Lessons from the fourth of July in Greensboro.

• Author: Whitfield, Ed
• Position: Greensboro Peace Coalition, North Carolina

Folks who believe the official line that support for the current US policies in the war on terrorism and the new domestic measures at home is nearly unanimous need to know what happened in Greensboro, North Carolina on July 4.

The Greensboro Peace Coalition heeded a suggestion by one of its younger members that it should have an entry in the city's annual 4th of July Parade. After some hesitation, we decided to register an entry and spread the word widely among our contacts that we were going to claim our piece of the public space and utilize that day of patriotism to spread our message of opposition to Bush's "war on terrorism."

To coincide with our entry into the parade, we bought a half-page ad in the local daily paper, the Greensboro News and Record, and had them print the "Not In Our Name--Statement of Consciousness" along with the names of over 100 prominent national signers.

We were never sure how many people would show up. Some of our members and supporters were afraid that the parade entry would be too aggressive a tactic. Some of the same folks who had stood weekly on a busy street corner in a vigil for peace ever since October when the US started bombing Afghanistan felt that the parade entry would be a bit too much.

Some of them changed their minds and came to the parade anyway. They were all glad they did because those fears turned out to be wrong.

We had over 50 people--black and white, young and old, professional and laboring and unemployed--march with us behind a large banner that said "Greensboro Peace Coalition--Not In Our Name."

Along the route we passed out small flyers with the "Not In Our Name" pledge of resistance on one side and a statement from the Greensboro Peace Coalition on the other. The theme of the Parade was "American Heroes." Our delegation marched with posters of Mark Twain, Albert Einstein, Frederick Douglass, Martin Luther King, Jr., and other great Americans who have stood for peace and against militarism and aggression.

As we walked the mile and a half parade route, many of the people along the street began to applaud. There were a few hecklers, but only a few. There were far more smiles, peace signs and applause. Two city police on bicycles pulled into the parade to follow our group.

We...