More than 1,000 people took to the streets of Olympia on Feb. 15, 2003, to protest the pending U.S. invasion of Iraq.

In recent months, the anti-war movement has been less visible for sure, but that doesn't mean members' convictions have subsided, peace activists said on the eve of the Iraqi war's first anniversary.

"One year ago, some people thought we could stop the war by protesting," said Therese Saliba, a faculty member at The Evergreen State College and a peace activist. "In the aftermath of war, it's harder to keep up the protests."

So just how strong and passionate is the anti-war movement after one year of war?

"I guess we'll find out Saturday," Saliba said, referring to the peace march and rally scheduled to begin at noon at Tivoli Fountain on the Capitol Campus.

For some, the call for peace is a deep-rooted commitment. One such person is Glen Anderson, a Lacey resident and founding member of the Olympia Fellowship of Reconciliation.

Each Wednesday at noon for the past 24 years, Anderson and a handful of others have stood at the corner of Sylvester Park in downtown Olympia in a vigil for peace.

"Bush Lies, People Die," said one of the signs displayed Wednesday by the 10 or so peace vigil participants.

"A couple of months before the war started, we had 40 or so people attending the noon vigils," he said. Shortly after the war began, the numbers began to dwindle back to the dedicated few.

In the motorists and pedestrians that pass by on Capitol Way, Anderson senses an undercurrent of dissatisfaction in the Bush administration's campaign in Iraq, he said. Anderson points to reasons why: The death toll of soldiers and innocent citizens in Iraq mounts. No weapons of mass destruction have been found. Allies are turning away from the U.S. foreign policy embodied in Iraq.

"The important thing isn't for the peace movement to say, 'I told you so,' " Anderson said. "The important thing is for the public to understand that the Bush administration has deceived the public."

Dennis Mills, a Vietnam War-era veteran turned Quaker, thinks peace activists today are committed people of conscience, not just people who take to the streets out of fear or panic precipitated by the threat of war.

In the year since the war started, Mills has noticed a lot of small, individual expressions of anti-war sentiment in letters to the editor, political campaign work and Web site activism.

"The peace movement is broader and more diverse than ever," Saliba said. "There's a greater range in ages. It's not just radicals. People understand that you can be patriotic and still oppose the war."

Last year before the war began, Chris Stegman, a Green Party member, helped organize United for Peace Thurston County, an umbrella group for 40 peace and social justice organizations.

United for Peace is still in place but not very active, he said.

"There's definitely a kind of demoralization trend that set in once the war began," he said. "But the peace movement is alive and well. I expect sizeable numbers at the rally and march Saturday."

One year ago today

Today marks one year since U.S. forces launched airstrikes on Baghdad. Each day through Sunday, The Olympian will publish stories looking at how people, places and institutions have been changed by the war, and what might be next.

Peace rally

A peace march and rally to coincide with the Global Day of Peace Action is set for noon Saturday at the Tivoli Fountain on the Capitol Campus.

After a brief rally and speeches, war protesters will march down Capitol Way and through downtown Olympia before gathering at Heritage Park between Fifth Avenue and Capitol Lake at about 2 p.m.

Music, speakers, food and a tent with activities for children are planned.

The day of protest sponsored by the Olympia Movement for Peace and Justice and other groups is designed to be nonviolent. Families and people of all ages are encouraged to attend.

Support for troops rally

Also on Saturday, Operation Support Our Troops will mark the war anniversary with a rally starting at 10 a.m. at Exit 122 off Interstate 5, the exit for Madigan Hospital and Camp Murray. The rally is expected to last until 1 p.m. and is designed to let the troops know that they have support.

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