Earlier today, Donald Trump, Ted Cruz and Sarah Palin held a rally on the west lawn of the Capitol in support of war and against the Iran deal. I don’t remember the last time I heard the words “God,” “Jesus,” and “war” so often and in such close proximity to one another.
Code Pink was there to protest this rally of stupidity, bigotry and hate with their usual blend of positivity, facts, historical knowledge and pink clothing. Also present were Veterans for Peace, IVAW (Iraq Veterans Against War) and Neturei Karta, an Orthodox Jewish organization that is against war and the State of Israel. I’m not sure where I stand on this group but I was happy, at least, to see so many turn out in support of the Iran deal.
Despite the heat, activists in pink, black and everything in between, stood their ground in what I would like to call the Peace Line, across from the west Capitol lawn but within earshot of the rally-goers. Medea Benjamin and Tighe Barry lead chants of “No War” “Peace with Iran” and others. Neturei Karta joined in as well, and sang and chanted in Hebrew. Several rally-goers shot out obscenities as they passed by, presumably because they can’t think of anything intelligent to say. Code Pink activists and others handled it with grace – I could certainly learn a few things from their calm and composure in these situations.
Please feel free to share images with credit to Eleanor Goldfield/Art Killing Apathy