Only hours after U.S. warplanes began pounding targets in Iraq, hundreds of Syracuse-area residents mobilized and took to the streets in an emergency protest against the war.

Members of the Syracuse Peace Council organized the protest Thursday to express their ‘sadness and outrage’ about the war. The protesters congregated in Clinton Square, where they listened to a speech by activist Rae Kramer. The demonstrators then marched through downtown carrying signs with slogans such as ‘Drop Bush, Not Bombs’ and chanting ‘This is what democracy looks like.’ The demonstration continued with an interfaith religious service at Plymouth Church on East Onondaga Avenue.

Jessica Maxwell, a member of the Peace Council and protest organizer, emphasized the importance of speaking out against the war, even though it has already begun. She urged her fellow protesters not to give up hope.

‘You can never really know how much the impact you have is and how much worse it would be if people weren’t standing up and holding elected officials accountable for their actions,’ Maxwell said. ‘The Vietnam War would have never ended had people not stood up in the middle of it and asked for the bombing to stop.’

Maxwell said that the Peace Council’s goals extend beyond the end of the war, toward the restructuring of the Iraqi government in the post-Hussein era. She said that the participation of the international community will be essential in this restructuring, should the United States succeed in killing or capturing Hussein.

‘The international community certainly has to deal with this issue,’ Maxwell said. ‘The problem with what’s happening right now is that the United States is deciding how this issue is going to be dealt with in complete violation of the will of the rest of the world.’

Maxwell said that no permit was obtained for the demonstration.

‘We don’t feel that we need a permit,’ she said. ‘We feel this is a democratic society. We have people coming out to express their opinions and we’re not here to cause trouble.’

Sgt. Tom Conellan of the Syracuse Police Department said that the police were notified of the protest in advance and that there were no arrests and no major incidents of any kind.

The Peace Council members were joined by a number of Syracuse University students, many of whom participated in a protest earlier Thursday in front of the Schine Student Center. The students said they were not deterred by the rain, cold temperatures or the president’s public statements that protests would not impact his decision about the war.

‘[The president] has publically said a lot of things that don’t make any sense,’ said David Marvasti, a senior information science technology major. ‘He’ll say whatever he has to say to save himself.’

Downtown residents and business patrons who witnessed the demonstration had mixed reactions. John Domenico of Syracuse said that he supported the demonstrators’ rights to protest but described their actions as ‘unpatriotic.’

‘Everybody has their opinions. I’m not in favor of what [the protesters] are doing,’ Domenico said. ‘I think they might be a little naive. The Iraqi civilians are in my prayers, but their leader has to go.’

Many parents brought young children to the protest. Marion Saenz brought his 8-year-old son Miguel to the demonstration.

‘I want to teach him the value of political participation in maintaining piece,’ Saenz said.

Asked what he wants to do about the war in Iraq, Miguel had one response.

‘Impeach Bush,’ he said.

Published on March 20, 2003 at 12:00 pm