Thousands Rally In Nation's Capital Against Iraq War

WASHINGTON — By the tens of thousands, the slogan-chanting, placard-waving, troop-supporting, president-opposing, peace-demanding marchers came from across America Saturday to call for an end to the Iraq War.

If President Bush won't heed the call for peace, then Congress must, they demanded.

"We've got to insist that the Democrats elected in November to end the war find a collective backbone and stop Bush," said Margaret Knapke, who came in a van from Dayton, Ohio.

"Why would (Bush) listen to us? He hasn't listened to anyone else," said Rose Lynn Scott, a member of the anti-war women's group Code Pink from Fort Worth, Texas. "We're not marching for him. We're trying to get Congress to do the right thing."

"If they don't stand up and make a resolution as binding as the death toll, we are not going to be behind those politicians" in 2008, vowed actor Sean Penn.

After being labeled "Hanoi Jane" for her fierce anti-war rhetoric and visits to North Vietnam during the turbulent 1960s and early 1970s, Jane Fonda said she has been reluctant to join in this outcry.

"I haven't spoken at an anti-war rally in 34 years," she said. "But silence is no longer an option."

This time, she brought her daughter and grandchildren.

"I'm proud they're here but I'm so sad we still have to do this," said Fonda.

She was not the only protest veteran.

"I've been marching against wars since Vietnam. I know a quagmire when I see it," said Bob Goodman, 66, a retired legal secretary from DeKalb County, Ga. "The difference from Vietnam is that the Middle East is full of oil. That might explain Bush's obstinance in trying to expand a war he can't win."

Goodman said the anti-war movement is actually ahead of where it was at this stage of the Vietnam War.

"This truly is a peace movement," said Tom Andrews, a former Democratic congressman from Maine who began his activism as a teen-aged protester against the Vietnam War. The end of the military draft has created major differences between the two anti-war efforts, he said.

The Vietnam War was fought largely with draftees and the threat of induction loomed over those who did not go, he said, recalling that the peace movement was centered on college campuses and most of the protesters were young. With an all-volunteer military force, the sacrifice in the Iraq War is borne by a much smaller slice of the populace, he said. For most young Americans, he added, the likelihood of fighting and dying in Iraq is remote.

"If there were a draft, it would have fueled more protests at colleges," said Andrews. "But this movement is much more diversified than during Vietnam. It involves people of all ages, not just the young."

Denise Snyder had a very personal reason for coming to the protest from Douglasville, Ga.

"I have a child in Iraq," she said. Her son is in the Army there.

"Bush is willing to gamble our children's lives on his war escalation," she said. "But he's not making that sacrifice. Dick Cheney is not making that sacrifice and neither are any of the other architects of the war."

Nearby, a demonstrator walked by with a sign saying "Send the Twins."

All across the crowd, homemade signs expressed heartfelt sentiments.

"Lame Duck Bush: Don't Send Sitting Ducks to Iraq." "Stop the Decider. Save America. Free Scooter." "The Surge. Been There. Done That. Vietnam." "Support the Troops. Bring Them Home."

One placard pictured Richard Nixon with the caption "No Crook" and Bush with the caption "No Clue." Another had pictures of flag-draped coffins and the caption "George Does Not Want You to See This."

A heavyset guy wore a pink sweatshirt with the message: "If You Are Not Outraged, You Are Not Paying Attention."

On the stage, a flamboyantly attired group called the Raging Grannies sang a song called "The Urge to Surge."

"There's something about Sunnis and Shi'as and some Kurds/It's much too complicated/But I've got an urge to surge/...We grannies sure are raging/We've urges of our own/But here's the thing that we all sing/Let's Bring our troops back home/."

"I don't know how anyone could have stayed home today," said Vicki Ryder, who led a group of Raging Grannies from Delray Beach, Fla. "Anybody who has grandchildren and wants this world to be free of terrorism so they can grow up safely should be here trying to stop the creation of more terrorists with our messed-up policies."

Tim Robbins and Susan Sarandon — among the movie industry's most strident liberal couples — led the crowd in a chant of "Impeach Bush. Impeach Bush. Impeach Bush."

Tara Copp of the Austin American-Statesman contributed to this report.