[Peace-discuss] DI: Protesters condemn troop increase in Iraq

[Robert Naiman]

Protesters condemn troop increase in Iraq
Ill. Representative Tim Johnson expresses disdain for Bush's plan
Sky Opila, Daily Illini, 1/12/07
http://www.dailyillini.com/media/storage/paper736/news/2007/01/12/News/Protesters.Condemn.Troop.Increase.In.Iraq-2628474.shtml

[If you go to the web site there is a nice slideshow.]

President Bush's public address Wednesday night launched protests
across the country, including more than 487 protests sponsored by the
activist organization MoveOn.org, which aimed to demonstrate
displeasure with Bush's plan to escalate the efforts in Iraq.

One such protest took place at the Champaign County Courthouse
Veterans Memorial, 101 E. Main St., in Urbana Thursday night. Roughly
30 people, many of whom are residents of the Champaign-Urbana area,
assembled and held signs protesting Bush's public announcement of his
plans to send more troops in support of efforts in Iraq.

"There are hundreds of events happening across the country like this
event today," said Robert Naiman, national coordinator for Just
Foreign Policy, an independent and non-partisan mass-membership
organization dedicated to U.S. foreign policy.

Naiman said these events are trying to call on Congress to stop this
decision by Bush.
...
On Thursday, Rep. Tim Johnson, R-Ill., sent out a press release that
expressed his opposition to the effort being put forth by Bush with
regards to the war in Iraq.

"I do not support a build-up of 21,500 American troops in Iraq
because, in my view, it is not in the best interest of our country to
contribute additional troops to this war," Johnson said in the
release. "The people of America and, most importantly, the 15th
District made their collective voices heard Nov. 7."

Protesters were outraged over Bush's speech because of the clear cut
opposition in a majority of polls across the nation and a local
referendum in Champaign County that voted on Nov. 7 to remove troops
from Iraq.

Tim Grider, employee of the Veterans Administration for five years,
drove 60 miles from his home in Indiana to attend the protest in
Urbana.

"It's the one small thing that I can do to voice and show my
opposition," said Grider. "For every one person that's standing here,
there is probably another 1,000 that want to be here."

Naiman said he put the protest together in hopes of raising awareness
with community members and pleading with them to contact their
representative about stopping the escalation in Iraq.

"Our goal is to remind our representative and our senators that we are
deeply and passionately opposed to the President's policy, deeply and
passionatly opposed to the war ... and we want Congress to take
responsibility to stop the escalation," Naiman said.