U.S. Rallies Mark Iraq Anniversary, Reflect Anti-War Groups' Growth, Chall [View All]

[leftchick]

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/oneworld/20050321/wl_oneworld/45361080291111419228&cid=655&ncid=1480



The protests on the anniversary Saturday as well as on Sunday reflected the U.S. anti-war movement's growing diversity. But they also highlighted the challenges of sustaining growth in new areas like suburban America and maintaining unity of purpose as the movement grapples with issues that elude consensus.


President George W. Bush (news - web sites), in a weekend radio address, said the war was launched ''to disarm a brutal regime, free its people, and defend the world'' and had inspired ''democratic reformers from Beirut to Tehran.''


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Military Families Speak Out, Iraq Veterans Against The War, and Gold Star Families for Peace, whose members have lost relatives in Iraq, rallied the local community and supporters from around the country in Fayetteville, North Carolina, home to Fort Bragg and the Army's 82nd Airborne Division.


''More than 50 people from our community are dead. Our government continues to kill Americans and Iraqis alike in a war based on lies,'' said Fayetteville organizer Lou Plummer. ''Too many in Fayetteville, across the country, and in Iraq have suffered from a war that should never have happened.''