From the open publishing newswire: 11,500 Portlanders gathered downtown today as part of the nationwide NOT IN OUR NAME campaign to demand No War in Iraq. Cloudy grey skies were offset by a multitude of colorful signs and banners, loud drums and chants, and an energetic spirit. The crowd assembled in the South Park blocks for speeches and music and then marched through downtown to Terry Schrunk Plaza, in front of the Federal Building, for more of the same.

A comrade and I ran out ahead of the march and picked a corner to count from. We were there for over forty minutes while people passed by in a seemingly endless stream. This is where we came up with the number 11,500. Word on the street is that AP was saying 4,400 and Jim Redden from the Portland Tribune was saying 5,000 or 6,000 (after activists talked him up from 4,500). Did either of these lazy corporate reporters stake out an intersection and patiently watch the whole time? I doubt it.

All in all, it was a beautiful day in Portland. Seeing so many people hit the streets to say NO to WAR was inspiring. I had tears in my eyes for a big chunk of time, I was so pleasantly overwhelmed by the number of faces. Hopefully, this turn-out in Portland today can help inspire NOT IN OUR NAME actions coming up in other cities in the next couple days! [ Full story ]

PHOTOS:
panorama of crowd at south park blocks
panorama of crowd at terry schrunk plaza
Not in Our Name - Rally Photos
Oct. 5 Photos Part 1: South Park Blocks and March
Oct. 5 Photos, Part 2: The March and the Plaza
Oct. 5 Photos, Part 3: A few unpermitted actions

AUDIO: Not in Our Name

12,000 march for peace in Portland!
From the open publishing newswire: I walked beside a woman who came from the Columbia Gorge on a bus with other peacemakers. The group is called Columbia River Fellowship for peace. Others came from Portland, Salem, Vancouver and Astoria. We met in the south park blocks of downtown Portland and listened to speakers for almost an hour. Then the march began...the permitted march was led by drummers and a peopled banner that spread across the street. The police were on bicycles and escorted us. I stood on a street corner with my picture of a Middle Eastern Woman and the words "Genocide does not equal Justice. We are not the enemy. [ Read more... ]

A Middle Class Family at The Rally
From the open publishing newswire: I was there with my wife and daughter. I didn't wear black, or a mask and I took a shower today. I come from a rural farming area. Believe it or not, I have perfect credit, always pay my bills and taxes on time, and have not missed a day of work for ten years. My wife is an at home mother and nursing student , and our daughter is well adjusted and happy. We saw lots of people there that looked just like us. Just normal folks. The Constitution clearly states that I have the right to speak my mind and air my grievances against my government. Do you have a problem with any of this? [ Read more... ]

Today's March and Rally was wonderful
From the open publishing newswire: There were so many people of all sorts there today. Old, young, different backgrounds, politics, beliefs etc. Portland made a statement to the nation, and to Congress, and to Herr Bush... Now I am looking forward to seeing the Marches and Rallies in many other cities around the country: NY, SF, LA, and so on. Many people tomorrow will be taking the pledge of resistance. It is a beautiful pledge. It is so meaningful to pledge oneself to resistance, and to live that fully. To stand as a living dedication to truth, to justice and to peace. To think about every action one takes, and ask oneself if that action was one of resistance, or assistance to the corporate war machine. [ Read more... ]

More: [ thousands protest today | A call out for Images | What did the "peace" circus actually accomplish? | take notes instead of picts at protest? -- call for quotes!! ]

related: [ Call Senator Byrd NOW to filibuster, prevent the vote on war!! Poll ends Monday! | RUMOR (completely UNCONFIRMED) of anti-filibuster rule ]

[ upcoming Not in Our Name events in Cascadia, Oct. 6 & 7 ]