Thousands of protesters will descend upon the nation’s capital this weekend to voice their opinions against a smorgasbord of difficult issues — including the War on Terrorism, Plan Columbia, the School of the Americas and the globalization ideologies of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank. Among the throngs in Washington, D.C. will be a group of more than a hundred Ithaca-area citizens.
“There’s going to be a mix of people. We’re talking about people from outlying communities — Ithaca, Cornell, Ithaca College — coming together as one,” said Jim Semp, who along with Fred Horan, has helped organize bus transportation for local residents.
The majority of traveling Ithacans will likely consist of members of the Tompkins County Network for Peace and Justice, the Ithaca Catholic Worker, the Ithaca Coalition for Global Justice (the Sharks) and the Committee on U.S. Latin American Relations (CUSLAR).
There will also be approximately 25 Cornellians in attendance at the protests.
“We’re not just Cornell students. We’re also members of this country and members of this society,” said Shannon Darcey ’03. “Most people are going down there because they feel an obligation to speak their opinions.”
The crux of this weekend’s events will be Saturday afternoon’s march against the War on Terrorism. A pair of rallies are expected — one at the White House, the other at the Washington Monument —