198 Sundays: Banners High We'll Make Demands

Neil Diamond's song might be ironic, dismissive and/or just plain funny, but it actually also describes pretty well what went on yesterday at the ANSWER-organized demonstrations that marked the 6th anniversary of the Iraq War:

Before war protesters ended their demonstration Saturday afternoon, several placed cardboard coffins in front of the offices of northern Virginia defense contractors such as KBR Inc. and Lockheed Martin Corp. as riot police stood by.

"Lockheed Martin you can't hide, we charge you with genocide!" they chanted as part of a demonstration that began in Washington to mark the sixth anniversary of the invasion of Iraq.

Arlington County, Va., police estimated there were 2,500 to 3,000 protesters and said no arrests were made.

Organizers from the ANSWER Coalition said more than 1,000 groups sponsored the protest to call for an end to the Iraq war, and estimated that about 10,000 people participated. Carrying signs saying "We need jobs and schools, not war" and "Indict Bush," demonstrators beat drums and played trumpets as they marched from near the Lincoln Memorial past the Pentagon into Virginia.

Meanwhile, at a similar protest in San Francisco, tension grew after four or five dozen activists surrounded a group of riot-equipped police, throwing sticks and water bottles. Police responded by regrouping in riot formation and physically detaining several protesters who pushed and shoved with officers.
...
In Washington, protesters demanded that President Barack Obama immediately withdraw all U.S. troops from Iraq, saying thousands of Iraqis have died and thousands of American troops have been wounded or killed.

"We think it's especially important for this new administration to feel the pressure from people that we don't want more war," said Obama supporter Pat Halle, 59, of Baltimore.

Anti-war activists said even though former President George W. Bush is out of power, they are disappointed with what they see as stalled action from Obama.

"Obama seems to be led somewhat by the bureaucracies. I want him to follow up on his promise to end the war," said 66-year-old Perry Parks of Rockingham, N.C., who said he served in the Army for nearly 30 years, including in Vietnam.
...
In southern California, hundreds of protesters gathered in Hollywood. Among them were peace advocate Cindy Sheehan — whose son was killed in Iraq — Oscar-winning screenwriter Paul Haggis and Ron Kovic, a paralyzed Vietnam veteran whose story was chronicled in the book and film "Born on the Fourth of July."

Protesters in Los Angeles were expected to follow a rally with a march and then a symbolic "die in" where they would lie down in a major Hollywood Boulevard intersection to symbolize the soldiers who have died in the war.

Protesters waved signs and sold bumper stickers and T-shirts commemorating the event.

Denise Clendenning, 51, an environmental scientist from Chino Hills, Calif., said she hopes Obama will rethink his strategy to withdraw most of the troops from Iraq and Afghanistan and call all of them back instead.
...
In Washington, U.S. Park Police said no arrests were made. However, there sometimes was commotion among activists.
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This year, the protest in Washington was held on a weekend — a few days after the March 19 anniversary of the war, which began in 2003. Last year's weekday protest was marked by lower turnout than in previous years.

From the Code Pink photo album of yesterday's San Francisco event.

Of course a variety of Methods are employed at these protests, though marching is probably the most prominent aspect in a lot of people's minds--a march is a specific type of procession that often is an amalgam of different forms of nonviolent protest and persuasion that can also stand on their own.  I first covered 38. Marches in the context of Las Madres in Argentina, but here's what Sharp has to say:

The march...is practiced when a group of people walk in an organized manner to a particular place which is regarded as intrinsically significant to the issue involved.  The duration of the march may vary from an hour or two to several weeks, or even longer.  Posters and banners may or may not be carried, and leaflets may or may not be distributed to bystanders.
...
An "Agreement for the Deportation of the First Batch of twenty thousands Jews to East German Territories" was signed by a Bulgarian and German official on February 22, 1943.  But revolutionary groups in Sofia appealed to the Bulgarian people, urging them to stand before Jewish homes and crowd into the Jewish quarters, refusing to allow the Jews to be deported.  On May 24, 1943, writes Matei Yulzari, the Jews of Sofia organized a protest in which many non-Jewish Bulgarians also participated:

It started from the Jewish synagogue in one of the suburbs, where the gathering was addressed by Rabbi Daniel Zion and several young men.  The crowd started an impressive march, which was intended to join the demonstration of the university students and make its way to the royal palace to protest against the outrages to which the Jews were subjected.  Clashes with police were followed by numerous arrests.

This mass demonstration alarmed the authorities and they did not carry out the second stage of their deportation plan--deportation to Poland, where the Jews of Europe found their death.  Fearing internal unrest, the Fascist government and the king were forced to give up their plan to send the Jews of Bulgaria to their doom in the death camps.

