Essential Estrogen

Cedar Rapids -- Women for Peace Iowa will hold a vigil Tuesday, March 25, in downtown Cedar Rapids to commemorate the cost of life associated with the war in Iraq. The gathering will begin at 7 p.m.

Participants will first gather at the Tree of the Five Seasons, located at the intersection of First Avenue and First Street in downtown, for songs and an open microphone. Later the group will spread across the First Avenue Bridge for a silent candlelight vigil.

Ames -- Participants will gather for what has become an annual event recognizing the anniversary of the beginning of the war in Iraq. The Ames Peace Rally will begin at the Lincoln Center Hy-Vee parking lot on the corner of Lincolnway and Grand. Participants will then march to the Iowa State University Memorial Union where a peace fair and program will be held in the Great Hall.

The program, which begins at 7 p.m., is open to the public. Speakers will include, Angela Campbell, co-founder of Dickey and Campbell Law Firm from Des Moines (Campbell served as an assistant federal public defender where she served as counsel to four detainees being held at Guantanamo Bay); State Representative Ako Abdul-Samad from Des Moines (Abdul-Samad is an author, photographer and counselor); William Meyers, Marine Corp Veteran currently living in Boone Iowa; and Terri Jones, mother of US Army Specialist Jason Edward Cooper (Cooper took his life on July 14, 2005, the result of untreated PTSD.)

Sponsors of the event, many of whom will be providing information at the peace-fair type atmosphere in the Great Hall include: ACLU, Alliance for Global Justice, American Friends Service Committee, Americans United for Change, Ames for Darfur, Ames Friends Meeting, Ames High Progressives, Ames Progressive, Catholic Peace Ministry, Catholic Workers, Cedar Valley United for Peace and Justice, Central Iowa Operation Democracy, Des Moines Ecumenical Committee for Peace, Iowa Citizen Action Network, ISU Democrats, Methodist Federation for Social Action-Iowa Chapter, Moveon.org, Onion Creek Farms, Progressive Coalition of Central Iowa, Socialist Workers, STAR-PAC, Story County Democrats, University of Iowa Anti-War Committee, Time for Peace, Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, Working Families Win.

The goal of the 2008 Ames Peace Rally is to express the urgency of ending the war in Iraq as quickly and safely as possible, and to recognize the tragic consequences of the war. In addition to ending the war, the peace communities of Central Iowa insist that it is essential to create a sustainable culture of peace, dissent, and nonviolence.

Iowa City -- Following a full week of reflection being billed as "Peace Week," a rally will be held on Saturday. It will begin with music and speakers at the Pentacrest in front of the Old Capitol Building (on the University of Iowa campus). The march through downtown will follow.

A brunch and sign-making will be held at 11 a.m. before the event at the Women's Resource and Action Center. It is sponsored by Iowa Women Initiating Social Change. The rally and march are co-sponsored by the Feminist Majority Leadership Alliance and UI Antiwar Committee.