"This Is A War For Wall Street"
By aaroncynic in News on Dec 3, 2009 4:00PM
One night after President Obama made his speech calling for an extra 30,000 troops in Afghanistan, anti-war activists gathered in Federal Plaza to protest the war. Last night, about 200 people braved the chilly weather to voice their opposition to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The demonstration began with a mock wedding turned die-in, where demonstrators fell to the ground after a mock predator drone attack. One demonstrator stated, “This is a war crime. It was a war crime then and it is a war crime now.”
Before the protesters marched down a planned route from Federal Plaza to Oak Street, several speakers took the microphone and explained their reasons for the demonstration. John Beecham of Chicago Answer said, “this war should have never started...this is a war for wall street.” Juan Torres of Gold Star Families for Peace, whose son was killed in Afghanistan said, “After my son died, I don't want to see no more families suffer like my family.” Several more speakers pointed out that while politicians can't seem to find money for social services, health care and education, they have spent billions on the wars.
The crowd dwindled to about half its size by the time demonstrators began to march out of the plaza, but most made the trek down Monroe to Michigan and north to Oak Street. An addition demonstration is scheduled for Saturday, December 5th at noon in Federal Plaza.