Cheers for anti-war group

Roars of approval rose from the tens of thousands gathered along Atlanta’s Peachtree Street for the annual Pride parade when the anti-war contingent marched by.

Mixing street theater with political education, the group was led by “George W. Bush,” clutching an oil can and a globe. His puppetmaster “Dick Cheney” manipulated the strings.

Surrounded by costumed “Secret Service agents” who menaced the crowd, anti-war activists defied them by distributing copies of the leaked Downing Street memo that revealed Washington had created a pretext for the invasion of Iraq.

The International Action Center banner reading “Bush lied! Thousands have died! Bring the troops home now!” was greeted with cheers and applause.

Rhythmic drumming encouraged those in the crowd to add their voices to the chants.

The contingent was organized by two lesbians who have brought their George Bush puppet show to many local demonstrations, adding a creative visual element to the anti-war movement.

—Dianne Mathiowetz