Dispatch from Protest Against the Iran War in Raleigh on March 7

Image credit: Claire Hambrick (@clairebyphotos)

On March 7, more than 100 people gathered in Moore Square to oppose US aggression against Iran. The demonstration was organized by the Party for Socialism and Liberation, with support from CodePinkNC, the Palestinian Youth Movement, and other groups. The event also marked International Women's Day, observed the following day.

A PSL member served as emcee, opening the rally with a warning against further escalation. “American boots on the ground would be devastating,” he told the crowd. “It could lead to a long-term conflict with mass casualties on both sides. Guess who will be asked to fight and die for them. Will it be the children of the politicians and the billionaires? Will be the children of the weapons executives and the oil executives? No, it's going to be regular working-class people.”

Saturday’s event in Raleigh was supported by Muslims for Social Justice and Triangle chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America.

Moore Square has become a regular site of peace demonstrations since October 2023. Most protests have focused on the genocide in Gaza, though the gatherings regularly discuss and denounce US policy toward Lebanon, Venezuela, Iran, Cuba, and other states.

Emily-Rose Gaeta, a member of CodePink, delivered the first speech. “We are proud to be anti-war, to be anti-imperialist, to be human rights driven,” she said. “You are clearly on our side. We have to come together every day, as individuals, as humans, and see the atrocities that our country the United States of America is doing across the world. Right now, we’re at war with Iran. Why? Because power, because profits, because land. Everything that matters to us, our healthcare, our community, our families, our health, they don't care about.”

Gaeta called out weapons companies with offices in the Research Triangle, including Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, and L3Harris Technologies. She urged activists organized campaigns against the companies to pressure their employees into resigning.

Between speeches, the emcee led the crowd in chants such as “no threat, no bomb, no war on Iran”, “money for the people’s needs, not the US war machine”, "not a penny, not a dollar, we won't pay for war and slaughter”, and “we want justice, you say how, end the bombing right now”.

Samira Haddad, speaking on behalf of the Palestinian Youth Movement, addressed the U.S.-backed Israeli invasion of Lebanon. “As of right now there are millions of people in Lebanon sleeping on the streets, on sidewalks, on beaches, in schools,” she said. “Entire families camping out with where to go. This comes after Israel ordered the forced displacement of more than 1,000,000 civilians. These evacuation orders were issued for all of southern Lebanon and the southern suburbs of Beirut with no clear timeline, no beginning, and no end.”

Participants carried signs with messages like “let Gaza live”, “hands off Iran”, and “no troops on the ground, no bombs in the air”. Many attendees wore the Palestinian keffiyeh. PSL organizers were identifiable by bright red shirts with the words “socialism is the future” across the back.

Juliana, an N.C. State University student and PSL member, spoke about the role of students in opposing the war with Iran. She drew comparisons to Vietnam-era campus protests, the Gaza encampments, and anti-ICE demonstrations that students led in 2026. She noted that N.C. State had just announced a tuition increase, even as the federal government moves to funnel hundreds of billions into the war effort.

As speakers addressed the crowd, a few passersby on Hargett Street stopped to listen. PSL members were positioned nearby, ready to talk or offer flyers. The Marble Kids Museum was in the crowd’s line of sight, but too far away to see the reactions of the many families coming and going. A line of police vehicles waited on Hargett Street, not to suppress the demonstration, but to escort the march once the speeches ended.

Among the most compelling speakers was Kalia Fitzgerald, a member of the Green Party. “We are called to disrupt, to stand in the way, to being a roadblock when our government chooses to prosecute war as a business model,” she said. “This is not about defending our shores. It is about imposing rule by force completely outside the bounds of international law.”

Fitzgerald highlighted a recent act of protest by Brian McGinnis, the Green Party’s candidate for U.S. Senate in North Carolina. On March 4, McGinnis’ arm was brutally broken by Capitol Police and Senator Tim Sheehy after he interrupted a Senate subcommittee hearing to protest the Iran War.

Tania Trejo-Mendez, a PSL member, was the last speaker. "The consequences of US imperialism are already devastating millions across the world,” she said. “For almost three years and beyond the world has watched the destruction of Gaza where women, children, and entire families have been killed in staggering numbers. Now the same war machine is threatening to expand that violence even further."

The human toll of US aggression and destabilization in the Middle East has been extensively studied. The Costs of War Project at Brown University estimates that between 2001 and 2023, wars directly killed approximately 940,000 people across Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Yemen, and Pakistan. When accounting for indirect deaths, stemming from the collapse of healthcare systems, economic devastation, environmental damage, the figure rises to at least 4.5 million people. Those figures do not include Palestine, Lebanon, Libya, or Iran [1].

The only politician present was Joshua Bradley, who has run for Raleigh city council several times. The Triangle chapter of the PSL has grown into a popular and active left-wing group, especially among young socialists of color, in part by keeping its distance from mainstream electoral politics.

When the speeches ended, the crowd filed out of Moore Square, and their march wound through downtown Raleigh. Two banners led the procession: “Remember Iraq” and “Stop the War on Iran”. Many chants and signs also referenced the Vietnam War. Organizers brought along a powerful speaker mounted in a wagon, and a drummer helped the chanters keep their tune. The weather was so pleasant that the people on the sidewalks outnumbered the marchers. Chant leaders wove in tributes to International Women's Day such as "Women hold up half the sky, no to war and genocide", alluding to a saying from Chinese leader Mao Zedong.

Bystanders overwhelmingly responded positively, probably a reflection of widespread opposition to the Iran War rather than an endorsement of the march’s strident anti-imperialism. The sole negative reaction came from an older white man dressed in country club attire. Standing with a younger person who appeared to be his son, he shook his head when he noticed the protest. Then the man grinned and gave a thumbs down.

The March 7 demonstration also showed how PSL skillfully develops its membership.  While Victor Urquiza, a seasoned organizer, typically serves as emcee, a newer member filled that role on Saturday with considerable skill. Chant-leading duties during the march were rotated among several members. Some were confident and effective, while others were clearly new to the task and a bit shaky. The results might seem uneven to an outside observer, but the approach shows PSL’s deliberate effort to cultivate new talent.

Western powers have spent more than a century tormenting the people of Iran. After oil was discovered, the UK turned Iran into a client state and controlled their oil through the Anglo-Persian Oil Company, which is today British Petroleum. When Iranians reclaimed their resources under the democratic government of Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh, the US and UK overthrew him in 1953 and installed a puppet dictatorship that lasted for more than two decades. In the 1980s, the US supported Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein when he invaded Iran in a conflict left between one and two million people dead. Decades of US sanctions on Iran followed. In June 2025, the US and Israel launched a brief war on Iran, and then attacked again in February 2026. The current war has killed more than 1,400 civilians and at least 200 children.

Work Cited

1. Human. (2026, March 3). Costs of War | Brown University. https://costsofwar.watson.brown.edu/costs/human