Anti-War Protest
This weekend I went to the anti-war protest along with more than 150,000 other people. It was such a great feeling to be surrounded by people who valued peace and justice. The mix of signs and t-shirts brought light to so many different issues happening in the United States and abroad. My favorite sign by far was “fighting for peace is like fucking for virginity”. My friend came down from New York and it was wonderful to share this experience with her.
The most intense part of the march and rally was when we encountered anti-protesters who were lining Pennsylvania Ave. Most of them were white males who were wearing some depiction of the American flag or a Bush/Cheney shirt. The marchers and the anti-protesters were separated by a line of stone-faced policemen. I was glad to have their presence known because the tensions between the two groups were high. The anti-protesters had megaphones and shouted various comments at the people marching. Most of the comments had nothing to do with their political stance yet were very enlightening in terms of where they were coming from. Their greatest and most frequent remarks consisted of “you suck” “pussy” “hippies stink” and “show us your tits”. This last comment offended me the most because it is so degrading and due to the intensely politicized environment, allowed for no constructive course of action.
The response of the marchers varied greatly. Some held up their signs and passed silently, others encouraged them to enlist, and others began singing and making peace signs. Other activists attempted to engage these people in conversation which always turned into a yelling match. It was frustrating to see such polarization of the two groups and the amount of contempt and hatred and that was passing between them. There was a lot of misunderstanding and stereotypes playing out on that street.
I stood on the street overcome with emotion and tears just watching this scene play out. We live in a nation filled with conflicting viewpoints and the ability to speak our minds. The flip side is that we also need to listen. I am so glad that over 150,000 people came out this weekend to support peace, justice and responsible governmental policy. I hope that every person there will have taken something back with them, including the need to listen and learn.
The most intense part of the march and rally was when we encountered anti-protesters who were lining Pennsylvania Ave. Most of them were white males who were wearing some depiction of the American flag or a Bush/Cheney shirt. The marchers and the anti-protesters were separated by a line of stone-faced policemen. I was glad to have their presence known because the tensions between the two groups were high. The anti-protesters had megaphones and shouted various comments at the people marching. Most of the comments had nothing to do with their political stance yet were very enlightening in terms of where they were coming from. Their greatest and most frequent remarks consisted of “you suck” “pussy” “hippies stink” and “show us your tits”. This last comment offended me the most because it is so degrading and due to the intensely politicized environment, allowed for no constructive course of action.
The response of the marchers varied greatly. Some held up their signs and passed silently, others encouraged them to enlist, and others began singing and making peace signs. Other activists attempted to engage these people in conversation which always turned into a yelling match. It was frustrating to see such polarization of the two groups and the amount of contempt and hatred and that was passing between them. There was a lot of misunderstanding and stereotypes playing out on that street.
I stood on the street overcome with emotion and tears just watching this scene play out. We live in a nation filled with conflicting viewpoints and the ability to speak our minds. The flip side is that we also need to listen. I am so glad that over 150,000 people came out this weekend to support peace, justice and responsible governmental policy. I hope that every person there will have taken something back with them, including the need to listen and learn.
posted by mer at
5:38 PM
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