Praise Mingles with Anger as Hundreds Turn Out for Rally to Support Troops

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Praise Mingles with Anger as Hundreds Turn Out for Rally to Support Troops

Magazine article

By: Elisabeth Goodridge

Date: September 25, 2005

Source: AP Newswire

About the Author: Elisabeth Goodridge is a writer for the Associated Press, a worldwide news agency based in New York.

INTRODUCTION

This article highlights the declining level of public support in the U.S. for the continued presence of American troops in Iraq following the invasion of 2003. In October 2005, a rally in support of the troops in Iraq was poorly attended, while in contrast many thousands of people turned out for an anti-war demonstration held around the same time.

The views of the American public on the 2003 invasion and subsequent occupation of Iraq by U.S.-led coalition troops were mixed from the outset, with some arguing that military action against Iraq was not justified. Over time, as more and more lives have been lost in Iraq, including more than 2,400 U.S. military personnel by mid–2006, the balance of public opinion has reportedly shifted in favor of withdrawing U.S. troops from the country.

Iraq was invaded by a U.S.-led coalition in March 2003, after the Iraqi regime failed to cooperate fully with U.N. weapons inspectors searching for chemical and biological weapons and for evidence of a nuclear weapons program. Under the terms of the settlement following Iraq's defeat in the 1990–1991 Gulf War, Iraq had been required to destroy all non-conventional weapons and the facilities for their production. However, the Iraqi regime under Saddam Hussein had increasingly obstructed the access of U.N. inspectors and was believed to have concealed the existence of stockpiled weapons in reports submitted to the U.N.

Although concern about Iraq's possible possession of weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) was the precipitating factor for the coalition invasion in 2003, other reasons were also cited by the U.S. These included violations within Iraq of U.N. Security Council resolutions on human rights, and the alleged links of the Saddam Hussein regime with terrorist groups, notably Al-Qaeda, implicated in the attacks on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001.

Following the invasion, the coalition forces quickly overpowered the Iraqi government, and took control of Baghdad. The U.S. declared the war officially over on May 1, 2003. In June, a temporary coalition government was set up in Iraq to begin the process of reconstruction and to oversee the training of a new Iraqi security force that could defend the country. A deadline for the handover of self-government to Iraq was agreed for June 2004, at which time an Iraqi caretaker government was created in advance of democratic elections. The initial tasks of this government included making arrangements for the trial of Saddam Hussein for his brutalities against the Iraqi people. Hussein had been found and captured by coalition forces in December 2003. His trial began in October 2005, with Hussein initially charged with the killing of 140 men following a failed assassination attempt against him.

The challenges facing Iraq were immense. Its economy had virtually collapsed from the effects of many years of U.N.-imposed economic sanctions, and the infrastructure of the country was in a state of severe decay. Added to this, an insurgency movement arose that embarked on a long-running terror campaign against the coalition forces and the new administration.

Reactions from the Iraqi population to the invasion and occupation were polarized between those who welcomed their liberation from the brutalities of the Saddam Hussein regime, and those who were fiercely opposed to U.S. interference and the presence of coalition troops in their country. Among the latter, an insurgency movement developed, known as the Anti-Iraqi Forces (AIF), who reportedly amassed weapons and other supplies during the widespread looting that occurred in the aftermath of the U.S. invasion and the fall of the government. The movement was initially made up of loyal followers of Saddam Hussein, but these were soon joined by other Iraqis and foreign freedom fighters, allegedly with links to Al-Qaeda. Between 2003 and the time of writing in 2006, many Iraqis and coalition military personnel have been killed in insurgency bombing attacks, while other foreign personnel in Iraq have been kidnapped and killed by the insurgents.

In January 2006, parliamentary elections were held in Iraq, with parties organized largely along sectarian lines. The Shia-led United Iraqi Alliance gained the most votes, but failed to win an absolute majority, while Kurdish parties and the Sunni Arab bloc also gained a significant number of seats. The violence in Iraq shows no sign of abating following the establishment of the new Iraqi government.

PRIMARY SOURCE

Support for U.S. troops fighting abroad mixed with anger toward anti-war demonstrators at home as hundreds of people, far fewer than organizers had expected, rallied Sunday on the National Mall just a day after tens of thousands protested against the war in Iraq.

"No matter what your ideals are, our sons and daughters are fighting for our freedom," said Marilyn Faatz, who drove from New Jersey to attend the rally. "We are making a mockery out of this. And we need to stand united, but we are not."

About 400 people gathered near a stage on an eastern segment of the mall, a large patchwork American flag serving as a backdrop. Amid banners and signs proclaiming support for U.S. troops, several speakers hailed the effort to bring democracy to Iraq and Afghanistan and denounced those who protest it.

Many demonstrators focused their ire at Cindy Sheehan, the California woman whose protest near President Bush's Texas home last summer galvanized the anti-war movement. Sheehan was among the speakers at Saturday's rally near the Washington Monument on the western part of the mall, an event that attracted an estimated 100,000 people.

"The group who spoke here the other day did not represent the American ideals of freedom, liberty and spreading that around the world," Sen. Jeff Sessions, an Alabama Republican, told the crowd. "I frankly don't know what they represent, other than to blame America first."

One sign on the mall read "Cindy Sheehan doesn't speak for me" and another "Arrest the traitors"; it listed Sheehan's name first among several people who have spoken against the war.

Melody Vigna, 44, of Linden, California, said she wants nothing to do with Sheehan and others at nearby Camp Casey, an anti-war site set up to honor her son, Casey, who was killed in Iraq.

"Our troops are over there fighting for our rights, and if she was in one of those countries she would not be able to do that," Vigna said.

The husband of Sherri Francescon, 24, of Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, serves in the Marine Corps in Iraq. One of the many military wives who spoke during the rally, Francescon said that the anti-war demonstration had left her frustrated.

"I know how much my husband does and how hard he works, and I feel like they don't even recognize that and give him the respect he deserves," Francescon said. "I want him to know and I want his unit to know that America is behind them, Cindy doesn't speak for us, and that we believe in what they are doing."

Organizers of Sunday's demonstration acknowledged that their rally would be much smaller than the anti-war protest but had hoped that as many as 20,000 people would turn out.

On Saturday, demonstrators opposed to the war in Iraq surged past the White House in the largest anti-war protest in the nation's capital since the U.S. invasion. The rally stretched through the night, a marathon of music, speechmaking and dissent on the mall.

National polls have found steadily declining support for the war in Iraq, with a majority of Americans now believing the war was a mistake.

In an AP-Ipsos poll this month, only 37 percent approved or leaned toward approval of how President George W. Bush has handled the situation in Iraq; strong disapproval outweighed strong approval by 2-1, 46 percent to 22 percent.

SIGNIFICANCE

The pre-emptive invasion and occupation of Iraq by the United States has been controversial from the outset. Some have argued that the invasion contravened international law, and that the U.S. should not have gone ahead without the support of the United Nations. Opponents of the war also highlight the fact that no firm evidence of any WMDs was ever found in Iraq, calling into question the rationale for the invasion. On the other hand, supporters of the war point out that the coalition forces did bring an end to the undoubtedly brutal and corrupt regime of Saddam Hussein, who was found to have imprisoned and murdered many thousands of political opponents, and to have stashed huge amounts of cash.

By mid–2006 the situation in Iraq showed no real sign of improvement. Although a democratically elected parliament was in place, violence, killings, and sabotage continued to be a feature of daily life in Iraq and little progress had been made on reconstructing the country. In the U.S., the level of support for the presidency of George W. Bush and the Republican Party had become closely tied to the Iraq conflict and the issue of whether to bring the troops home.