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War protesters gathered in Des Moines and around the nation today to mark the 8th anniversary of the war in Iraq.
More than 100 peace activists carrying signs that read, “Bring The Iowa Guard Home,” and “Enough Already,” participated in the rally at Nollen Plaza in downtown Des Moines.
Roberta Rosheim of the Iowa National Education Association’s Peace and Justice Caucus was among the speakers.
“It is not possible for the U.S. to win in Afghanistan unless we commit up to 800,000 troops to subdue a country of $32 million,” she said. “We can’t afford this, nor would the America people support if the true costs were known. We escalated to half a billion troops in Vietnam but could not beat an opposing force of 100,000.”
Rosheim said that with the amount of money Iowans are expected to pay this year to finance the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, the government could provide a year of Heart Start programming for 185,942 children, pay the annual salary of 26,972 elementary school teachers or fund 189,177 one-year scholarships for university students.
The Washington Post reported today that several hundred demonstrators rallied in a park near the White House, calling for the withdrawal of troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. Others voiced support for Bradley Manning, the Army private who is alleged to have given classified military documents to Wikileaks. Manning is being held in a military prison.
