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Activists march to oppose war
By LEON M. TUCKER
© St. Petersburg Times, ST. PETERSBURG -- About 120 peace activists marched a mile to City Hall on Sunday afternoon as they chanted, "What do we want?" and replied, "Justice now." The event, which protested plans for war in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, began about 1:30 p.m. Sunday at Dr. M.L. King (Ninth) Street and Seventh Avenue S. Using a megaphone, activist and former mayoral candidate Omali Yeshitela addressed the crowd of applauding supporters. "Peace is better than war, and war and bigotry is wrong," he said. Yeshitela said the event was meant to urge the U.S. government to bring terrorists to justice through the world court, not war. The event also was a memorial honoring those killed in the Sept. 11 attacks. Across the street, Nathan Lee held a flimsy poster board scribbled with the words, "America Unite," a message opposing the march. "It is undermining our objectives and what we are trying to accomplish," said the former U.S. Marine who fought in Operation Desert Storm. "If we don't have some sort of control, this thing could get even more out of control." Traffic was briefly interrupted as St. Petersburg police cruisers escorted marchers along their route downtown. When they arrived at City Hall, protesters stood for about an hour and listened as various members of activist groups denounced the possibility of war and representatives of religious organizations prayed for peace.
 © 2006 • All Rights Reserved • St. Petersburg Times
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