People's Democracy

As Bombs Drop, Americans say: 'Not in our Name'

Thousands marched just a few miles from Ground Zero to call for an end to war and terrorism. They rallied Oct. 7 while workers continued the gruelling job of removing the rubble of the World Trade Centre and the remains of the victims. The march, called by a coalition of more than 100 organisations, New York Not in Our Name, was held to honour those who died and to call for " the establishment of a fair and independent international tribunal to apprehend and try those responsible for the attack." The thousands of activists heard about the Bush administration’s bombing as they arrived. The crowd, estimated by The New York Times at 10,000, marched to Times Square, while thousands of shoppers waved or looked on in curiosity, most not yet aware of the war being carried on in their name. "The demonstrators seem more determined. Perhaps it’s because bombs and missiles started hitting Afghanistan earlier today, and after Sept. 11 we in New York feel the suffering of other victims of mass violence more keenly," commented Bill Davis, a member of AFSCME District Council 37 Retirees Committee and leader of the New York Communist Party. The defense of civil liberties and civil rights was high on the agenda. For those who taunted the marchers along the route, Ron Daniels, executive director of the Centre for Constitutional Rights, responded, "We must not let the Constitution be a casualty of the attack on the World Trade Centre. No one can dare question our patriotism, because we are here today defending the first amendment ...", he asserted.

"It’s absolutely unacceptable that the world’s richest country bombs the world’s poorest people," said Ann-Cathrin Jarl of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom.

The marchers were penned in by police barricades during the rally, but their emotions could not be contained when James Creedon,a NYC emergency medical technician injured in the collapse of Tower 1, called for "justice, not vengeance." The city has been focused on honoring the working class heroes who died Sept. 11 and have since been carrying on the recovery efforts at Ground Zero.