Agence France-Press, 1 June 2005
WASHINGTON (AFP) – A US anti-war group vowed to surround the White House in a sea of demonstrators during coordinated protests scheduled to take place in Washington, as well as Los Angeles and San Francisco on September 24.
The ANSWER Coalition expects more than 100,000 people, from families of US soldiers to trade unions and diverse religious groups, to take part in the demonstrations against the war in Iraq.
This "will be the largest anti-war demonstrations to take place since the second election, or selection, of George W. Bush" in November, Brian Becker, ANSWER’s national coordinator, said at a news conference.
"This will be representative of a changed mood inside the United States," Becker said. "At this point we believe the majority sentiment in the country not only disapproves to George Bush’s handling of the White House but has turned decisively against the war in Iraq."
"We will, on September 24, surround the White House with a sea of anti-war demonstrators," he said.
"And this will be a graphic demonstration … that the White House is surrounded by opposition all around the country and this opposition grows day in and day out."
The demonstrations will also demand an end to US "threats" against North Korea, Iran, Venezuela and Cuba and an to the "colonial-style occupation in Palestine and in Haiti," the group said.
