About 50 people, four dogs and at least one cat joined in an anti-war march down Venice Beach Sunday afternoon. Lead by one person carrying a paper dove, and another toting a boombox playing John Lennon's "Imagine," the marchers protested against the bombings in Afghanistan, racial profiling and "anti-terrorism" legislation currently before Congress.

As the marchers made their way down Ocean Front Walk from Rose Ave. to Windward Ave., many bystanders applauded or sang along.

The paint wasn't yet dry on her bright yellow, green and blue sign when Diane Butler joined the march. Her sign read "Jesus said, 'Love your enemies.'" Butler, a Venice resident and artist who sells her work on the Ocean Front Walk, explained that as a Christian, she wanted "to portray Jesus the way he really was."

As the march passed Cafe 325 at Dudley Ave., several people dining at the eatery applauded. Elizabeth Ridgeway of North Hollywood clapped for the march because "it completely resounded with my heart." Andreina Maxwell of Sherman Oaks said, "I totally believe in it, and 'Imagine' shouldn't be banned from radio."

Richard Washington wore a red, white and blue flag print bandana on his head and filmed much of the march on his videocamera. He didn't understand why the U.S. could not come up with a better solution to its problems than bombing. "If we're powerful enough to bomb, why aren't we powerful enough to out-think them?" he asked.

When the demonstration passed the Sidewalk Cafe and Bar, the standing room only crowd erupted into cheers and applause.

The marchers continued down Ocean Front Walk and rallied on the grass at Windward Ave., where they sang "Imagine" and "Down by the Riverside."

Standing at the edge of the crowd were two young women and a young man from Afghanistan. They had come to Venice this Sunday to enjoy the beach and sun, not knowing about the march and rally.

The three Afghanis said that while they wish the Taliban would leave their country, bombings will not solve their country's problems. "They are killing each other in the name of Jesus, of the Jews, of Muhammad. All are wrong," the young man said of the growing violence. None of the Afghanis wished to give their names.

All three of them blamed the U.S. and specifically the CIA for creating the current crisis by training and supporting the Taliban and Osama bin Laden in the past.

What Afghanistan needs today is education and food, the young man continued. The country needs to be able to grow enough food to feed its own people. He said that any political solution that is forced on Afghanistan from the outside will not last - Afghanis must choose their own government and find their own way.

One of the young women expressed great concern for the innocent people who are being killed every day by the American and British bombings. None of the three of them have been able to contact family and friends back in Afghanistan since the bombings began. Communication infrastructure in the country was already fragile, and it has only been made worse over the past week.

Lillian Hsu and Sharon Piwowarski were two other people who had come to the beach for fun on Sunday and found themselves at the march and rally. Neither of them are "regular activists," but they became interested in participating in the anti-war movement after seeing a recent demonstration at the Westwood Federal Building.

Piwowarski, an assistant teacher at a Santa Monica preschool, thinks that the U.S. should have at least followed up on the Taliban's last-minute offer to turn over Osama bin Laden to Pakistan, instead of rushing to bomb Afghanistan. Instead, the U.S. responded as if the September 11 tragedy was "a blow to our self esteem.

"We're the bully of the world and we have to live up to that reputation," she said.

"Bombing isn't the answer because a lot of innocent lives will be lost. It's not worth it," added Hsu, a junior at UCLA. Both Hsu and Piwowarski plan to participate in anti-war activities in the future.

Yolanda Miranda, Organizing Committee Chairperson for the Peace and Freedom Party, main organizers of the day's events, explained that one of her primary reasons for putting together this march was her concern about the trauma and suffering that children and mothers in Afghanistan are going through. "Killing children and endangering lives is not a godly thing to do," she said.

At the end of the rally, Jim Smith of the Peace and Freedom Party invited everyone to return next week for another anti-war march. He also encouraged people to organize other events in their own communities. "Venice, as great as it is, can't end the war by itself," he said.



Points of unity for Sunday's march:

** Oppose military action, including bombings, which have already resulted in the deaths of innocent UN staff and Afghan people.

** Oppose racial profiling and hate crimes against Arab and Muslim people.

** Oppose indefinite detention of suspects without due process.

** Oppose Bush "anti-terrorism" bill that undermines U.S. Constitution

"All three of them blamed the U.S. and specifically the CIA for creating the current crisis by training and supporting the Taliban and Osama bin Laden in the past."

Yeah, we should have let the Russians annex them and beat the crap out of the Mujahedin!

That would have been the RIGHT thing to do.

Carla, always a U.S. cheerleader! Here's a clue for you: the United Nations was created for the purpose of dealing with international situations like the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan or the U.S./U.K. bombings of same country. But the BULLY U.S. insists on taking the law into its own hands and circumventing the U.N. and International Law like the vigilante it is!

why didn't the UN get the Soviet out of Afghanistan?

Why didn't the Soviets check with the UN before invading?

First, I am not sure the Bronwyn does exist. From his piece, I didn't, or at least one would think I wasn't part of the Venice Beach anti-war protest march down Ocean Front Walk last Sunday afternoon.

My held high placard read: 'STOP THE BOMBING, NO MILITARY DRAFT, GOV. WARNED OF ATTACKS, AIR FORCE HELD BACK.

I clearly addressed the public along the march, and spoke at the rally through the microphone, although interrupted arrogantly by attemph to curtail my message from getting across. I protested that, and the music was cut, and I did finish -- in the approximate time of the other random speakers, although I was one of the three key organizers of the event.

I made the point of Afghanistan being desired as the conduit for a gas and oil pipelines. And that it must be a demand of the anti-war movement that no American multi-national corporations make a profit of this criminal aggression. Also the disclosure in Bamford's book on plans by the pentagon chiefs to kill Americans and sink our ships as a pretext for a US military invasion of Cuba.

And of course the other points on my placard. Those passionately stated remarks got an enthusiastic acceptence for the assembled protesters.

Now, in reading "Bronwyn"'s article, I had to wonder, if I was being censored, was he just elsewhere, or did someone else write and piece and get him to file it. Or was this written by one of my friends who wanted to diminish my action to embolden their own? That little intrigue aside...

The great thing about the march was not the numbers, unless it was the thousand(s) of those who respectfully showed no contempt or rudeness whatsoever or those who cheered gleefully. The First Amendment was honered by people from all over the world, as well as locals. This inspite of all the appeals to emotion in the state directed neo-fascist mass media mind control techniques unleashed on radio, TV and the print media for over a month, relentlessly! It didn't work in Venice, California.

There will be another assembly this coming Sunday the 21st at noon at Ocean Front Walk and Rose Ave. A real discussion of 9/11 and war plans for profit has to be aired without any pragmatic compromising! Come-on, this is serious, and you have got to be too!

Bill Mitchell

also at: SeriousRad@aol.com

it was SO good to read the report of the demonstration in Venice Beach (my aunt mailed it to me). Opposition to the war is so badly reported and minimal, it was great to hear about real people doing what they can to stop this outrage. And especially since news in Britain never mentions opposition inside the US. Good luck to you all...

Michele Eve

If Reagan and North had lived up to their oath of office and reported truly to the Congress and not interferred the Russians would have won and history would be different. Up until then the Russians were winning. Keep it clearly in mind the Russians did not invade. The existing government invited the USSR to help put down a violent revolution and restore order.