Report from the March 19 Walkout at UNC

At the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill, 450 students attended an antiwar rally at noon and 300 marched through campus and into the community, occupying the main intersection in town before ending with a closing rally on the steps of the administration building. SDS, thirteen other student organizations, members of the newly-founded UNC Coalition Against the War, six community organizations and members of Iraq Veterans Against the War led the demonstration. "I'm inspired by the hundreds of students who were willing to leave class and march against this unjust war," said Abby Crownshaw, a first-year student and an organizer of the protest. "We brought our message of peace and justice to thousands of students, faculty and staff."

Many classes were unable to continue because of the noise of the protest. As the march wound through campus, students came up to the windows to watch, with many waving or displaying peace signs to the demonstrators. At the closing rally, the protesters renewed their commitment to struggle against the war and continue to build the mass movement across North Carolina in the coming year.

See also: UNC Chapel Hill SDS flyer distributed at the rally, The Movement Against War: 5 years of struggle (pdf)

Press round-up:

03/24/08 - Public outcry can influence policy on the war in Iraq [DTH]
03/24/08 - War protest was useful in promoting conversation [DTH]
03/20/08 - SLIDESHOW: Students rally against Iraq war [DTH]
03/20/08 - VIDEO: Iraq War Walk Out [Think MTV]
03/20/08 - War Protests Planned Locally, Across The Nation [WSOCTV]
03/20/08 - UNC War Protest [Current]
03/20/08 - New UNC anti-war group rallies to its own drum beat [Herald Sun]
03/20/08 - Student protesters seek to make impact [DTH]
03/20/08 - Protestors, Supporters Mark Iraq War's Fifth Anniversary [NBC 17]
03/20/08 - 'Until the war goes away' [DTH]
03/19/08 - UNC protests mark Iraq war anniversary [News & Observer]
03/19/08 - Iraq War turns 5 amid local protests [DTH]
03/18/08 - Voices heard in area against war, in support of troops [Herald Sun]

March 19 - Walkout Against the War at UNC