A handful of protestors lined South Cleveland Avenue near Daniels Parkway Saturday in opposition to U.S. war activity in Iran.
The protest was organized by a group called Resist SWFL. The group posted the following on a social media site promoting the protest: "Iran and the entire Middle East has been thrown into chaos as the Trump administration and Israel unleash a massive bombing campaign that has already claimed hundreds of lives. The people of this country overwhelmingly oppose the attack, but that opposition needs to be expressed in the streets so it is impossible to ignore."
While there has been no Congressionally declared war with Iran, many members of the Trump administration, including the president, have termed it as such.
The use of U.S. force, military personnel and equipment was the point of contention for protestors who held signs such as “Give Peace a Chance” and “Healthcare not Warfare.”
Denise Sabatini of Bonita Springs was among those protesting and said it wasn’t her first time:
“Oh heck no. I know all the songs, I know all the signs because I was protesting Vietnam." she said. "No, I participated in the in the protests for Vietnam, and for the same reason, first of all, let those people have their own destiny. Why are we telling them what to do and what they should do.”
Sabatini said that young people today don’t understand the danger they may be in and that they could suddenly find themselves drafted into a war.
“If they think that they can't turn that around inside of two days next week, they could be in Iran on the ground, boots on the ground, and they better think about that long and hard, because they're in danger, just like the people that are there now that have volunteered to do this for us. It's terrible,” she said.
Sabatini and others at the protest Saturday said she would be returning to the same spot in three weeks when the next No Kings protest is planned.
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