Protesters rally at Red Wagon against Iran War

More than 100 people Sunday protested in Spokane against President Donald Trump’s decision to bomb nuclear sites in Iran.

Members from local organizations including the Spokane Party for Socialism and Liberation and the Inland Northwest Coalition for the Liberation of Palestine also took turns giving speeches to the crowd.

Ari Dean spoke for the socialist party and also organized the event in front of the Red Wagon in Riverfront Park.

“This is what we need,” Dean said. “We need to build a united mass movement that is capable of mobilizing on a dime, that is highly organized and dedicated and I see that here.”

Dean said the rally was organized immediately after hearing about the bombs dropped on three nuclear sites in Iran on Saturday and coincides with protests happening in major cities across America.

“We are gonna fight for a world with no more war, where all peoples have the right to sovereignty and self -determination and where the power to decide what happens is in the hand of the working class,” Dean said.

Rusty Nelson, a Vietnam War veteran and member of Spokane Veterans for Peace, said he came because he’s seen war and doesn’t want it to happen again.

“That’s what all war does, that’s all it accomplishes, it kills people,” Nelson said. “I say that war has no winners, but any fool can see that nuclear war has no winners, either.”

Trump declared the bombings a success. But the military action is a risky endeavor that could result in retaliation by the longtime U.S. foe. The Trump administration indicated Sunday that the United States is interested in restarting talks with Iran to avoid the possibility of what could be a prolonged war.

Terra Scanlan, a 35-year-old mother of four came to the protest with her husband and children who all helped make signs. One had a peace sign and one had a crossed -out swastika and was a poster Scanlan bought when she was 15 to protest against war.

“I don’t want my children growing up in a fascist state,” Scanlan said. “And I don’t want them exposed to unnecessary violence.”

Around 4:30 p.m. the group began to march downtown before stopping in front of the Thomas J. Foley Federal Courthouse on Riverside Avenue.

“As the situation continues to unfold, we want to make sure the community is prepared to continue to mobilize as necessary to build a very strong anti -war movement,” Dean said. “This is not what the American people want.”