New York Demonstration 1/ 27/ 07 from Impeach Bush

150,000 March Against Iraq War on January 27 in Wash. D.C.
Message of “Impeach Bush” fills the streets around Congress

Next Step: March on the Pentagon Saturday, March 17th

*Please forward widely to your e-mail lists and friends*

Dear Chris,

January 27Congratulations to everyone! The January 27 demonstration was a powerful boost for the movement to end the war and to Impeach Bush. A special word of appreciation goes out to everyone who made a contribution to help pay for bus tickets and transportation for young people to come to the demonstration.

The demonstration was very large. Don’t believe CNN when it says “thousands” attended, or the New York Times when it claims “tens of thousands” in its headline, or the Washington police's unofficial claim that the demonstration was under 100,000.

Our estimate of the numbers is significantly higher. 150,000 people participated. The systematic under-counting of demonstrations by the media and the police is unconscionable. The National Mall was densely packed between 3rd and 4th street and at least half filled up until 7th Street. This should not be a complicated issue for anyone counting. There have been other demonstrations on the National Mall to compare this demonstration to.

The Washington Post noted, that while the demonstration was not as large as the anti-war protests of September 24, 2005 and January 18, 2003 (also on the Mall, where VotetoImpeach.org was launched), the protest was "big enough, though, that the march that followed the rallies stretched the length of the route from the Mall, up Constitution Avenue to the east front of the Capitol and back to the Mall." And there are other ways to measure. The organizers announced that there were 300 buses bringing people to the demonstration. That means 15,000 people came by bus alone and most people come through other means of transportation. Although the New York Times headline read, "Tens of thousands marched," noted columnist Bob Herbert wrote today (January 29) that when Tim Robbins spoke towards the end of the rally the crowd had "grown to more than 100,000."

What was most notable about the January 27 demonstration was the mood of the crowd. Impeach Bush was by far the most popular and spontaneous chant. When John Conyers, Chairperson of the House Judiciary Committee addressed the crowd he finished by urging the people to demonstrate time and time again reminding everyone of the lesson from the Vietnam war. The crowd responded by chanting "Impeach Bush!" "Impeach Bush!" over and over. Congressman Conyers' Judiciary Committee, back in July 1974, was the place where Articles of Impeachment were voted on for Richard Nixon, leading to his resignation in August 1974.

The Impeachment Agenda in the Next Few Months

There are almost seven weeks to go before the March on the Pentagon, which will take place on Saturday March 17. Ramsey Clark will help lead the demonstration. It will assemble at noon at the Vietnam Memorial (Constitution Gardens) and then march to the Pentagon. This will be the 4th anniversary of the start of this criminal war of aggression. Every Iraqi citizen who has died or lost a loved one and every U.S. soldier who either has been killed or wounded has suffered the deepest personal loss in a war based on deliberate lies and systematic deceit. Bush and Cheney must be held accountable for their crimes.

Volunteers and organizers are working in cities and towns around the country to bring people to the March on the Pentagon. The ImpeachBush.org/VotetoImpeach movement will be sending out regular email updates listing organizing and transportation centers so that everyone can learn how they can travel with others to the March 17 demonstration in Washington DC.