Protestors march to mark fourth Iraq War anniversary

An estimated 700 protestors took part in the march.

By James Patrick Schmidt

Published March 20, 2007

An estimated 700 protestors took to the streets Sunday to call for an end to war. The protest, which began with a rally at the Boone County Courthouse, also included a march to Douglass Park for a tree dedication.

The event, sponsored by the Columbia Peace Coalition, commemorated the fourth anniversary of U.S. involvement in Iraq.

The group's desires were expressed simply in one of the chants they used at the rally and during the march: "What do we want? Peace. When do we want it? Now."

Peace Coalition representative Victoria Day introduced the Rev. Maureen Dickmann, pastor of Rock Bridge Christian Church, and John Betz of Veterans for Peace.

Dickmann quoted Jesus to express her religious belief that war is morally wrong, and Betz compared the Iraq war to the Vietnam War. Both called for complete withdrawal from Iraq.

Following the speakers, Day asked each person in the march to participate as they see fit, encouraging them to speak out or walk silently depending on their own preference. Day then initiated the march with the singing of "We Shall Not Be Moved."

During the march, protesters raised their signs and voices to express their opinions. Chants varied, but all called for an end to war. Some called for the impeachment of President George Bush.

Once the march reached Douglass Park, the crowd gathered around a new tree, which was planted in support of the peace movement, for a dedication ceremony.

"I thank you all who raised your voice and those who held peace or who carried signs," Day said. "This was definitely the most exciting march I've done because the people were just so great."

Larry Brown and Steve Jenkins, members of the Peace Coalition, then played The Byrds' "Turn! Turn! Turn!" on guitars with a number of protestors singing along.

Following the song, Columbia resident John McClure shared with the crowd his views about the Iraq war.

"At a time when there is no official military draft, I see as an administrator in the education of our adult population, a very real economic draft that has become a gold mine for the military," McClure said.

He said the economic draft is caused by difficulty of finding jobs, lack of funding to education and fewer options for the poor.

Brown and Jenkins then played Arlo Guthrie's "Patriot's Dream" before Brown spoke to dedicate the tree.

"Today we are trying to move from the anti to the pro," Brown said. "We want to put the pro back in the protest today because we want to take this opportunity to turn around, to give support for international cooperation and mutual service here and abroad."

Brown said the tree, a Missouri Pin Oak, symbolizes the peace movement itself.

"So we here declare in this tree that peace is taking root here in Columbia and mid-Missouri that we have to work to keep it alive," he said. "One thing about trees, they are planted for future generations. We will not, all of us here in this place, be able to see that tree arrive at its fullness - that's like peace. Nurturing peace, letting peace grow, is cultivating that others may enjoy the options."

As the dedication ended, Brown said there have been thousands of years of war, and it hasn't worked. Instead, he said people should try thousands of years of peace and compare the results.

"Let's get over this infertile addiction to war and to the war machine," he said. "War does not end war."

After the dedication, Day led the protestors in singing "Happy Birthday" to a birthday party in the pavilion near the site of the tree. The party had silenced its music during the dedication in respect.

Mid-Missouri Peaceworks Director Mark Haim said he thought the event was a success, and he hopes it will help peace movement to grow.

"I'd say that we essentially need to be growing a very broad and very strong peace movement throughout the community and throughout the whole country," he said. "What we hope is that people will take the sense of solidarity and commitment to this issue, incorporate it into their daily lives and be active around peace concerns on a day in and day out basis."