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Peace Protest Draws Thousands to Rally Against Iraq War

By Lisa Bennett, Communications Director

NOW Action VP Melody Drnach speaks at a rally at Washington D.C.'s Freedom Plaza.

Women were front and center as hundreds of thousands rallied in the center of our nation's capital on Sept. 24 calling for an end to the war in Iraq. NOW leaders and activists marched, gathered signatures on a petition demanding the rebuilding of Iraq and an end to the occupation, and staffed a table talking with peace-activists about NOW's message that peace is a feminist issue.

"Just as 1.15 million women marched on the National Mall last year to demand full reproductive rights for women, we are marching again to call for an end to this irresponsible war,” said NOW Action Vice President Melody Drnach in her rally speech. "The media aren't listening, the Bush administration isn't listening, Congress isn't listening. We must raise our voices and be heard.”

Before making her way to the front line, Drnach joined Medea Benjamin of CODEPINK: Women for Peace and Cindy Sheehan, whose protest outside George W. Bush's Texas ranch called attention to the millions of voices that oppose this war, at Freedom Plaza to kick off the day with a women's rally. Singer and longtime peace activist Joan Baez moved the crowd, sending inspired marchers off to join the throngs.

NOW Volunteers and members of NOW's Action Center Staff hold the banner during the march. Coordinators estimated as many as 300,000 marchers rallied to end the war in Iraq.

Leading activists marching and speaking on Saturday included: Feminist Majority President Eleanor Smeal; United Farm Workers Vice President Dolores Huerta; NAACP Chair Julian Bond; Representatives Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and Lynn Woolsey (D-Calif.); actor Tyne Daly; actor/singer Harry Belafonte; author and professor Dr. Cornel West; Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. and Rev. Al Sharpton.

As many as 300,000 marchers crowded the streets of D.C., marching in front of the White House and ending the day with a concert on the Washington Monument grounds.

"A growing number of people in this country are dissatisfied with the failed strategies of the Bush administration's war on Iraq and believe that the president has irresponsibly undermined the security of the United States,” Drnach said.

At the annual NOW conference in July, NOW members voted to join the United for Peace and Justice mobilization Sept. 24-26 to call for an end to the Bush administration's campaign of militarism and corporate profit that has contributed to anti-U.S. sentiment around the world and exacerbated the plight of women and children in these countries. The "Stop the War NOW” resolution also supports a "constructive and expeditious withdrawal of American troops from Iraq” and an investment of humanitarian funds to encourage Iraq rebuilding.

"Enough is enough," Drnach said. "Feminists are calling for an immediate end to this destructive and costly war."