Idaho Falls anti-war protest set for Saturday
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IDAHO FALLS — An anti-war rally planned for this weekend aims to bring attention to U.S. military intervention abroad.
The rally is scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 17, at the Greenbelt band shell, where speakers will address the crowd before participants march to the Broadway Bridge.
‘No war is good war’
While recent U.S. actions in Venezuela helped spark the conversation, rally organizer Miranda Armenta says Saturday’s event is intended to be broadly anti-war in nature.
“This specific rally is on war in general, not just in Venezuela,” she explained. “No war is good war.”
The rally is co-sponsored by Idaho 50501, the Democratic Socialists of America and the Bonneville Young Democrats, and is meant to express opposition to what Armenta described as U.S. imperialism and resource-driven military involvement abroad.
“We’re rallying to show our disdain for going into other countries for resources such as oil, like we are now with Venezuela,” she said. “We’re trying to gather people to let them know that a majority of the people are against war and against imperialism.”
Growing community engagement
The Idaho Falls event also follows a recent demonstration centered around the death of Renee Nicole Good, who was fatally shot by ICE officer Jonathan Ross in Minneapolis on Jan. 7. According to Armenta, the local groups plan to continue organizing around a range of issues based on community input.
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“We are having different rallies for different things, and we’re taking suggestions, as well, on what we should rally about,” she said. “It just depends on what the people want to express.”
Beyond the rally itself, Armenta spoke of the importance of sustained organization and participation in local groups.
“If you’re not with an organization as of right now, that’s the best thing that you can do,” she said. “Whether it be Idaho 50501, the Bonneville Young Democrats, the regular Democrats — just any group that you could possibly join to organize further.”
She added that rallies alone are not enough to create change without follow-up coordination.
“We could all rally, but that doesn’t really go as far if we don’t get together and organize after rallies,” Armenta said.
She noted that public demonstrations often serve as places for people to connect with others who share similar values.
“This is an opportunity to stand by your fellow Americans while making friends,” she said. “A lot of people make friends at these rallies because they find like-minded people.”
Looking ahead, Armenta said coalition members have begun to formalize their efforts, including plans to form committees focused on rallies, local elections and other civic issues.
“This is not the first time we’ve (the U.S. has) invaded for natural resources, and it’s not the last time,” Armenta said. “It’s important that people know this is a recurring event — and it’s up to us to stop it.”