. It began when the police arrested a nine-year old Palestinian youth that they claimed was carrying a bag of stones. The conscious police disruption was handled well by the rally chairs and monitors, who at all times sought to maintain the event’s peaceful character.

After creating a disturbance that lasted about 15 minutes, the police departed, but not before arresting some five protesters and injuring at least 40 more. Five additional Palestinian protesters were arrested later in the day after being harassed and threatened by groups of Zionist provocateurs in a nearby rapid-transit station. Defense efforts, aided by the National Lawyers Guild, are underway.

Similar police provocations were evident in Washington, where police undercover agents were spotted joining with a small contingent of "anarchist" groups. The disrupters utilized heavy-gage plastic fencing in an attempt to stop the march from proceeding—claiming that its organizers were racist. This effort, too, was effectively thwarted by disciplined monitors, who led the march around the police-aided "anarchist" blockade.

An even more dangerous police provocation occurred later in Washington when hundreds of heavily-armed police surrounded the march to block participants who were seeking to leave to board the buses that had been assembled at the event’s endpoint. Here again, a team of monitors effectively led protesters out of a police trap—and the day’s events ended peacefully.

The heavy police presence in all three March 21 events was clearly in violation of the democratic right to assembly and protest government policy. It was aimed at provoking violent confrontations in order to discourage people from attending future antiwar and other social protests. Plans are under way to legally challenge the police disruptions.

The March 21 antiwar protests, however modest in size, were important first steps in reconstituting a broad-based mass movement that can effectively challenge the new administration’s war policies.

It is only a matter of time until the corporate media hype that poses the Obama administration as qualitatively different from the previous Bush regime wears thin. It is hard to uphold such claims in the face of Obama’s initial plans to send an additional 30,000 troops to Afghanistan while maintaining a minimum of 170,000 U.S. soldiers and paid mercenaries in Iraq as long as necessary to accomplish U.S. war aims.

The administration’s war plans, of course, have nothing to do with bringing "democracy" to Iraq and everything to do with ensuring the protection of U.S. conquests in that country and in the Middle East more generally. Regional control to dominate the massive oil and natural gas resources is central to U.S. policy.

The new generation of antiwar fighters will increasingly come to understand that the wars against working people in the Middle East are little different than the war against workers at home. The looting of the American people and their pensions, health care, jobs, and housing are the actions of a social system driven mad to defend the elite few who exist and rule at the expense of the vast majority.

An important effort to unify the antiwar movement and re-engage it in massive protests to demand an end to all U.S. wars is set for July 10-12 in Pittsburgh. This will be the second National Antiwar Conference sponsored by the National Assembly to End the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars and Occupations. Everyone welcome!