Students join in protest

"An eye for an eye only makes the whole world go blind," junior Noah Merrill read Gandhi's words to a crowd of about 60 people Tuesday night. They were gathered in the courtyard of the Collins Center for the first meeting of Students for a Non-Violent Solution. \nAs war appears increasingly more likely, groups opposed to U.S. retaliation are beginning to organize. \n"According to some of the polls, 90 percent of Americans are in support of U.S. military strikes. Even if only 10 percent are opposed, that is still 10 percent. We can have a big impact," said senior Nancy Steffan of the Bloomington Peace Action Coalition, an umbrella group comprised of organizations in support of the peace effort.\nJames Bourke, a freshman and organizer of the student group, gave the organization's response to the World Trade Center and Pentagon plane attacks.\n"We would like to convey our deepest concern and sympathy for those directly and indirectly affected," he said. "In hopes of preventing further loss of life, we affirm our commitment to thorough and peaceful justice, as opposed to retaliatory violence." \nBourke said the group also offers support to any racial and ethnic minorities targeted in acts of abuse, discrimination and violence.\nFollowing applause for a previous speaker, someone read responses of individual citizens in Afghanistan to the terrorist acts from the New York Times. The interviews emphasized that the terrorists are extremists, not representative of the Afghani people. \nAfter the group moved in out of the rain, much of the focus Tuesday night was on local efforts. \n"We can't do that much in terms of changing the president's mind, but we can set an example of how we think the world should work," said Bloomington resident Blake Magnussom. \nBrandon Williams, a Bloomington resident, said the World Trade Center is a symbol of the U.S. economy.\n"Our economic system has hurt a lot of people," he said.\nWilliams went on to suggest ways people could have an economic impact in Bloomington.\n"Ride your bike instead of driving. Know where products come from before you buy them," Williams said. "Are the people making them earning a living wage? Try to buy things produced locally."\nRelating the student movements of the 1960s to today, David Odefey, a freshman and group organizer, said, "We don't have to look like them or act like them, but our role is to convert the dream (of the first peace movement) into a reality. We can pick up where they left off. If we don't, we risk losing that dream forever." \nAs the meeting came to an end, a bag was passed around. It contained green ribbons to be worn as a sign of solidarity in support of a peaceful solution.\nThe Bloomington Peace Action Coalition has scheduled a march and rally at 4:30 p.m. today. The march will begin in Dunn Meadow and continue downtown to the courthouse square for a 5 p.m. rally.