In Oriente province of Cuba in later 1956, during the Batista regime, the bodies of twenty-nine Cuban youths were reported to have been delivered, badly mutilated, as government reprisals for the November uprising.  Later there were other murders and countermurders in Santiago.  On January 2, 1957, soldiers in Santiago seized William Soler, a fourteen-year-old boy; his badly tortured  body was dumped in an empty lot the next night.  Robert Taber writes:

At ten o'clock in the morning [of January 4], some forty women dressed in black left the Church of Dolores...and moved in slow procession, praying in unison and fingering their rosaries, down Call Aguilera...At their head marched the mother of William Soler, and with her the mothers of other youths slain by police and soldiers...Over their heads they carried a large white banner with the black inscription: Cesen los asesinatos de nuestros hijos.  (Stop the murder of our sons.)

As they moved on past the park and through the shopping district, other women joined them.  There were two hundred by the time they had passed the first block, then eight hundred, then a thousand.  At every step more women left the shops to join the procession, pressing slowly forward through the narrow, cobbled street.  A few policemen stood by, helpless, at the intersections.  Men watched from the doorways and many wept with shame as the women passed by, the only sound was their murmured litany and the funereal tapping of their heels.

At one intersection, a jeep load of soldiers suddenly appeared, training a machine gun on the procession, blocking the way.  The women waited, silently.  The demostration continued to grow until it overflowed into nearby streets, blocking all traffic.

When the soldiers tried to break up the manifestation, pushing their way into the dense crowd, the women simply opened aisles for them to pass through, and then closed ranks again.  The mothers refused to be provoked into any overt act of physical resistance, but stood in quiet dignity until the soldiers gave up their futile efforts and, shamefaced, turned away.  Then the women began, still silently, to disperse.  Part of the procession continued to the city hall and to the offices of several newspapers to leave petitions demanding an end of the terror and the restoration of civil law.  Then these women, too, went quietly home.

The mothers' protest march in Santiago had significance because it was the first public act to signal the beginning of organized civic resistance on a broad and effective scale in Cuba, under the aegis of the fidelista movement.

You'll notice 6. Group or mass petitions in the mix, covered a couple weeks ago.  A related form of Formal Statement is 3. Declarations by organizations and institutions:

One of the forms such declarations have taken has been that of pastoral letters and similar official church statements.  During World War II, in Vichy France, for example, in August and September 1942, protest declarations against the deportation of Jews were read by priests from their pulpits in Toulouse and in the Lyons diocese...Anti-Nazi pastoral letters were also read on a number of occassions in churches in Germany itself.

Even if one supports a regime--perhaps especially if one does--declarations of criticism can be very import.  We saw a flavor of that in some of the interviews during yesterday's marches, and of course groups like Code Pink have issued more formal declarations:

CODEPINK Women for Peace is disheartened by President Obama's announcement this morning for troop withdrawal by Aug. 2010, later than his campaign promise, leaving residual troops until December 2011.

Americans voted for Obama largely based on his opposition to the war since its start, and his promise to end the occupation in 2009.

“While the move toward withdrawal is positive, this timeline and leaving tens of thousands of residual troops sounds more like occupation-lite than an end to occupation,” said Medea Benjamin, co-founder of CODEPINK. “But compared to the past eight years of moving backward, at least there's an atmosphere now where we can continue to apply pressure on the administration to push forward."

CODEPINK women call on Obama and his administration to immediately withdraw all U.S. troops, including residual forces from Iraq. Instead, the U.S. government should increase efforts in diplomacy, humanitarian aid and refugee resettlement. Continued troop presence will only encourage more armed opposition within Iraq and will not force the Iraqi government and Iraqi factions to negotiate power. In addition, with the continued presence of U.S. troops, the international community will doubt the U.S. commitment to withdrawal and will wait to invest in diplomatic and reconstruction efforts.

"Up to 50,000 troops is a big number to leave behind," said Dana Balicki, CODEPINK campaign coordinator. "And there hasn't been any word on military bases left in Iraq that will continue to drain billions of dollars from U.S. taxpayers at a time where that money is very much needed at home. But the withdrawal, and a timeline, is a baby step forward from past policies. As citizens, it's our job to move Obama to take giant strides."

We must put our "opponent" on notice so they know why we're marching and so they can correct their behavior.  Just recently we've seen it work regarding Obama's lack of AIDS policy even BEFORE an event takes place.

