West Michigan Remembers the Fourth Anniversary of Iraq War

March 14, 2007 8:41 PM |

While antiwar protests and organizing take place around the year in West Michigan and in particular in Grand Rapids, the next week surrounding the fourth anniversary of the war will see an increase in local activity. Each year since 2004 (see 2005 and 2006 coverage), antiwar protests in Grand Rapids and beyond have marked the annual anniversary. Instead of having the usual one-day march, there are a wide variety of events planned in West Michigan:

  • On Thursday, March 15 and Friday, March 16, Wyoming Park United Methodist Church will host a 24-hour vigil and a worship service to lament the cost of the past four years, and the dreadful expense of all war on God's creation. The event begins with a prayer vigil from 8 p.m. Thursday, March 15 until 7 p.m. Friday, March 16. At 7 p.m. Friday there will be a closing "Witness for Peace" worship ending with a procession across Porter Street to the Peace Pole placed near the Wyoming City War Memorial.

  • On Saturday, March 17, the local antiwar group ACTIVATE will host a march demanding an immediate end to the United States' occupation of Iraq. The march will meet at the corner of East Beltline and Burton at 12:30pm. It is expected that this will be the largest of the week's events. For more information, visit activategr.org.

  • On Monday, March 19, a candlelight vigil will be held at 8:00pm at the corner of Fulton and Division in downtown Grand Rapids as part of a series of vigils being organized by MoveOn to "remember the needless sacrifice of more than 3,000 US soldiers and at least 60,000 Iraqi civilians."

  • On Monday, March 19, a vigil will be held in Hastings to remember the 3,100 US soldiers and 60,000 Iraqis killed in Iraq. The vigil will begin at 7:00pm at the Courthouse Square (220 State St).

  • On Tuesday, March 20, the local antiwar group ACTIVATE (http://www.activategr.org) will be staging a protest targeting a local institution connected to the war. The protest is being held in conjunction calls for protest on that date as part of the March "Days of Resistance to the War" campaign and by Students for a Democratic Society (SDS).


  • At 7:00pm on Tuesday, March 20 the Institute for Global Education (IGE) and the West Michigan Justice and Peace Coalition are hosting a candlelight vigil featuring peace songs by Carol Johnson and a talk by Reverend Douglas VanDoren of Plymouth Congregational United Church of Christ. The vigil will take place at the corner of Fulton and Division in downtown Grand Rapids.

  • At 8:00pm on Tuesday, March 20, students at Aquinas College are screening The Ground Truth, a film that explores the challenges faced by veterans of the Iraq War when they return to the United States. The screening will take place in the Moose Cafe.

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About this Entry

This page contains a single entry by published on March 14, 2007 8:41 PM.

Protestors in the Pacific Northwest Directly Resist Bush's "Surge" was the previous entry in this blog.

ACTIVATE Statement on the March 17 Antiwar Protests is the next entry in this blog.

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