Friday, March 21, 2003
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

Antiwar activists march downtown

Pro-war spectators look on as protesters chant for peace

Mayte Figueroa hoists an antiwar sign toward oncoming traffic on Las Vegas Boulevard. Figueroa, of Los Angeles, was one of about 200 protesters who marched Thursday through downtown Las Vegas. Photo by Amy Beth Bennett. War protesters parade Thursday through the Fremont Street Experience as tourists watch the light show. Las Vegas police escorting the group reported no arrests. Photo by Amy Beth Bennett.

Lisa Stiller was arrested three decades ago for lying down on a Washington, D.C., bridge and refusing to budge in protest of the Vietnam War.

As she watched her fellow war protesters chanting and thrusting signs at passing vehicles in front of the Lloyd George U.S. Courthouse in Las Vegas on Thursday evening, she couldn't help compare it to her past experience.

"This is mellow," said Stiller who gave her age as over 40. "I remember the chants back then. They were a lot more, well, graphic."

Obscenities and violence played no role Thursday at an organized peace rally during which about 200 war protesters marched through downtown Las Vegas hoisting signs condemning the United States' invasion of Iraq.

Strong emotions and differences in opinions, however, were clearly present.

Mayte Figueroa faced oncoming Las Vegas Boulevard traffic gripping a sign that read, "No blood for oil." Her body trembled as she sobbed.

On a business trip from Los Angeles, the 26-year-old Figueroa said she needed a forum to vent. She said she believes the majority of the country opposes the war and President Bush is simply ignoring American citizens.

"I don't feel like I'm important; I don't feel like I have the power to stop this," Figueroa said. "How many Iraqi children are going to die before they even get a chance to grow up?"

Just a few yards away, Coreen Haym, 32, sat in the shadow of Las Vegas police officers and scribbled signs for protesters to carry. Most of Haym's ideas were sent via e-mail from a friend who attended rallies in the nation's capital. Her favorite: "Let Exxon send their own troops."

Protesters said they believe Bush's decision to attack Iraq is about oil and questioned why the United States would start a war as the United Nations moved toward disarming Iraq.

"We want international law to apply everywhere," said Kalynda Tilges, executive director of the Shundahai Network, one of the organizations that sponsored Thursday's rally. "It seems like the U.S. is going to go against the U.N. charter and international law and punish Iraq for going against the U.N. charter and international law. I scratch my head all the time and say, `Huh?' "

Some pro-war spectators, one of whom was lifted in midair by officers on horseback after trying to snag a picket's sign, are convinced the war is about weapons of mass destruction. Most who objected to the protesters quietly made comments, but caused no disruptions during the 90-minute rally.

Joe Roberto, 35, parked his pickup along the rally route, set up two stereo speakers in the bed and blasted patriotic songs.

"This is strictly about weapons of mass destruction," Roberto said. "There are people who back the president, but they don't get attention because they're not as controversial."

A trio of men visiting from Scotland puffed on cigars as the protesters, escorted by police, filed through the Fremont Street Experience. Pickets cheered as Kansas's "Carry On Wayward Son" -- which includes the lyrics "there'll be peace when you are done" -- blared from the loudspeakers accompanying Thursday's light show.

Ian Smith, 24, who lives outside of Glasgow, said neither he nor his Scottish countrymen are clear on why the United States attacked Iraq.

"Maybe George has a problem with his old man getting beat the last time," said Smith, occasionally glancing at the Fremont show. "The (United Nations) inspectors were in there and they said, `Not yet,' but George went his own way. Maybe if they truly told us what this was about ..."

The rally was organized by the Coalition to Prevent the Erosion of Human Rights, the Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada and the Shundahai Network. Service Employees International Union members attending a conference in Las Vegas also participated.

The Associated Press reported that antiwar groups also mobilized in Northern Nevada on Thursday, holding peace vigils and rallies, including a demonstration planned at the U.S. courthouse in Reno to "declare the federal government a crime scene."

The Reno Anti-War Coalition and others planned an "emergency response to war protest" at the Bruce R. Thompson federal building a few blocks from the downtown casino district.