The rally was a smash success!

Cindy Sheehan speaking to the crowd, courtesy of Rob. More pics will be posted on his blog, Life Through the Rectangle, as soon as he gets the chance to post them.

With all the hubbub on the Gathering of Eagles Web site and the pride in arrest on the anti-war side, I had my fears that those spoiling for a fight would divert the rally from his primary purpose: peacefully opposing the war. But my fears were quickly assuaged when I got to the rally this morning.

Cakalak Thunder, the drumming group that has spurred on walkers at the Winter Walk for AIDS year after year, started the march. The crowd, which started unnervingly small, filled with people who seemed to come out of nowhere right before we stepped into the street, guided by the Greensboro Police Department.

The streets were largely empty though the occasional person stopped on the sidewalk to watch us pass, particularly as we marched by the Center City Park (nice to see so many people using it!). The true crowd appeared, though, when we rounded the corner into the Governmental Plaza. I stood there wondering what had happened with the Gathering of Eagles folks until Rob pointed out that they were, in fact, there, yelling at us from behind the police barricade. In the plaza were tables from Food not Bombs and various political groups. There was also a mannequin being water-boarded, a piece of protest art dreamed up by our good friend James.

The plaza was filled with the same diversity of people as the fundraiser last night, even one woman holding a sign that read "Republican for Peace." Speakers included a vet wearing a Rolling Thunder tee-shirt who spoke about supporting the troops by preserving their lives, college anti-war organizers and, my personal favorite, a 10-year-old Palestinian girl who read a poem she wrote about a brighter future on its way. I'll confess that I had mixed feelings when a member of the Nation of Islam spoke - Louis Farrakhan has certainly made a name for himself making racist and anti-Semitic statements, but the man who spoke today was right on the money with him comments, inclusive, moving and a wonderful speaker.

There were also performances: a Middle Eastern man and woman danced, and Boxcar Bertha and Snuzz (who was once in Bus Stop with my bro-in-law, Chuck) played some new-school revolution music.

Cindy Sheehan, of course, spoke again with great eloquence and reason... even if she did slam the News & Record. She's truly an inspiration.

More than anything, I was pleased that those who attended chose to lead by example, filing the afternoon with caring and community, with smiles and spirits uplifted and many, many hugs exchanged and not a stranger among us.

I thanked a couple members of the Greensboro Police Department as we left. Though the GPD filmed the march, I can kind of understand it given Greensboro's funky history and the tension in the air. And though the police were prepared for the worst, they showed the best of law enforcement, sticking to the edges of the rally and and responding in kind to my thanks. Props to Bellamy and his force.