thedrifter
03-04-06, 08:03 AM
War in Iraq brings out protesters pro and con
By Michael Stetz
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
March 4, 2006
It was a rare sight in these times in this area: A sizable anti-war rally spearheaded by college students.
But that's what happened yesterday at UCSD, where the school's College Democrats organized a rally protesting the war in Iraq.
San Diego police estimated that about 100 people, including those protesting the anti-war event, were on hand at the demonstration, just outside the La Jolla campus.
A pro-military organization countered the student rally later in the day in Balboa Park.
The dueling events were fueled, in part, by the appearance of Cindy Sheehan at UCSD last night. The peace activist, who lost a son in the war, participated in a round-table discussion.
The anti-war rally was overdue, said Tom Rapp, 23, president of College Democrats@UCSD and a political science major.
“We've always had the will. This is the first time we've had the ability,” he said, noting that protests take time and money to organize. Members have been more inspired of late to do something, he added.
The war is nearing its third anniversary. Nearly 2,300 U.S. military personnel have died. Recent fighting between Shiite and Sunni factions have left hundreds of civilians dead, and some fear a civil war may erupt.
The rally in Balboa Park attracted 75 to 100 people, organizers said. The pro-troop organization, Move America Forward, held the event. It believes that Sheehan's actions demoralize the troops.
One of those attending was Heather Stockmaik, whose fiance, Michael Jason Williams, died four days into the war. She carried a sign with his picture and the words “We Will Never Forget.”
Troops need support now more than ever, said Stockmaik, who has since married another Marine. “We still have lots of Marines over there.”
Her friend Kristy Patterson is married to a Marine with 19 years of service. The Marines she has spoken with believe they're doing their job well, she said.
To pull out now would invite chaos, Patterson added.
“We can't leave it as unstable as it is,” she said. “And it's not going to get fixed overnight.”
At UCSD, the anti-war protesters faced off with those supporting the military action.
Each had megaphones. Anti-war protesters chanted familiar slogans, such as: “Drop Bush, Not Bombs!” And those supporting the action, at times, recited the Pledge of Allegiance.
Jonathan Israel, who edits a conservative campus paper, California Review, helped organize the response to the College Democrat's anti-war rally. He said the campus is “fairly liberal, but mostly lazy.”
“They don't normally do this.”
Campus apathy is a problem, conceded Rapp. “It deeply concerns me. People don't seem to be getting up in arms over it.”
But he was heartened by yesteday's turnout. He couldn't remember another anti-war protest of that size at the school.
He blamed the lack of a military draft, which was in place during the Vietnam War, for not inspiring more young people into action. College students in the 1960s were much more active, of course. They faced the prospect of fighting.
Rapp said it's time his generation stepped up. “It's our peers over there.”
The UCSD protesters were joined by a number of non-student protesters. The College Democrats@UCSD sought support from several local peace organizations.
Bianca Molinari, 39, a UCSD graduate, showed up. She blamed the apathy of today's college students on several factors, not just the lack of a military draft. Young people today have too many diversions, she said. They also seem more interested in education as a means of gaining a better lifestyle, not a better life.
And there's the media, she added. It's consolidated and therefore not as powerful or challenging.
But none of that should be an excuse, she said.
By Michael Stetz
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
March 4, 2006
It was a rare sight in these times in this area: A sizable anti-war rally spearheaded by college students.
But that's what happened yesterday at UCSD, where the school's College Democrats organized a rally protesting the war in Iraq.
San Diego police estimated that about 100 people, including those protesting the anti-war event, were on hand at the demonstration, just outside the La Jolla campus.
A pro-military organization countered the student rally later in the day in Balboa Park.
The dueling events were fueled, in part, by the appearance of Cindy Sheehan at UCSD last night. The peace activist, who lost a son in the war, participated in a round-table discussion.
The anti-war rally was overdue, said Tom Rapp, 23, president of College Democrats@UCSD and a political science major.
“We've always had the will. This is the first time we've had the ability,” he said, noting that protests take time and money to organize. Members have been more inspired of late to do something, he added.
The war is nearing its third anniversary. Nearly 2,300 U.S. military personnel have died. Recent fighting between Shiite and Sunni factions have left hundreds of civilians dead, and some fear a civil war may erupt.
The rally in Balboa Park attracted 75 to 100 people, organizers said. The pro-troop organization, Move America Forward, held the event. It believes that Sheehan's actions demoralize the troops.
One of those attending was Heather Stockmaik, whose fiance, Michael Jason Williams, died four days into the war. She carried a sign with his picture and the words “We Will Never Forget.”
Troops need support now more than ever, said Stockmaik, who has since married another Marine. “We still have lots of Marines over there.”
Her friend Kristy Patterson is married to a Marine with 19 years of service. The Marines she has spoken with believe they're doing their job well, she said.
To pull out now would invite chaos, Patterson added.
“We can't leave it as unstable as it is,” she said. “And it's not going to get fixed overnight.”
At UCSD, the anti-war protesters faced off with those supporting the military action.
Each had megaphones. Anti-war protesters chanted familiar slogans, such as: “Drop Bush, Not Bombs!” And those supporting the action, at times, recited the Pledge of Allegiance.
Jonathan Israel, who edits a conservative campus paper, California Review, helped organize the response to the College Democrat's anti-war rally. He said the campus is “fairly liberal, but mostly lazy.”
“They don't normally do this.”
Campus apathy is a problem, conceded Rapp. “It deeply concerns me. People don't seem to be getting up in arms over it.”
But he was heartened by yesteday's turnout. He couldn't remember another anti-war protest of that size at the school.
He blamed the lack of a military draft, which was in place during the Vietnam War, for not inspiring more young people into action. College students in the 1960s were much more active, of course. They faced the prospect of fighting.
Rapp said it's time his generation stepped up. “It's our peers over there.”
The UCSD protesters were joined by a number of non-student protesters. The College Democrats@UCSD sought support from several local peace organizations.
Bianca Molinari, 39, a UCSD graduate, showed up. She blamed the apathy of today's college students on several factors, not just the lack of a military draft. Young people today have too many diversions, she said. They also seem more interested in education as a means of gaining a better lifestyle, not a better life.
And there's the media, she added. It's consolidated and therefore not as powerful or challenging.
But none of that should be an excuse, she said.