Anniversary and Protest

Good Morning. We start another week on the fourth anniversary of the invasion of Iraq.

Looking at the casualty count this morning, there are 3,218 dead American soldiers as a result of this folly.

But many thousands of people didn't take this sitting down. Yesterday there were large protests in many cities.

SAN FRANCISCO -- For the second consecutive day, thousands of protesters took to the streets across the nation yesterday to call for an end to funding of the Iraq war or an immediate return of US troops.

Demonstrators gathered in San Francisco, New York, Portland, Ore., and elsewhere to mark the fourth anniversary of the US invasion of Iraq and call on President Bush to heed what they say is the will of the people.

In largely peaceful demonstrations, about 3,000 people in San Francisco closed Market Street, a major downtown thoroughfare.

In New York, protesters converged in a park near the United Nations headquarters. Police offered no crowd estimate, but it appeared to be well over 1,000 people.

Dozens of police in San Francisco on foot and motorcycle blocked traffic and kept an eye on the crowd, which stretched for blocks through the financial district. No arrests were reported by police.

Antiwar activists also gathered yesterday in Providence and dozens of other cities and towns across New England.

Gary Fong, 65, carried a sign calling on Bush to "listen to America" as he marched in San Francisco.

"I think the war effort at this point is futile," said the retired school guidance counselor and former Army intelligence officer. "We want to do our part to express to Bush and the government that change needs to be made."

In New York, where union members, war veterans, and representatives of Jesse Jackson's Rainbow-PUSH Coalition joined protesters, the line of marchers extended for several blocks.

Actor Tim Robbins, speaking at an earlier rally organized by the New York chapter of United for Peace and Justice, told the crowd that getting Congress to cut off funds for the war "would be a good way" to get the troops home.

"The American people want this war to end," said Robbins, a frequent participant in antiwar protests.

"That's the message they sent last November in the election. When are we going to start listening to them?"

It's not too late to participate; there's a round of candlelight vigils taking place across America this evening. If you can, do get out and add your voice to the chorus calling for the troops to come home.