"No new U.S. war on Iraq" - Report of the anti-war assembly rallied at the White House on 2015 spring's day

Photo: Roger Scott

On Saturday, March 21, a dramatic anti-war assembly rallied at the White House and then wound through the streets of Washington, D.C., delivering symbolic flag-draped coffins to the headquarters of war contractors like Honeywell Corporation, the AIPAC offices and finally at the Senate Office Building at the U.S. Capitol.

Saturday's action was organized by the ANSWER Coalition and was the culmination of four days of anti-war actions and teach-ins organized by a broad coalition of organizations under the umbrella of Spring Rising – an Antiwar Intervention in D.C. Spring Rising was initiated by Cindy Sheehan and many organizations joined together to organize the series of events, including the ANSWER Coalition, Veterans for Peace, World Can't Wait, CODEPINK, National Campaign for Nonviolent Resistance, World Beyond War, Military Families Speak Out, United National Antiwar Coalition, International Action Center, Party for Socialism and Liberation, and more.

Photo: Ted Majdosz

The March 21 demonstration received considerable media attention from national and international media outlets, including CNN, Associated Press, Reuters, Al-Jazeera and a wide range of alternative media.

Click here to see some of the coverage on CNN.

Simultaneous March 21 demonstrations were held in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Minneapolis and other cities in the Midwest.

Held on the 12th anniversary of the U.S. “Shock and Awe” invasion of Iraq, the groups announced their plans to intensify opposition to the Congressional Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF) request from President Obama, which they describe as an authorization for this and future presidents to carry out endless war and endless bombing in Iraq, Syria and other countries in the Middle East under the pretext of fighting ISIS.

Brian Becker, the national director of the ANSWER Coalition, explained why the anti-war movement was marching in opposition to President Obama's request for congressional authorization for endless war:

Photo: Phil Portluck - More photos to come

“Each of the last four U.S. presidents has carried out the bombing of Iraqi cities and towns. That's 24 years of devastating bombing strikes against a country and a people that has never threatened or harmed the people of the United States. Each U.S. administration has used a different rationale for why the United States must bomb Iraq, with the latest explanation being the need to fight ISIS. But ISIS only exists today because of the U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq. 

Dropping more U.S. bombs on Iraqis will not solve the problems caused by the earlier U.S. bombs. The United States is in fact the primary cause of the fragmenting of Iraq. Endless war is only a prescription for the growth and exercise of a malignant militarism that is has come to dominate the foundational political structures of the United States.”

ANSWER Coalition  - info@answercoalition.org