Protestors believe anti-war march was successful

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DENVER - Thousands of anti-war protestors, who marched from the Denver Coliseum to the Pepsi Center on Wednesday afternoon, believe their efforts were worth it, saying they secured a meeting with the staff of the Democratic presidential nominee.

The initial, peaceful-but-unauthorized march, led by about 50 uniformed members of the Iraq Veterans Against the War, snaked through the streets of Denver for three hours during rush hour, heading down Brighton Boulevard, along Arapahoe Street, Lawrence Street, then down Speer Boulevard to the Pepsi Center, the site of the Democratic National Convention.

Once the massive group arrived at the DNC, guards locked the gates to the Pepsi Center and walked away. About 20 war veterans and 1,000 protestors remained at the gates. That number was down from what police estimated was about 3,000 to 3,500 people. Organizers had ballparked the size of the march at 12,000 at its height.

The veterans' mission was to deliver a letter to Sen. Barack Obama, requesting an immediate withdrawal of troops from Iraq. They also wanted full health care benefits for returning troops and veterans, and reparations to the Iraqi people for damage caused by the war. A copy of the letter had been mailed to Obama's office on Monday.

At the gates of the Pepsi Center, protestors said they wanted to be arrested and were waiting there peacefully between concrete barriers and the fences.

At 6:45 p.m., police gave the first official order for the group to disperse.

Once the order was given, the crowd, which had already begun to see some attrition, parted to allow the war veterans space to leave. After the veterans had gone, the 500 to 600 remaining people at the gates turned and followed the veterans back out onto Speer Boulevard.

Once there, the group split into two sub-groups, one of which dispersed into downtown while the other headed for a different gate at Speer Boulevard and Auraria Parkway. That group was the larger of the two and had about 400 to 500 people in it. That group said it was heading over to a gate where they felt it was more likely they would be arrested.

After the protestors reached the Speer and Auraria gate, a Marine in uniform, who was part of the Iraq Veterans Against the War, spoke with members of the DNC, hoping to give them a copy of their letter.

During this time, the police presence doubled and hundreds of officers were on scene in riot gear.

When the uniformed Marine came back, rumors floated through the group that Sen. Barack Obama's veterans liaison had agreed to meet with the group in order to allow them to voice their concerns.

A cheer erupted throughout the protest group and the chants of "Yes, we can!" and the Spanish version of "Si, se puede!" reverberated through the group outside the Pepsi Center gates.

Moments later, a lieutenant with the Iraq Veterans Against the War confirmed to 9NEWS that the group had successfully gotten their letter in the right hands and secured an appointment to meet with Obama's staff.

The mood of the protestors was immediately very light, and the veterans asked the group to follow the police's orders and disperse.

The March The march began at the Denver Coliseum following a Rage Against the Machine concert.

The parade's size, which police in a helicopter estimated at 3,000 to 3,500, dwarfed the roughly 1,000 marchers who participated in Sunday's Recreate '68 march, which had been the largest protest march of the week.

At least 100 police officers in riot gear were in the area as the march began, in addition to the police helicopter overhead.

Protestors, who had been asked by Rage Against the Machine and other bands to be peaceful during the march, honored those wishes as they paraded down Brighton Boulevard, armed with anti-war signs and shouting anti-war sentiments.

The march temporarily forced the closure of all ramps from Interstate 70 to Brighton Boulevard, and completely shut down traffic along the parade route.

Police on a golf cart at the head of the march were attempting to get the protestors to turn down Blake Street, from Brighton Boulevard. The cart had a traffic sign affixed to it that was flashing the messages: "Welcome to Denver" and "Follow us."

Instead, the marchers headed for Arapahoe Street, then down Lawrence Street toward Speer Boulevard.

As the march paraded through downtown Denver, it swelled in numbers, stretching three blocks in length. People on motorcycles and bicycles joined those on foot. Some people held signs that said "US out of Iraq" with red handprints and "No War on Iran." A few had the numbers of lawyers written on their bodies in case they were arrested.

Behind the veterans, protesters yelled: "Troops out now!"

Jan Critchfield, 24, of Seattle said he served in Iraq in 2004, and after returning home, came to believe that the war was an "unlawful, immoral occupation."

He said now that he's back in the U.S., he thinks about what it's like for Iraqis living with U.S. forces in their country.

"I just can't imagine driving through my neighborhood at home and seeing a security checkpoint," he said.

Critchfield said he joined the Army at 17 without much thought about the implications.

Jonny 5, Brer Rabbit and Andy Guerrero of the Denver group Flobots were with the marchers, as was Raymond "Boots" Riley of poltical hip-hop group The Coup.

Lindsay Mauro, 20, of Fort Collins carried a sign that said, "I like Boys, Not Bombs." She decided to join the march when she heard about it at the concert.

"I definitely support it (the protest), I have a lot of friends in Iraq," she said.

Vietnam War Navy veteran Sylvester Williams stopped to take a look.

"It was scary at first, but they're just marching. They're trying to be Americans, I guess," said Williams. "I was part of Vietnam and that was a hoax. This Iraq (expletive) is even worse."

Jack Scott watched the marchers quietly.

"It's pretty neat, we can still do this in this country," he said.

Employees of businesses along march route watched the protesters.

As the march headed down Speer Boulevard toward the Pepsi Center, authorities riding on the golf cart announced over loud speakers to follow them to the designated protest zone outside the DNC.

Protestors refused to go to the zone, which they nicknamed "The Freedom Cage." Instead, the protestors headed peacefully toward the front gate.

The Concert

The march started at the Rage Against the Machine concert, where the mood was both laid-back and political as the show got under way. A juggler performed on the sidewalk near a replica of a Guantanamo Bay prison cell.

The band State Radio opened the concert while activists met backstage to plan a march and sit-in once the show was over.

By the time Rage Against Machine took the stage, police estimated the crowd at 9,000.

Protest organizers urged anyone participating in the march and willing to be arrested during a sit-in at the convention site to walk at the front of the line.

Organizers said a sit-in at the end of the march would be an act of civil disobedience, not a violent protest. Protesters were told not to react to the police presence or risk getting hit with pepper spray.

About 8,000 free tickets were handed out by lottery for the show, sponsored by Tent State University and Iraq Veterans Against the War.

Rage Against the Machine also plans a concert Sept. 3 in Minneapolis during the Republican National Convention, which takes place just across the Mississippi River in St. Paul.