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J/11: Collaborative Effort Produces Largest Anti-War Rally in LA since Vietnam Era
 "Nobody walks in LA," goes an old song.
Today, a new song was written. 20,000 plus people marching through the old city calling for No War in Iraq. 20,000 people (perhaps 45,000); while walking, it seemed to me that the chanting was extracurricular. The massive presense spoke louder than any individual's call. Korean Workers, mainstream Christian contingents, Black Blockers; these, and many others are the bodies that will re-make the real opposition to todays powers that be. Yet it is also in this myriad of individuals, so different, so unique, so particular to their own needs and hopes -- all coming together -- that made this day so memorible.
(See pictures of the event here-1/2/3/4/5/6/7/8/9/10/11/12/13/14/15/16/17/18/19/20/2122/23/24/25/26/27/28/29/30/31/32)
Behind this scene, the hard work of 4 distinct groups made the difference and tied things together. Opting for one massive rally instead of four disparate ones, ANSWER, the Coalition for World Peace, the Interfaith Communities United for Peace and Justice, and Not in Our Name are owed credit. They secured permits, set up sound-systems, printed flyers, spread the word, and moved beyond partisanship to create a situation that brought so many together. The newly rambunctious KPFK deserves big ups for really blanketing their signal with this event, drawing in the crowd; and, yes, playing a proactive role in bringing together the four aforementioned groups.
This public festival. We arrived on bikes. How did you get there? -What did you see? -What did you hear (listen to audio from the event)? -Where do we go now? -What do you think of the gross underestimation of the crowd by LAPD and CNN? -What did you think about the presentations and performances? -Did anything in particular annoy you about the march or rally. The march started at Broadway and Olympic, swelling out past the staging area. Speeches ended and the slow march began. We laced below the old tall stone towers and passed into the bureaucratic center of downtown. In the middle of the wide street, a stage was set from which politicians, actors, musicians, and activists and organizers screamed with us to end the war.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - Also, check out Global Indymedia's Feature on J11. - - - - - - - - - - - - -
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