Link to a photo essay: http://twincities.indymedia.org/newswire/display/27781/index.php

Around 100 persons protested the continuation of the occupation of Iraq the day after it was announced that 2500 US troops have died in the Iraq war and its subsequent occupation. The protest took place in front of Norm Coleman's office. Coleman is a Republican senator who is a Bush enabler.

A speaker from Women Against Military Madness spoke about problems the country is facing over and above the deaths of the US soldiers, including health problems of soldiers returning with PTSD and the harm the occupation is doing to our domestic budget. She also mentioned the problems many Iraqis are facing, including a possible large scale attack on Ramadi, a major city. More than 100,000 Iraqi civilians have died since the current US invasion.

Families of US servicemen, some of whom are currently in Iraq, spoke out. They brought a list of the 2500 US names, and were incensed at the president's spokesman, Snow, for saying 2500 is just a number. One parent carried a sign showing the biographies of 3 soldiers who had died in Iraq. All three were his son's close friends. They are not just numbers. They were members of families who died because of a grave error in judgment.