Veterans want to know when we'll stop the killing

Led by Iraqi War veterans, the march began in front of the White House. Thousands of people from around the country marched against the Iraq war in Washington D.C. Saturday. Almost 200 were arrested by police in riot gear at the steps of the U.S. Capitol building.

The confrontation with police came at the end of a march. The protesters had planned to have a "die-in" on the Capitol steps to represent American soldiers who had died in the war and occupation.

But by the time they arrived at the Capitol, the Capitol police had blocked the steps with metal barricades. A line of officers stood behind those barricades, ready to catch anyone who crossed over.

A young man climbed over and protesters cheered. He was held down, handcuffed and led away, up the steps. The crowd closed in, chanting "One, two, three, four. Who do you work for?" And "You can't stop us all." More police arrived in a parade of motorcycles. Some had on protective face shields.

Other protesters, some young, some old, went over the barricade and were taken away. Why did they do it?

Thousands of people marched on Saturday to show lawmakers that the war does not have American citizen support. They want the troops to come home. Before arriving at the Capitol lawn, the demonstrators marched holding banners and signs and chanted, "What do we want? Troops out! When do we want it? Now!"

The march opposing the war was led by veterans who served in Iraq, according to Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW). The IVAW is an organization made up of veterans, active duty, and National Guard men and women who have served in the military since September 11th, 2001, and who are also opposed to the current occupation of Iraq.

They give these reasons for their opposition to the Iraq war at their website:

The Iraq war is based on lies and deception. (more info here)
The Iraq war violates international law. (more info here and here)
Corporate profiteering is driving the war in Iraq. (more info here and here)
Overwhelming civilian casualties are a daily occurrence in Iraq. (more info here and here)
Soldiers have the right to refuse illegal war.(more info here and here)
Service members are facing serious health consequences due to our Government's negligence. (more info here and here)
The war in Iraq is tearing our families apart. (more info here and here)
The Iraq war is robbing us of funding sorely needed here at home. (more info here)
The war dehumanizes Iraqis and denies them their right to self-determination. (more info here)
Our military is being exhausted by repeated deployments, involuntary extensions, and activations of the Reserve and National Guard.

Many of the veterans wore fatigues as the crowd marched down Pennsylvania Avenue.

March organizers said Iraq war veterans were more involved and visible at yesterday's protest than in any other similar demonstration since the conflict began.

Juan Torres Sr., 52, of Chicago held a large photo of his son, Juan Torres Jr., in Army uniform. Torres said his 25-year old son died while serving in the war in 2004. Military officials, he said, told him that his son committed suicide, but Torres said he doesn't believe it. "I continue to fight for justice," he said. "I don't want to see other families [lose a son] like mine." (Washington Post)

Also present at this protest was the VAIW (not the same thing as the IVAW described above).

This is the official statement found on the Veterans Against the Iraq War (VAIW) website:

Veterans Against Iraq War is a coalition of American veterans who support our troops but oppose war with Iraq or any other nation that does not pose a clear and present danger to our people and nation.
Until and unless the current U.S. Administration provides evidence which clearly demonstrates that Iraq or any other nation poses a clear, direct and immediate danger to our country, we oppose all of this Administration's pre-emptive and unilateral military activities in Iraq. Furthermore, we cannot support any war that is initiated without a formal Declaration of War by Congress, as our Constitution requires.
Although we detested the dictatorial policies of Saddam Hussein and sympathized with the tragic plight of the Iraqi people, we opposed unilateral and pre-emptive U.S. military intervention on the grounds that it established a dangerous precedent in the conduct of international affairs, that it could easily lead to an increase of violent regional instability and the spread of much wider conflicts, that it places needless and unacceptable financial burdens on the American people, that it diverts us from addressing critical domestic priorities, and that it distracts us from our goals of tracking down and destroying international terrorists and their lairs.
Furthermore, we do not believe that the American military can or should be used as the police force of the world by any administration, Republican or Democrat. Consequently, we believe that the lives and well being of our nation's soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines should not be squandered or sacrificed for causes other than in the direct defense of our people and nation.
Finally, we believe that a doctrine of pre-emptive and unilateral U.S. military attack on Iraq or any other nation is illegal, unnecessary, counter-productive and presents a truly dire and distressing threat to our vital international interests and basic national security. As military veterans, we have a unique understanding of war and know the many hidden truths that lie behind war's easy theories and promises, as well as behind the tragic consequences that even, "victory" brings. We therefore call on all like-minded veterans and family members to endorse this statement and support us in our efforts to help avert, mitigate or stop a national tragedy and an international calamity.
We ask that you support our troops, by demanding that they be brought home from Iraq immediately. We ask that you support our nation's vital interests, by demanding that our troops should never be placed in harm's way except to meet and defeat any direct and immediate threat to our people.

As more members of the U.S. military step forward for peace, greater numbers of active and reserve military are now refusing to serve.

The Department of Defense estimates that there are about 8,000 AWOL service members.

The GI Rights Hotline (800-394-9544) is currently receiving about 3,000 calls a month. A few examples of who these resisters are is provided here by United for Peace & Justice.

One organization, Courage to Resist, offers some background information about specific war resisters and suggests way that others can help.

They say that a growing number of soldiers are speaking out, against the illegality and immorality of the Iraq war and the orders they are being told to carry out even though they may be risking jail time and their futures to stand up against the war.

To be clear, I am not expressing my approval of any of these forms of civil disobedience by writing this blog posting about military protests.

I am grateful and humbled by the bravery of all the servicemen and women that have served or are still serving in the war in Iraq.

At the same time, however, I also respect and honor the bravery of those who choose to protest the war.

I do not and cannot believe that this is a just war. People are dying unnecessarily every day. The costs do not justify the benefits. We are not making lives better. We are ending lives, maiming lives and showing our disrespect for life in general.

We are not doing God's work.

I too want our occupation of Iraq to end.