IU students attend anti-war protest in D.C.

About a dozen IU Students, most of them freshmen, joined tens of thousands of protesters against the war in Iraq in a demonstration on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., Saturday.\nThe rally was peaceful, according to Associated Press reports, but about 300 protesters attempted to rush the U.S. Capitol chanting "We want a tour" and "Our Congress." Police scuffled with some protestors, and set up barricades along the front of the building.\nFreshman Brian Barberio said he went to the rally because he does not agree with the war, and said he believes there is a lot of "apathy" toward the war. He believes a majority of people disagree with the war but do not seem to be making an effort to try and make a difference.\nFreshman Laura Bult agreed with Barberio.\n"People can sit and complain about what's going on all they want, but their physical representation and their time is really important to show your disapproval," Bult said. \nThird-year graduate student Josh Bloom said he went to a protest in Washington, D.C., in 2003, before the war began. He said that, while there were many people there in 2003, this year's protest was substantially larger. \n"Some people estimated it to be 400,000 people," he said.\nSophomore Evan Copelly estimated a crowd of "hundreds of thousands" that spanned from the U.S. Capitol to the Lincoln Memorial. He said he was "really excited" about the turnout. \n"It was really inspiring and invigorating," he said.\nFreshman Benjamin Akselrad said he felt it was important to let the government know some of its citizens feel that it is time for a change of strategy in Iraq. He felt it was time for the U.S. government to realize their position and begin to remove themselves from a "stagnant situation that does not seem to be getting better."\n"Support our troops" signs were posted in front of the Navy Memorial by about 40 counter protestors. Walter Reed Army Medical Center soldiers being treated there were among the group, according to the AP.\nFreshman Crissy Turino said she attended because she does not want any more troops to be sent to Iraq.\n"You have to realize how much destruction we've left behind and take that into consideration," she said. "I think it's a really hard issue."\nCollectively, the IU student protestors said they do not want the government to arbitrarily pull troops out of Iraq without a plan to help rebuild the "destruction" the U.S. has done to Iraq.\n"It depends on the context in which it ends," said sophomore Nick McNaughton. "You have to take into account all the destruction we've left behind ... we're between a rock and a hard place," he said.\nThe protest was sponsored by United for Peace and Justice, a group dedicated to protesting the Iraq war, according to the organization's Web site. The group said intense interest in the rally occurred after President Bush announced he was sending 21,500 additional troops to Iraq, according to the AP.