Organizers hope that 100,000 will gather this weekend
to urge an Iraq troop withdrawal.
to urge an Iraq troop withdrawal.
WASHINGTON - They left Crawford, Texas, three weeks ago, eager to build on the momentum created by Cindy Sheehan's antiwar vigil outside President Bush's ranch.
After passing through 51 cities on the "Bring Them Home Now Tour," three busloads of protesters arrived at the National Mall on Wednesday, the vanguard of a movement that Iraq war protesters hope will bring 100,000 people to the capital this weekend.
Family members who have lost relatives — that is a compelling voice that the nation is listening to. This policy has been a disaster…. The daily cascade of headlines and horrible images, the continued reports of bad news, have crescendoed to a tipping point that is rapidly approaching.
Tom Andrews, national director of Win Without War
"We've been to a lot of red states and red cities, and we've gotten great support," said Sheehan, the Vacaville, Calif., woman who sought a meeting with Bush during his August vacation. Her son, Army Spc. Casey Sheehan, was killed in Iraq last year.
"We think America is not as divided as people would like it to be portrayed," Sheehan said.