We also need to remind our opponent and supporters what we're fighting for in simple ways.  It might seem odd to cite Adolf Hitler here, but really in a sense we're engaging in propaganda here, framing the debate and lighting brushfires in people's minds, and he was truly a master:

The content of propaganda is not science any more than the object represented in a poster is art. The art of the poster lies in the designer's ability to attract the attention of the crowd by form and color. A poster advertising an art exhibit must direct the attention of the public to the art being exhibited; the better it succeeds in this, the greater is the art of the poster itself. The poster should give the masses an idea of the significance of the exhibition, it should not be a substitute for the art on display. Anyone who wants to concern himself with the art itself must do more than study the poster; and it will not be enough for him just to saunter through the exhibition. We may expect him to examine and immerse himself in the individual works, and thus little by little form a fair opinion.

A similar situation prevails with what we today call propaganda.

The function of propaganda does not lie in the scientific training of the individual, but in calling the masses' attention to certain facts, processes, necessities, etc., whose significance is thus for the first time placed within their field of vision.

The whole art consists in doing this so skillfully that everyone will be convinced that the fact is real, the process necessary, the necessity correct, etc. But since propaganda is not and cannot be the necessity in itself, since its function, like the poster, consists in attracting the attention of the crowd, and not in educating those who are already educated or who are striving after education and knowledge, its effect for the most part must be aimed at the emotions and only to a very limited degree at the so-called intellect.

So we see 8. Banners, posters, and displayed communications that disseminate our "propaganda" at these events, and elsewhere both before and after.  We also rely heavily on 7. Slogans, caricatures, and symbols:

Among the very common forms of nonviolent protest are slogans, caricatures and symbols.  They may be written, painted, drawn, printed, mimed, gestured, or spoken.  From the summer of 1941 to May 1942 a resistance group of Jewish youths in Berlin, the Baum Group, carried out such activities without a single arrest, Professor Ber Mark reports...In Munich in early 1943 young student members of the Weisse Rose (White Rose) resistance group wrote "DOWN WITH HITLER" on walls.

In occupied Poland, a group of young boys called "The Little Wolves" in 1942 used indelible paint to decorate German trucks and automobiles, German residences, and even the backs of German trucks themselves with inscriptions, such as "POLAND FIGHTS ON," which appeared in Warsaw every morning.  Caricatures and posters were also displayed.  According to one Polish commentator: "The mischievous and diabolically efficient little pack did much to sustain the psychological atmosphere of contempt for the Germans and fostered the spirit of resistance."

These little acts of defiance can sometimes carry great risk, and risk or not, can provide psychological support for bystanders and activists alike, letting people know that somebody is still out there resisting.  They can inspire people to attend marches, and keep the message alive after the marchers have gone home.

Yesterday's events also offered the common die-ins (44. Mock funerals), which are very dramatic, symbolic ways to honor the dead and communicate our grief and grievances.  These can pay homage to our soldiers killed in Iraq, Gazan civilians who have died at the hands of our client state's military, and innocents killed during actions here at home.

Speaking of which, it turns out that violent repression usually results in greater mobilization of the masses.  For example, the Kent State Massacre (which I discussed regarding 62. Student strike last month):

[T]he majority of Americans supported the Guard's actions at Kent State. Many parents viewed the shootings as the tragic lot of a generation weaned on permissiveness. This view directly contradicted student reaction and resulted in further division between generations. The country experienced its first national student strike, in which over one third of the Nation's campuses were involved. There were approximately one hundred strikes per day for the four days following the deaths, as universities throughout the nation were besieged by protesting students. One hundred thousand marched in Washington to protest the war and the killings at Kent. 

Jerry Rubin said afterward: It was the most significant day of all of our lives because in 48 hours more young people were radicalized, revolutionized and yippieized than in any single time in American history.  What's more, in the wake of Kent and the Jackson State killings later that month, we saw "nearly a million marchers on both coasts in April, 1971; 12,000 activists performing civil disobedience in Washington in May; and 100,000 marching in 1972 against the mining of North Vietnam's harbors, and at the January, 1973, 'counter-inaugural' against the bombing of Hanoi."

And it's not just in "benevolent" America, but all over the world at various times:

Ciskei: 20,000 African National Congress members demonstrated for democracy in Bisho, Ciskei, a “homeland” in South Africa. Police opened fire, killing 28 and wounding 288. The next day 100,000 ANC members marched to Ciskei, Bishop Tutu led 2,000 in prayer, 12,000 attended a rally led by Nelson Mandela and 1,250 protested in other cities. The following day 2,000 protested in Johannesburg.

St. Petersburg: Father Gapon led thousands of workers seeking more food and higher wages to the Winter Palace on Sunday, January 22, 1905. The protest had been announced; even so, the Tsar’s forces shot at the marchers, killing 175 and wounding 625. Father Gapon was lost, but not killed, in the melee, and most marchers fled the scene. Backlash, mostly in the form of general strikes, was strong against this Bloody Sunday. It led eventually to Russia’s first elected parliament (Duma).

