Anti-U.S. military commie asshats acting out ’mistreating civilians’ (what they claim the U.S. military does) at the Westlake Center as startled holiday shoppers look on

KOMO

SEATTLE – A bizarre scene unfolded amid the festive holiday atmosphere at Westlake Center on Saturday, as men in U.S. military uniforms stormed through the crowd, tossing civilians to the sidewalk and handcuffing them.

It was all part of a "street theater" style anti-war protest staged by opponents of the proposed troop surge in Afghanistan.

The uniformed men and civilians were all acting out their parts, and no bystanders were actually hurt in the holiday crowd.

But many people were caught off-guard by the unorthodox scene only a few steps from Westlake Center, where lines of young kids waited their turn to ride the carousel and shoppers hurried by with their bags.

As the "soldiers" screamed profanities at the "civilians" on the ground, many frightened young children were asking their parents what was going on. Meanwhile, some adult shoppers walked by – seemingly oblivious to the freaky scene.

The protest’s organizers, a group called "The World Can’t Wait," say they’re trying to show what a military occupation is like by re-enacting scenes of soldiers mistreating civilians.

"A troop surge means nothing but suffering, killing … and it’s not in the interest of people living in Afghanistan or the people living in this country," says Emma Kaplan, one of the organizers.

She claimed that President Obama is planning to announce a troop surge on Tuesday that will send 34,000 more soldiers to Afghanistan, and that it is up to the American public to stop it.

"People living in this country have a responsibility to stop the crimes of their government no matter who the president is," she said.

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 Sponsors of Communist World Can’t Wait

A comprehensive list of WCW’s individual and organizational endorsers can be viewed on the WCW website. Among these supporters are: the After Downing Street anti-war coalition, the ANSWER coalition of New York City, Aris Anagnos, Ed Asner, Mumia Abu Jamal, Bill Ayers, Code Pink, Harry Belafonte, William Blum, Bob Bossie, Ward Churchill, John Conyers, Michael Eric Dyson, Eve Ensler, Jodie Evans, Ralph Fertig, Gloria Steinem, C. Clark Kissinger, Frances Kissling, Rep. Bobby Rush, Martin Sheen, Jane Fonda, the Islamic Circle of North America, the Islamic Association of America, Jesse Jackson, Jesse Jackson Jr., the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, Michael Lerner, the National Lawyers Guild, Armando Navarro, Not In Our Name, Michael Ratner, Cindy Sheehan, Gore Vidal, Carl Dix of the Revolutionary Communist Party, Alice Walker, Leonard Weinglass, Cornel West, Sean Penn, Harold Pinter, Maxine Waters, Al Sharpton, Susan Sarandon, Progressive Democrats of America, Major Owens, Mark Crispin Miller, Lynne Stewart, Michael Berg, Ali Khan, Mara Verhayden-Hilliard, Cynthia McKinney, Keith Ellison, John Conyers, Gold Star Families for Peace, Medea Benjamin, and Howard Zinn.