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Opposing war by candlelight
Nationwide vigils underway to protest war in Iraq
Updated: 11:45 p.m. ET Aug. 17, 2005
CRAWFORD, Texas - Hundreds of candlelight vigils calling for an end to the
war in Iraq lit up the night Wednesday, part of a national effort spurred
by one mother's anti-war demonstration near President Bush's ranch.
The vigils were urged by Cindy Sheehan, who has become the icon of the
anti-war movement since she started a protest Aug. 6 in memory of her son
Casey, who died in Iraq last year.
Sheehan says she will remain outside the president's ranch until he meets
with her and other grieving families, or until his monthlong vacation
there ends.
Bush has said he sympathizes with Sheehan but has made no indication he
will meet with her. Two top Bush administration officials talked to
Sheehan the day she started her camp, and she and other families had met
with Bush shortly after her son's death.
More than 1,600 vigils were planned Wednesday from coast to coast by
liberal advocacy groups MoveOn.org Political Action, TrueMajority and
Democracy for America. A large vigil was also planned in Paris.
As the sun set in Crawford, about 200 protesters lit candles and gathered
around a wooden, flag-draped coffin at Sheehan's growing camp, about a
mile from the Bush ranch.
"For the more than 1,800 who have come home this way in flag-draped
coffins, each one ... was a son or a daughter, not cannon fodder to be
used so recklessly," Sheehan told the crowd.
Related story
Slain Marine's mother calls for war support
After the names of some of the dead soldiers were read, the crowd sang
"Amazing Grace" as people stepped forward to place flowers on the coffin.
Before the vigil, Gary Qualls, of Temple drove to Sheehan's camp site and
removed a wooden cross bearing his son's name. He said he supports the war
and disagrees with Sheehan.
"I don't believe in some of the things happening here," Qualls said. "I
find it disrespectful."
Near Philadelphia's Independence Hall, a few hundred people strained to
hear the parent of another soldier killed in Iraq. "This war must stop,"
said Al Zappala, 65, whose 30-year-old son, Sgt. Sherwood Baker, died in
an explosion in Baghdad in April 2004.
Karen Braz, 50, held a pink votive cup and a sign reading "Moms for Peace"
as she stood shoulder-to-shoulder with about 150 other people outside the
New Hampshire statehouse in Concord.
"My son is 26. It could've been him," she said
Some critics say Sheehan is exploiting her son's death to promote a
left-wing agenda. They say scores of Americans, including relatives of
soldiers killed in Iraq, support Bush and his plans to keep troops there.
'A publicity stunt'
FreeRepublic.com, which holds rallies to support troops and to counter
anti-war demonstrations, held a pro-Bush rally Wednesday night with about
20 people at the same time and same Washington park as a candlelight vigil
that drew about 300, said Kristinn Taylor, co-leader of the group's
Washington, D.C., chapter.
"For us the organizers of the vigil are phony-baloney, betraying the
sacrifices that those men and women make in Iraq, by demanding that we
pull our troops out now and leave Iraq to go to hell," Taylor said. "This
is a publicity stunt."
Some 200 people joined a peace vigil in Cincinnati's Fountain Square.
Demonstrators softly sang "Give Peace A Chance" and lined one side of the
square with signs, drawing honks of support from some passing motorists.
A banner bearing the name, age, rank, hometown and date of death of all
Americans killed in Iraq and Afghanistan was unrolled at a vigil in
Charleston, W.Va. - stretching the length of a city block.
"Our pastors and preachers need to hear from us," said one of the speakers
in Charleston, Mary Ellen O'Farrell. "Ask your pastor to preach it from
the pulpit. This war does not meet the criteria for a just war."
Along with candles and flags, some of the 300 people who gathered at a
park in Nashville, Tenn., brought banners of protest and support for
Sheehan. One read: "Thank you for your courage Cindy."
About 200 people attended a rally and candlelight vigil on the steps of
the state Capitol in Oklahoma City. Marie Evans said it was a chance for
those opposing the war to let their voices be heard.
'A higher form of patriotism'
"There was no question in my mind that we needed to make a statement in
Oklahoma, which is a very conservative state," said Evans, who carried a
sign that read "Their blood is on your hands."
In Hawaii, Kalihi Valley resident Charmaine Crockett invited scores of
people to her hilltop house to light candles in sympathy for Sheehan. "I'm
very moved by one person making a difference," Crockett said.
Actor Richard Dreyfuss attended a vigil in the Studio City area of Los
Angeles with his son and about 500 others.
"Cindy Sheehan is making a starting point with the questions she is asking
and it's not unpatriotic to ask them," Dreyfuss said. "It's actually a
higher form of patriotism."
And at a vigil in Madison, Wis., Tammy Markee had some simple advice for
Bush on how to handle Sheehan: "Be a man. Give her the respect she
deserves. Sit down and talk with her."
http://msnbc.msn.com/id/8990505/
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