Sat 15th: Today was my first anti-Bush rally, I didn’t really know what to expect but I was quite excited to be actually doing something productive. I went with two of my friends from college and we arrived at the monument (where the rally was taking place) to find far fewer people than I had anticipated. The organizers looked pleased but I was appalled at how few people were giving up half an hour of their Saturday to this cause. We found out when and where more protests were taking place during the actual time of the visit and left. There weren’t really any speakers except one woman giving an impromptu talk. I was pleased to see someone as angry as I was, there was also a student who offered his thoughts and proved to me that we weren’t the only three students who cared. I left feeling pleased that I’d done something but rather disappointed as there didn’t seem as much enthusiasm as I had hoped for.

Wed 19th. The first day of George W. Bush’s visit and I was bombarded all day with news reports and radio commentary about how Bush was so pleased we were expressing the freedom of speech that he had now given the Iraqis!

5.30 We arrived at the demonstration again at the Monument. On the walk there I had keep reminding myself that there may not be as big a turn out as I was hoping for. I didn’t want to be disappointed again. However, when I got there I was over the moon. There were so many people. Some had banners, some had Palestinian flags and others just had pans and wooden spoons to encourage the speakers with! I was pleased to see a large number of students involved too. And was amazed at the positively tangible feeling of solidarity. I was almost brought to tears when a young teenage boy stood up declaring that “kids were against Mr. Bush too” and that they were holding a strike from school the following afternoon to prove this. It was great to feel that younger people were politically aware and worried about what our world is turning into. One student next to me commented that “I don’t want my kids to grow up in a world that is one huge American empire.”

6.45 I came back from the protest energized and anticipating my trip to Sedgefield (Blair’s constituency) on Friday, when Bush comes to the North East. I can’t wait to show him what we really think about his war-mongering and occupation of Iraq. Not to mention his policies throughout the Middle East and his assumption that we Brits will ask “How high?” each time he tells us to jump. Tony Blair may be in the palm of his blood-stained hand but not all the British public are. I was also encouraged by news that the American people are not taking his policies lying down either. There have been protests there as well. I was pleased to say that I’m not anti-American; just anti-Bush.

Some protestors used a more comic approach to voice their anger at Mr. Bush.

7.30 I got back to college and instantly had three people tell me they were really upset they’d missed the protest and that they wanted to come to Sedgefield on Friday. My next door neighbor in college told me she wanted “to show Bush that we’re not in awe of him because he’s the American president. We want him out our country. He wasn’t fairly elected in the first place and he’s just proving that he should not be in control of a doll’s tea party, let alone the western world.” This may not be the view of all Brits or even all students (especially not those who tore down the anti-Bush posters I put up) but it shows that we don’t all think Bush is a hero. I heard one person comment at the protest “If he wants to fight a war on terror, why doesn’t he arrest himself?” I can’t wait till Friday.

Friday 21st 9.00 We met at the station with other protestors to get the coach to Sedgefield. There were about 10 students on the bus and the other people were older ranging from a young couple with a baby, to people in their forties and fifties. Everyone had made banners and flags and it was a really energetic atmosphere.

10.00 When we first arrived there were a lot of police around. Some were handing out sheets with our “rights” on them. We had to park about a mile away from where the protest was taking place on the village green (Editor’s note: the grass in the middle of a small village!). On our way walking in, we stopped at a bridge over a motorway and held up our banners for all the passing cars to see. We got a lot of hoots and thumbs up from drivers as well as a few angry looks. The closer we got to the center of the town, the louder it got. When we arrived on the green there was quite a crowd already. The High Street was cordoned off so we couldn’t march but there was a lively group of people chanting led by members of Durham Students Union. One of their favorites was the simple yet poignant “Bush go home!” As well as “We all live in a terrorist regime” to the tune of “Yellow Submarine” by the Beatles. Many of the posters people were holding simply had a photo of Bush with “No. 1 Terrorist” written underneath.

Two students voice their protest while Bush meets selected members of the public. Middle sign reads “Be tough on the CAUSES of ‘terrorism’.”

12.00 As the morning continued there appeared a small cluster of Bush and Blair supporters across the street from us waving American flags but it was almost laughable how few there were. It was also fairly comic when a coach was waved through the police railings carrying “general public” for Bush to meet. They had to be shipped in as we were the true representation of the British Public. Not only did we want Bush out but Blair as well. An MA student from Nottingham told me it was really noticeable how much anti-Blair feeling there was at the protest in London, and despite being far fewer people in Sedgefield (not to mention it being Mr. Blair’s constituency) the feeling was still there. A man next to me said that when “Bush goes, he can take his poodle with him.” It isn’t just those who are very politically active who object to Bush’s visit. Kate, another Nottingham student admitted she knew very little of the political situation but she highly objected to the vast sums of money spent on a four-day visit.

13.00 The media presence had been building up throughout the morning and at 13.00 they all began filming at once for their live lunchtime news feed. We made sure that our presence was felt as most of the cameras were facing away from us to where Bush’s car would appear. We shouted “Bush Go Home” till all the news recordings were over. They could manage not to film us but we were making sure they could hear us.

15.00 By this time Bush had left his lunch visit and people started to head home. We hadn’t caught a glimpse of him as he was kept well away, but we still felt we’d helped the cause. We were loud enough I’m sure for him to have heard us in the pub he was eating fish and chips in just a short distance away. Even if he was shielded from us we felt it was important Tony Blair realized we were serious. As we tried to get out of Sedgefield in our coach, we got stuck in a huge traffic jam and we watched as the road in front of us was again shut off so a huge convoy of outriders and police cars and the President’s car could go past. At least he would have seen us all then. We got back to college with a sense of satisfaction but also of helplessness. Yes, we’d done something that day but there is still so much more to be done. We mustn’t stop just because Bush is back in America. We know that, and we’re prepared to carry on fighting until they listen.

Abigail Humphries is a Classics student at the University of Newcastle, UK. You can reach her at A.E.Humphries@ncl.ac.uk

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