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'We Are Many': Documentary Depicts Legacy of Global Anti-War Movement
Film premiering this week in the UK details 2003 march against Iraq War—the largest protest in history
May 20, 2015
The extraordinary February 15, 2003 march against the U.S. invasion of Iraq, which brought an estimated 30 million people to the streets in 800 cities on every continent, is immortalized on screen in Amir Amirani's acclaimed documentary, We Are Many, premiering in the UK this week.
We Are Many interviews key organizers of the march--including Damon Albarn, Ken Loach and the late Tony Benn--as well as the officials who pushed for the U.S. to invade Iraq. A trailer for the film also shows peace activists being dragged away from congressional meetings, Iraqi children weeping in the aftermath of bombings, and veterans throwing away their army medals in a demonstration against the war.
In a video interview in January with Laura Flanders and Phyllis Bennis, Amirani explained, "There was something about the atmosphere that was created--somehow it had crept into public consciousness in a way that hadn't happened before."
The film "received a four-minute standing ovation when it debuted at the Sheffield International Documentary Festival last June," the Guardian writes in its review. "Charting the biggest civil protest in history with depth and authentic political perspective is no walk in the park. But Amirani pulls it off with panache, stemming largely from the impressive breadth of heavyweight contributors that he enlisted for the film."
Watch the trailer below:
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Nadia Prupis
Nadia Prupis is a former Common Dreams staff writer. She wrote on media policy for Truthout.org and has been published in New America Media and AlterNet. She graduated from UC Santa Barbara with a BA in English in 2008.
The extraordinary February 15, 2003 march against the U.S. invasion of Iraq, which brought an estimated 30 million people to the streets in 800 cities on every continent, is immortalized on screen in Amir Amirani's acclaimed documentary, We Are Many, premiering in the UK this week.
We Are Many interviews key organizers of the march--including Damon Albarn, Ken Loach and the late Tony Benn--as well as the officials who pushed for the U.S. to invade Iraq. A trailer for the film also shows peace activists being dragged away from congressional meetings, Iraqi children weeping in the aftermath of bombings, and veterans throwing away their army medals in a demonstration against the war.
In a video interview in January with Laura Flanders and Phyllis Bennis, Amirani explained, "There was something about the atmosphere that was created--somehow it had crept into public consciousness in a way that hadn't happened before."
The film "received a four-minute standing ovation when it debuted at the Sheffield International Documentary Festival last June," the Guardian writes in its review. "Charting the biggest civil protest in history with depth and authentic political perspective is no walk in the park. But Amirani pulls it off with panache, stemming largely from the impressive breadth of heavyweight contributors that he enlisted for the film."
Watch the trailer below:
Nadia Prupis
Nadia Prupis is a former Common Dreams staff writer. She wrote on media policy for Truthout.org and has been published in New America Media and AlterNet. She graduated from UC Santa Barbara with a BA in English in 2008.
The extraordinary February 15, 2003 march against the U.S. invasion of Iraq, which brought an estimated 30 million people to the streets in 800 cities on every continent, is immortalized on screen in Amir Amirani's acclaimed documentary, We Are Many, premiering in the UK this week.
We Are Many interviews key organizers of the march--including Damon Albarn, Ken Loach and the late Tony Benn--as well as the officials who pushed for the U.S. to invade Iraq. A trailer for the film also shows peace activists being dragged away from congressional meetings, Iraqi children weeping in the aftermath of bombings, and veterans throwing away their army medals in a demonstration against the war.
In a video interview in January with Laura Flanders and Phyllis Bennis, Amirani explained, "There was something about the atmosphere that was created--somehow it had crept into public consciousness in a way that hadn't happened before."
The film "received a four-minute standing ovation when it debuted at the Sheffield International Documentary Festival last June," the Guardian writes in its review. "Charting the biggest civil protest in history with depth and authentic political perspective is no walk in the park. But Amirani pulls it off with panache, stemming largely from the impressive breadth of heavyweight contributors that he enlisted for the film."
Watch the trailer below:
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