Dear Editor:
Today I joined hundreds of thousands of people who demonstrated their disapproval of the president’s possible decision to attack Iraq.
On the way to San Francisco I noticed two bus loads of people from Monterey, and cars displaying anti-war signs.
I knew the march and rally would be large.
Joined by my wife, LucÃa, and my friend Samuel, we arrived at the march in San Francisco, which was a gigantic mass of people carrying signs and banners.
For as far as the eye could see were enthusiastic marchers. Some carried serious messages declaring, “No War Against Iraq,” “No Blood For Oil,” “Women and Children are 95% of the Casualties,” “No War for Oil,” and “Peace is Patriotic.”
Others carried signs with witty messages such as, “This is my Patriot Act” and “It’s the Oil Stupid.”
People carried placards identifying where they came from, some as far away as Wyoming, Washington and Oregon and all over California, including Los Angeles.
There were women for peace, waitresses for peace, unionists for peace, teachers for peace, and even a group of students from James Lick Middle School.
The diverse march and rally had people from all ages, young to elderly and people of different nationalities.
This historic event, organized by Act Now to Stop War and End Racism (A.N.S.W.E.R.), drew hundreds of thousands of people to San Francisco and Washington, D.C.
It was a day of solidarity for justice and peace in honor of the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
As the marchers in San Francisco arrived at the Civic Center Plaza, the crowd was so large that the plaza could not contain everyone and people flooded the surrounding streets.
Speaker after speaker, which included Congresswoman Barbara Lee and United Farm workers Union Vice President and activist Dolores Huerta and many others, adamantly spoke out against the war efforts of the Bush administration and addressed the issues of inequality, racism and other social issues in the United States.
Entertainers, such as Joan Baez and Bonnie Raitt, performed songs for the enthusiastic crowd and offered words of support.
Joe Navarro
Hollister
