By Jamie Huish
Anti-war demonstrators beat drums, waved signs and shouted their opposition to U.S intervention in Iraq in Salt Lake City Saturday.
?We?re trying to raise public awareness and add our voices to the growing chorus against this war we?re involved in that doesn?t have any justifications,? said Tom King, a Utah Green Party member.
The protesters numbered more than 3,000, according to King. They want an end to the war and to bring troops home from Iraq.
Participants first met at Pioneer Park, then marched to Washington Square outside the Salt Lake City and County Building.
Salt Lake City mayor Rocky Anderson spoke to a cheering crowd about his perception of the government and the news media impressions.
He said the war was ?morally treasonable to the American people? and claimed the government ?led us to war on the basis of one lie after another lie.?
Anderson said the media has let the American people down by repeatedly not telling all sides of the issues in Iraq.
?Now is the time to raise your voices? Anderson said.
He led the crowd in chants of ?No more lies, we want the truth.?
The diverse crowd ranged from grandmothers in skeleton masks to men in business suits, to families with children in tow.
Daniel Webster, of the Episcopal Peace Fellowship, reminded listeners that similar events were being held in Washington, D.C., Seattle, Los Angeles and San Francisco.
?All across this nation today, people like us are giving our country a wake-up call,? Webster said.
Webster said it would take ordinary people to stop a war he called ?unjust, immoral, and illegal.?
Protestor Shea Wickelson calls herself a radical cheerleader.
?When I think about the war, I get really depressed about people dying needlessly ? both Iraqis and the U.S.,? Wickelson said.
Wickelson has been involved in numerous protests, both in Salt Lake City and Colorado Springs. She feels this helps others see the potential for change.
?This is an opportunity to for people to come out, and it makes me feel better to be a part of a community of resistance,? she said.
Protestor Gay Lynne Sylvies has a son scheduled to go to Iraq in January. She baked cookies to raise money for medical supplies sent to physicians in Iraq.
?We want the government locally as well as nationally to pay attention and notice change in the wind,? Sylvies said.
Sylvies believes the words of the protestors will reach government officials ears.
?I think it can change policy, I believe that for sure.?
