August 7, 2005
Cindy Sheehan Vigil
Cindy Sheehan Vigil
The Cindy Sheehan Vigil was a protest against President Bush in 2005, led by Cindy Sheehan. Ms. Sheehan’s son Casey was killed in Iraq in April of 2004. Ms. Sheehan met with President Bush later that year, but did not find peace with what he had said. When talking of this meeting, she said “he wouldn't look at the pictures of Casey. He didn't even know Casey's name…every time we tried to talk about Casey and how much we missed him, he would change the subject.” Due to this encounter, Ms. Sheehan and other protestors went to President Bush’s ranch in Texas while he was on a working-vacation, to try to have another meeting with him. Sheehan camped out in front of Bush’s ranch for four weeks. While Ms. Sheehan was never granted this request, she did however, have a meeting with the White House Deputy Chief of Staff and a National Security Adviser. She stated that they “were very respectful”, however she went on to say, “They told me the party line of why we are in Iraq. I told them that I don't believe that they believed that.” This was one of the first major public uprisings against the U.S. occupation of Iraq, and is a sign of how the citizens of the U.S. were starting to revolt and get angry at the war. This protest occurred not only outside President Bush's property, but across the nation, where thousands of protesters gathered to protest the war and show their support to Ms. Sheehan.
The following video shows over 300 protesters in Los Angeles, California giving their support to Cindy Sheehan.