'People my age have only been alive for war': Minneapolis marchers protest military escalation in Middle East

A coalition of anti-war groups gathered for a rally and march Saturday in Minneapolis to protest the escalation of U.S. military action in the Middle East, specifically against Iran.

The gathering came in the wake of a U.S. air strike that killed top Iranian military leader Qassem Soleimani and heightened Mideast tensions.

Organizers said the protest in the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood was held in coordination with other events across the nation Saturday. The marchers chanted as they headed down Cedar Avenue: "No justice, no peace — U.S. out of the Middle East."

Sisters Mina and Mitra Kian were among the crowd. They're the daughters of Iranian immigrants, and Mina Kian said she and her sister first heard about the airstrike from their parents.

"When they told us it was immensely difficult to realize that we are potentially at the brink of war, something that's going to impact communities across this country," she said. "It's going to hurt the families of enlisted members, it's going to hurt the families of ... people living in the Middle East. And it's just going to ultimately cause so much more chaos, and undeserved hatred in this world. And I truly hope that people can fight for peace.

"The Islamic regime and the members within it are people that we have no love for. There's a reason that we chose to immigrate from that country," Mina Kian said. "But ultimately, it's the people and the communities that are going to be impacted that we care about. And that's the thing that we're the most terrified for, because children will die. Families will be broken apart" if there's war with Iran.

Anti-war march in Minneapolis

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Abeer Syedah said she felt a need to march and make her voice heard Saturday because she feels people’s votes haven't mattered when it comes to American military involvement overseas. She said Republican and Democratic politicians alike have condoned ongoing military action in the Middle East.

"I'm a millennial and people my age have only been alive for war. In fact, there's one in Afghanistan right now that started when I was a baby. And it's still ongoing," she said. "And I don't want to be a part of ... an American people that just buy the lies, that sit by, just because it doesn't necessarily impact us."

Meredith Aby with the Anti-War Committee said she's also frustrated by years of both Republican and Democratic elected officials failing to fulfill promises to bring troops home from the Middle East.

"We have real problems here at home, and we should be spending these resources on dealing with homelessness, climate change, education in this country," Aby said. "Instead we're talking about, on the drop of a dime, to just pivot and spend billions and billions of dollars escalating a war in the Middle East. We need to be pulling these troops home, and spending this money on human needs and not on war."