Early in the morning a leaflet was posted through my door.
It read -
DON'T ATTACK IRAQ
FREEDOM FOR PALESTINE
DEMONSTRATE SAT 28 SEPTEMBER
Assemble 12.30pm Embankment, London
March to Hyde Park
Stop the War Coalition
www.stopwar.org.uk • 020 7053 2155/6
overleaf it read -
Stop Bush and Blair's war
Tony Blair wants to commit us to a
horrific war. An attack on
Iraq will kill thousands of
innocent people, devastate a country already reeling from sanctions and
bombing, and further destabilise the Middle East.
Bush's
oil and
war faction
admit this isn't really about Saddam's weapons. They want "regime change". But it will be the
ordinary people of Iraq that
suffer from the attack, not Saddam.
Polls show the majority of
British people are against Bush and Blair's war drive. Ten
Trade Unions,
church leaders,
Muslim groups, leading
journalists,
over 150
MPs are saying,
"Don't attack Iraq".
The Stop the War Coalition urges everyone to
demonstrate on 28 September, but also to spread the word. Tell your workmates, friends and neighbours, leaflet your street, publicise the demonstration in your trade union, church or tenants group, and get in touch with your local Stop the War Coalition group.
An enormous demonstration on 28 September can make
Tony Blair think again.
On this day I dragged myself despite my aching
arthralgic joints accompanied by my whole family to
march alongside the 200-400 thousand people that had turned up. I saw people from all accross the country, and from all walks of life. All of whom were united in
solidarity in order to let the world know that they wanted negotiations of the world leaders to be for "
Peace not War".
I saw many posters, and banners, and plackards, and comedians in costumes, and musicians, and Teachers and Fire-men and women, and Jews against
zionism, and so many other people aside from the many many Muslims - all of whom were demonstrating not only to stop this imminent war, but also to stop
oppression and
fascism world wide. The atmosphere for me was almost indescribable, to be amongst so many different kinds of people all united together for the same reason.
Marching was my own personal protest as a
British Citizen to ensure that if the
Prime Minister was to make such a decision and send
our armed forces to Iraq to aid the US
Presidents objective (which is questionable to say the least), then it would be
against my wishes and that of many other
British Nationals - "Tony Blair,
Shame Shame, don't go to War in OUR name!"
As I marched, I saw one plackard in particular that really affected me - it was a
man looking down, holding above his head a
dead baby who seemed to me to be about 4 months old!? and underneath was the slogan
"Our greatest success yet".
I looked down at my own 3 month old son, whom I was carrying on my breast in a carry pouch. Then I looked down at my nearly 3 year old son whom was sleeping despite the almsot deafening noise, as he was being pushed along in his pushchair by my husband.
I thought to my self, is there a
burden in this world that is
greater to bear than that of your dead young
child?...
would I be able to do it?...
would I even remain sane from the
grief?...
who knows!?...
It brings tears to my eyes even having to think about it - and I pray I never see the day where I have to find out.
"Whoever saves one life, saves the world entire"
-- Oskar Schindler
February 15th 2003 Anti-War Demo, Central London
Was I there?.. you bet! along with all the other Mothers against war
After all -
42% of Iraqi Population are children...
March 2003 -
I have come to the sad conclusion that these Anti-war Demos were of absolutely
NO USE what so ever.
For all the good that it did, I would have been better off sitting at home with a cup of tea, shaking my head and tutting at the TV news coverage of the imminent conflict.
I don't think I'll be attending such protests again...