Iranian attack protests and American celebrations
Americans are protesting and celebrating in New York, Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles in the wake of the Iranian attack.
As dozens of people gathered outside Los Angeles City Hall to protest the US attack on Iran, it was clear from the chant alone that the conflict was just the country’s latest transgression.
“Money is for jobs and education, not bombs and deportations.” “Free Palestine.” “We have money for a new war, but not enough to feed the poor?”
On March 2, days after the United States and Israel launched a joint military offensive that led to the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, demonstrators staged a protest entirely opposed to any conflict between the United States and Iran, much less an attack that the president said could last for weeks.
President Donald Trump said the attack was to protect Americans from a nuclear threat, but organizer Kameron Hart pointed to another threat to world peace: the threat from our own nuclear weapons.
Hart is affiliated with the Los Angeles Party for Socialism and Liberation and has been a speaker at several protests involving members of the Action Now Coalition to Stop War and End Racism, PSL Los Angeles, and other groups.
“We have to remember that this is yet another rich man’s war,” Hart said. “Donald Trump doesn’t need to fight that war. His sons don’t need to go to that war. He wants your brothers, your sisters, your communities to go to that war.”
As of the morning of the 3rd, six U.S. military personnel have been confirmed dead in the conflict.
US at ‘tipping point’: protests planned for March 7th
Attacks on Iran without Congressional approval. A country with a proposed military budget of over 1 trillion. And it’s a country where many Americans face domestic problems. These are some of the points raised during the March 2nd protest.
Aida Ashouri, who is running for Los Angeles City Attorney and claims to be an Iranian immigrant, said many immigrants are forced to immigrate to the United States because their homeland has been bombed.
“And that is why we are a nation of immigrants, asylum seekers and refugees,” Ashori said. “We were forced to leave our homeland and came here.”
Ashouri said the bombing in Iran was a nightmare come true for many. nevertheless:
“People realize that Iran is not America’s enemy,” Ashouri said. “Government change starts here first before we can even say we are on the moral high ground.”
Thousands of Iranians live in Southern California, especially in Los Angeles. Some members of the Iranian community are celebrating the military operation in the Middle Eastern country, seeing it as the end of a strong regime.
In explaining why he participated in the March 2 protests, Bert Voorhees said American society was at a “tipping point.” The Iran conflict is “illegal” and “unconstitutional” and shows American democracy is under attack. He acknowledged the violence Iranians faced under the Ayatollah. But Voorhees says that doesn’t give the United States the right to start a war.
“If people didn’t stand up and shout about this right now, we wouldn’t have a country,” the 70-year-old said. “So it’s time for people to get serious and take to the streets.”
Participants were urged to join the anti-Iran war protests scheduled for March 7th. Sponsors of the planned protest include the ANSWER Coalition.
“I think it’s time for a national strike,” Voorhees said. “It’s time to shut down this government. It’s time for Donald Trump to be out of the White House and in jail.”
Paris Barraza is a reporter covering Los Angeles and Southern California for the USA TODAY Network. please contact her pbarraza@usatodayco.com.
