OpEdNews - Diary: Anti-War Protest in Norfolk, Virginia, Home of the US Navy 2nd Fleet on 3/19/08

Wednesday, March 19, 2008 was a day of protests across the country, as it marked the Fifth Anniversary of the bloody holocaust in Iraq, with no end in sight. A fairly large protest was even staged in Norfolk, Virginia, home of Naval Station, Norfolk, the largest U.S.Navy base in the world. Protesters included ex-Navy men.

::::::::

This late afternoon to early evening, Wednesday March 19, 2008, some 60 or so peace activists held an anti-war protest at the intersection of Colley and 21st Street in the swank Ghent section of Norfolk, almost every one of them carrying or helping to support a sign or banner. From about 5:30 PM to just after 7:00, protesters against the war in Iraq stood on all four corners of this main intersection, exposed to heavy rush hour traffic. Response from the hundreds of drivers and passengers passing by was generously supportive, as myriads of drivers honked their horns or waved in support.

This is a telling display of dissatisfaction for the war in one of the most pro-military cities in the United States, Norfolk, Virginia, home of the Navy's 2nd Fleet and seat of the largest naval base in the world, Naval Station Norfolk. Participants in the protest ran the gamut from teachers, students, poets, a boatbuilder, families with small children and babies, to white collar professionals and retirees, a good cross-section of Hampton Roads citizens. Members of the local Catholic Worker were also present, as were members of several other peace groups.

Here are some of the photos of the protest, all taken by me.