Minneapolis, MN – On one of the first warm spring afternoons here, over 50 people joined an anti-war protest on April 2 to demonstrate against the U.S. war on Libya.

The protest lined the sidewalks at one of the major intersections in Minneapolis with signs and banners against the newest U.S. war in the Middle East.

Protesters’ signs read, “U.S. hands off Libya,” “Foreclose the war, not people’s homes,” and “Say no to U.S. war against Libya.”

For over an hour participants chanted anti-war slogans and held signs as thousands of people went by in cars, buses and the light rail train.

Many people showed support for the anti-war message by waving, honking horns and joining the protest.

Two TV stations reported the event on evening newscasts.

A statement issued by organizers says in part, “Eight years after the start of the war in Iraq, the U.S. has launched a new war in the Middle East, this time against Libya. This is not a ‘humanitarian intervention.’ This is a war launched to try to control the oil resources of the region. The big powers intervene for their own economic interests, not for the interests of the people.”

The statement continues, “We need funds for jobs, education, the environment, housing and human needs, not a new war in the Middle East.”

Meredith Aby, of the Anti-War Committee, told the crowd, “This is not ‘change we can believe in.’ This is the Bush doctrine version 2.0. This was an unprovoked attack on the Libyan government because the U.S. wants a regime change. But Obama doesn’t have the right to decide for the Libyan people who their leader is or what they do with their oil. Those questions are for the Libyan people to answer and them alone.”

Aby, one of anti-war leaders raided by the FBI September 24, 2010, also urged participants to sign the pledge to resist Grand jury and FBI repression.

The Saturday protest was sponsored by Anti-War Committee, Emergency Committee to Stop U.S. War in Libya, Military Families Speak Out, Students for a Democratic Society (U of MN), Twin Cities Peace Campaign, Veterans for Peace, Women Against Military Madness and others.

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Minneapolis, MN – About 2000 people filled the streets here, March 15 for an anti-war march to mark the fifth anniversary of the U.S. war in Iraq with a call for an end to the occupation.

The Minneapolis protest was organized by the Twin Cities Year 5 Committee to End the War, a coalition of anti-war, peace, student and other groups. The event started with a rally in the Uptown neighborhood of Minneapolis followed by a one and half mile to Loring Park. Passing motorists honked in support of the anti-war message.

Anh Pham, of the Anti-War Committee told the rally, “We do not speak out against the war and occupation in Iraq only to stay silent on the occupation of Palestine, while Israel lays siege to Gaza using U.S.-made weapons. The Palestinian people have a right to self-determination and the right of return. We do not speak out against the surge of troops in Iraq and stay silent while politicians in congress claim to oppose the war in Iraq all the while making plans to redeploy troops to Afghanistan. We do not speak out and support the sovereignty of the Iraqi people, and watch silently while the U.S.-supported government of Colombia illegally violates the sovereignty of Ecuador and kills one of the leaders of the Colombian resistance movement. We will not stay silent!”

Groups that participated in the march included Iraq Veterans Against the War, Military Families Speak Out, Anti-War Committee, Twin Cities Peace Campaign-Focus on Iraq, Women Against Military Madness and others.

A very broad range of community groups endorsed the event and helped mobilize. The Saint Paul Trades and Labor Assembly endorsed the protest and spread the word to trade union members. The assembly represents nearly 30,000 members in 100 union locals in the St. Paul area.

Saint. Joan of Arc Church in Minneapolis and several Unitarian-Universalist churches organized large contingents, including local buses to bring people to the protest.

The event was organized around the slogans: U.S. Out of Iraq now! End the war and occupation. No war on Iran. Fund education, housing, health care and other human needs. Bring the troops home now!

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Minneapolis, MN – Over 200 people joined a anti-war protest here Oct. 11. The protest was organized under the slogans of “Bring the troops home now,” “Out of Iraq, out of Afghanistan, no war on Iran,” and “Funds for housing and human needs – not war!”

Similar event took place in at least other 20 U.S. cities calling for an end to the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The actions where coordinated to mark is the sixth anniversary of the passage by Congress of the war authorization on October 11, 2002 that allowed the Bush administration to launch the war in Iraq.

The event in Minneapolis, organized by the Iraq Peace Action Coalition, was a bannering at the intersection of Hiawatha Avenue and Lake Street, one of the busiest intersections in the city. Participants lined both sidewalks and the traffic island with signs and banners.

On Oct. 11, 2002, the U.S. Congress overwhelmingly passed a Joint Resolution authorizing the Bush administration to launch the Iraq war. Since then, Congress has continued to provide billions of dollars for war and occupation.

A statement issued by organizers says in part, “In this election year, some politicians talk about ‘winning the war’ and staying in Iraq for 100 years, while other politicians are talking about ‘withdrawal timetables,’ or moving troops out of Iraq only to send them to Afghanistan instead.” The statement continues, “The people of Iraq want the occupation troops out of their country. The war and occupation must end now!”

Speakers included representatives from the Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Coalition, Students for a Democratic Society, Youth Against War and Racism, Military Families Speak Out, the Welfare Rights Committee, the Anti-War Committee and a legal defense coalition working with people arrested at the Republican National Convention (RNC) protests.

Meredith Aby of the Anti-War Committee called on demonstrators to build the movement against the occupation of Iraq and to demand that all charges be dropped against those arrested at the RNC protests.

Cities that saw anti-war actions on Oct. 11 included New York, Boston, Cleveland, Dayton, Seattle and San Francisco.

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St Paul, MN – New Year’s Eve, an evening typically shared and celebrated with our loved ones was overshadowed this year as the death toll of U.S. soldiers serving in the Iraq war reached 3000. About 300 protesters gathered in Minneapolis at the Lake Street/Marshall Avenue Bridge that spans the Mississippi River between Minneapolis and St. Paul on the evening of Jan.1. It was one of 300 other organized events across the country.

The protesters braved the cold winter night holding candles and signs to send a message that troops need to be brought home now. Signs read, “Not one more death – not one more dollar,” and called for an end to the U.S war. Many at the bridge shared New Year’s greetings, most expressed hope that the New Year would bring change to Iraq and an end to the occupation.

A statement issued by organizers says, in part, “How many U.S. soldiers and Iraqis must lose their lives before our government finally admits that the war was wrong and it is time to bring the troops home? On this New Year’s weekend, we will mourn the loss of Iraqi and U.S. lives and rededicate ourselves to working for an end to the war in 2007.”

Organizer Mike Perkins from Military Families Against the War said, “It’s New Year’s Day – we should be spending it with our families not worrying about how another family has lost someone they love.” The sentiment of the people on the bridge was shared as hundreds of cars honked as they drove past those standing on the bridge.

Local organizations sponsoring the vigil included the Anti-War Committee, Twin Cities Peace Campaign-Focus on Iraq, Women Against Military Madness, Iraq Peace Action Coalition, Military Families Speak Out and others.

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