Thousands rally against wars in NYC

Brief report from Cole Stangler, who attended the April 10 rally in Manhattan.

The anti-war movement—a force to be reckoned with just years ago—has been in a sad state of disrepair ever since President Obama took office in January 2009. While Saturday’s action in New York City—a rally in Union Square followed by a march to another rally in Foley Square—didn’t quite bring out the kind of numbers seen in the Bush years, the demonstration was nonetheless a step in the right direction for a movement that is needed more than ever. Amid the backdrop of deeply regressive budget cuts at home, our government continues to pour money into the occupations of Afghanistan and Iraq, supplies Israel with military aid, and now funds a new intervention in Libya. This is unacceptable, and an anti-war movement needs to make that clear. Chants I heard at the demonstration like “How to solve the deficit? End the wars, tax the rich!” are part of that coherent and powerful discourse that should resonate with the broader public in the coming months.

The diversity of the participants was promising—other than the expected and dedicated handful of leftist groups, the march was endorsed by several unions and Muslim organizations. As I learned later, thousands were simultaneously participating in a different demonstration uptown to protest New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s budget cuts.

Here are some photos of the rally:

The action kicked off with a rally in Union Square.

Solidarity with the Arab revolutions was a common theme.

The march ended with another rally in Foley Square.