As Iraq War enters its 5th year, NJ activists take a stand for Peace

It's a grim date to commemorate but the fourth anniversary of the Iraq war is upon us.

There's a flurry of activity this weekend to mark the sad occasion and I'm especially grateful for the many events taking place across the Garden State. Clearly the peace movement is alive and well here in New Jersey.

Here's a sampling:

Tomorrow a bus caravan from New Jersey will head to Washington for a big weekend rally.

For those wishing to mark the anniversary in New Jersey there are events in Lambertville and Teaneck, on Sunday.

DFA has four days worth of events nationwide including serveral here in NJ.

There's a huge rally at the Statehouse in Trenton Monday at noon.

Finally there's a Monday evening memorial in Ocean County.

According to a fascinating audio piece on NPR, this is a critical juncture for the peace movement. NPR:

Anti-war groups are planning to protest the conflict over the next several days, at events in Washington, D.C., and around the country. But the anti-war movement, while enjoying broader support than anti-war protests of the Vietnam era, is struggling to reach mainstream America. Activists are organizing Web campaigns to pressure members of Congress. And Move On, a leader in the anti-war movement, has its own political action committee. Apparently, marching on the Pentagon with flowers is considered to be passe.

The (podcastable) clip is only a few minutes long and it's worth a listen, especially since the reporter raises the question of where the netroots fits into the anti-war equation.

If you have an tip about an event this weekend, let us know in the comments so I can update this post. And if you already have plans to mark the anniversary, please share that too.