Uitenhage:  On the 25^th anniversary of the Sharpeville massacre South Africans were marching to a funeral of dissidents. Police opened fire on them, killing 19. During the next two days 18 homes of police officers were burned and a demonstration in Port Elizabeth developed. Police came in and clashed with the demonstrators, killing a man and a woman. On the third day, funerals of three dead protesters drew 30,000 mourners.

Vienna: Workers were incensed by the acquittal of  police who were tried for killing a worker and a 10-year old child in Burgenland. Thousands of unarmed demonstrators rioted and burned the justice ministry on July 15, 1927. Police and troops shot into the crowd, killing 85 and wounding more than a thousand protesters. A 24-hour general strike followed. Workers occupied several districts of the city; Red Guards from the labor federation controlled main highways, and 500,000 workers marched on the Ringstrasse on July 16.

Marches by themselves don't end wars or regimes, but they communicate messages to regimes, inspire and mobilize people, and offer a beginning point for a strategic campaign of escalation if demands aren't met.  In many ways they are the least we can do as we try to effect change, though they can carry a certain amount of risk and even scare those in power enough sometimes to change their polices.

I oft hear people say, "well, we marched in 2003 and that didn't stop the war," as they throw up their hands and give up on any other action.  Sadly, that misses the point of marches and fails to draw the most important lesson: we need MORE marches, MORE often, and MORE people to become involved.  Combining them with other tactics can change--has changed--the world.

ntodd

Covered on previous Sundays:

THE METHODS OF NONVIOLENT PROTEST AND PERSUASION  

1. Public Speeches
2. Letters of opposition or support
5. Declarations of indictment and intention
6. Group or mass petitions
8. Banners, posters, and displayed communications
9. Leaflets, pamphlets, and books
10. Newspapers and journals
11. Records, radio, and television
14. Mock awards
15. Group lobbying
18. Displays of flags and symbolic colors
19. Wearing of symbols
21. Delivering symbolic objects
22. Protest disrobings
23. Destruction of own property
25. Displays of portraits26. Paint as protest
30. Rude gestures
31. "Haunting" officials
32. Taunting officials
33. Fraternization
34. Vigils
35. Humorous skits and pranks
37. Singing
38. Marches
44. Mock funerals
45. Demonstrative funerals.
50. Teach-ins
52. Silence
53. Renouncing honors
54. Turning one's back.
55. Social boycott

THE METHODS OF SOCIAL NONCOOPERATION

57. Lysistratic nonaction
61. Boycott of social affairs
62. Student strike
65. Stay-at-home
66. Total personal noncooperation

THE METHODS OF ECONOMIC NONCOOPERATION

71. Consumers' boycott
86. Withdrawal of bank deposits
88. Refusal to pay debts or interest
90. Revenue refusal
91. Refusal of a government's money
97. Protest strike
112. Reporting "sick" (sick-in)
113. Strike by resignation
117. General strike
118. Hartal

THE METHODS OF POLITICAL NONCOOPERATION

120. Withholding or withdrawal of allegiance
122. Literature and speeches advocating resistance
124. Boycott of elections
135. Popular nonobedience
137. Refusal of an assemblage or meeting to disperse
140. Hiding, escape, and false identities
147. Deliberate inefficiency and selective noncooperation by enforcement agents
148. Mutiny
150. Noncooperation by constituent governmental units

THE METHODS OF NONVIOLENT INTERVENTION

158. Self-exposure to the elements
159. The fast: a) Fast of moral pressure; b) Hunger strike; c) Satyagrahic fast
160. Reverse trial
162. Sit-in
164. Ride-in
170. Nonviolent invasion
171. Nonviolent interjection
173. Nonviolent occupation
174. Establishing new social patterns
177. Speak-in
178. Guerrilla theater
179. Alternative social institutions
180. Alternative communication system
189. Selective patronage
193. Overloading of administrative systems
195. Seeking imprisonment
196. Civil disobedience of "neutral" laws
198: Dual sovereignty and parallel government.

Comments

[Dolores Huerta-Carrasco]

Yes! Right on! My name is Dolores Huerta-Carrasco and I am a professor of women's studies at SF State. The male power force has dominated our world for too long. Support every liberal cause! Affirmative action forever! Lower African Admissions UC test scores to 1. Raise white people's admission scores to 99! Abort every fetus now! Bush is a liar! Support man-boy marriage! Free every criminal! Arrest every rich person (except Hillary)! Every white person is a racist!