SCV residents protest for peace

The civil war in Iraq may be 10,000 miles from Santa Clarita, but for some SCV residents, President Bush’s handling of the war –in which some 150,000 American troops are fighting - is worth protesting. On Saturday, thousands of peaceful protestors gathered in Los Angeles to march through downtown for a rally at the Federal building. Representing a diverse and often-times confusing spectrum of moderate, leftist, and even socialist groups, the protestors hailed from communities across Southern California, including Santa Clarita. They met with one voice –bring our troops home- but many differed on how or when to do that.

I wanted to document the experience of eight SCV residents who cared enough to protest the war on behalf of the young men and women fighting there. We met at the Newhall Metrolink station early Saturday morning. Our plan was to catch the southbound 260 train to downtown, then take the Metro Red Line subway to 9th and Figueroa where the protest would begin at noon. While we relaxed in the train on the way south, I got to ask them some questions. “Why are you doing this?” I asked Joyce Evans, a 63 year old Valencia grandmother who works as a real estate appraiser. “It’s the only thing I feel I can do. I’m still angry,” Evans said. “I knew that Saddam Hussein and Osama Bin Laden were bitter enemies. I'm just a little grandmother and I knew that, how come my government didn't know that?” Evans asked, in reference to the apparent widespread misconception that Saddam Hussein was involved in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Evans, who worked as a Peace Corps volunteer in the Philippines in the 1960s, has been to five protests since the Iraq war began nearly four years ago. She says she writes letters, emails, and has even alienated friends and relatives due to her ardent opposition to the war. Like Evans, Sheri Ruxton has been to several peace protests, vigils, and marches. The North Valencia woman has also participated in protests at the corner of McBean and Valencia Blvd, where she says that public reaction to her group, Grandmothers for Peace, hasn’t always been welcoming. “We’ve been shot with paintballs and super soakers from cars driving by,” Ruxton tells me. But Ruxton says, she is compelled to protest because she believes that "this war is wrong, period. And we want our people home, now." Ruxton carried a sign that said “Support the Warrior, not the war.” That was to be the theme of the march, where celebrated but controversial anti-war activist –and mother of a slain US soldier- Cindy Sheehan was rumored to make an appearance. The Protest Prior to the march, Ruxton and fellow SCV protestor Maureen Cole worked to construct 40 flag draped coffins. The coffins were built out of three large cardboard boxes taped together. Ruxton and Cole draped and pinned down American flags over the coffins, then helped stack the empty boxes at the corner of the street. The mock coffins were to be carried by military veterans. As noon approached, police sealed off Figueroa as thousands of people converged on the intersection. A multitude of colorful signs, some unfit for print, blocked any views of the crowd unless one climbed higher. Protestors began to chant in both Spanish and English: “What do we want? Peace! When do we want it? Now!” Across the street, a small but hardy group of counter-protesting fundamentalist Christians used a megaphone to make their voices heard. “If it wasn’t for George Bush,” one man, clothed in a shirt with Bible verses on it, said, “we’d all be praying to Allah right now!” An anti-war protestor answered back with his own megaphone, saying, “Jesus was the Prince of Peace, not of war!” Several protestors didn’t focus exclusively on the war in Iraq. Some waved signs supporting immigrant rights; others had signs protesting Israel’s occupation of Palestine. Sheri Ruxton commented on the makeup of the crowd about 20 minutes before the march began: “So many groups show up, they tend to drown out the war message.” After she was done preparing the mock coffins, I asked Maureen Cole what she thought about President Bush’s handling of the war in Iraq. “If President Bush supported the troops, he would have made sure they have proper body armor and he wouldn’t have cut their benefits,” she said. Other protestors noticed me taking notes and wanted to talk to me. Greg and Sue Kimberlin of Long Beach agreed with Joyce Evans. “We were lead into this war with lies,” Greg said. But they differed slightly with other protestors who wanted an immediate withdrawal of all American soldiers and Marines in Iraq. “The troops should be withdrawn with common sense,” Greg said, adding that the country would probably have to be broken up into three separate entities for the various factions involved in the war. Just before the march began, I spoke with Barbara Cogswell, a 73 year old grandmother from Canyon Country. Cogswell, a pleasant and soft-spoken woman, was pessimistic about the prospects for a democratic Iraq. “Democracy can not grow yet in a place like that,” she said while holding a “US out of Iraq sign!” The March The dense crowd of thousands of protestors ambled down the streets a little after noon. Some sang, others chanted. Protestors kept clear of the 100+ individuals carrying the mock coffins, while spectators looked at the marchers from old skyscrapers along Figueroa Blvd. Joyce Evans and the other SCV residents joined in the chants, while Maureen Cole and Sheri Ruxton walked along quietly, waving their signs and observing. The crowd of protestors was nothing if not diverse. A Korean peace group danced and banged on cymbals chanting “Stop the Violence, Stop the Hate,” while a disorganized group of protestors dressed in Native American clothing and danced to a deep drumbeat. As we marched past Los Angeles City Hall, a soft rain fell on the crowd. After becoming separated from the Ruxton and Cole, I noticed a dense throng of media photographers crowding the leading wave of protestors. At least a dozen professional photojournalists were shoving and angling their way for a picture of Cindy Sheehan, mother of slain US Army Spc. Casey Sheehan. Sheehan, who became famous for setting up a “peace camp” outside of President Bush’s ranch in Crawford Texas spoke later at the rally. She expressed disappointment at the size of the rally, which organizers had hoped would attract tens of thousands of protestors. Post Script Separated from Joyce Evans and the others, I had no hope of finding them in the dense crowd after the rally. I hopped on the northbound 2:45 Metrolink train alone with a heavy heart; so many people dying in a far-away land, with no solution in sight. While I appreciated all the comments the SCV protestors had made, I still think withdrawing all the troops from Iraq would cure the disease by killing the patient. Few protestors mentioned the consequences of an immediate withdrawal, and how it might destabilize the entire region. On the other hand, is it worth the blood and money we’re spending, with no end in sight? I don’t know. The protestors on Saturday don’t think it is. What if our presence is causing a large amount of the violence? I confirmed my respect and admiration for our town's protestors, women like Joyce Evans and Sheri Ruxton, who care enough to brave unpredictable crowds, bad weather, and jeering opponents to express their support for the troops while condemning the war.

Comments (1)