Republican conventionN.Y., Up to 250,000 expected to march against Bush

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http://www.indystar.com/articles/3/172359-2763-010.html

 

republican convention

Up to 250,000 expected to march against Bush

 

 

By Mark Helm

Hearst Newspapers

August 22, 2004

 

 

After surprisingly quiet protests at the Democratic

National Convention, demonstrators are mobilizing for

a massive turnout at the Republican National

Convention in New York City to express unhappiness

with their main political foe, President Bush.

 

As many as 250,000 demonstrators are expected to march

through Manhattan on Aug. 29, the eve of the four-day

Republican National Convention, to protest the

president's policies, according to protest organizers.

 

" People from around the world will descend on New York

to give voice to those who oppose this government's

policy of war-mongering, " says Bill Dobbs, spokesman

for United for Peace and Justice, the largest protest

group.

 

The marchers' causes will be as diverse as the city

itself: anti-war protesters; advocates of abortion

rights; labor groups; animal rights groups;

anti-globalization demonstrators; and a host of

others.

 

" About the only thing everyone agrees on is that this

president has caused the deaths of thousands of people

and made the United States a rogue nation, " Dobbs

says.

 

The expected size of the New York City demonstration

contrasts sharply with the low turnout for protests

during the Democratic National Convention last month

in Boston, where only a few thousand demonstrators

turned out, according to the Boston Police Department.

 

Dobbs says the low turnout in Boston reflected the

ambivalence that many would-be protesters feel toward

Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry.