WASHINGTON — Antiwar demonstrators staged candlelight vigils around the country Wednesday evening, freshly energized by the tenacity of Cindy Sheehan, the California mother of a fallen soldier, who has camped out for almost two weeks near President Bush's central Texas ranch, demanding a face-to-face meeting with him.
In Washington, 400 to 500 demonstrators gathered silently in front of the White House -- one of a dozen or so vigils scheduled for the nation's capital and its suburbs.
Many protesters held candles and wore name tags that identified their link to someone who had served in the Iraq war -- such as "aunt," "mother" or "friend."
After about 20 minutes of silence, the crowd began chanting "Meet with Cindy," "Tell her the truth," "End the war now" and "No more lies."
Stephanie Cooper, a Washington resident, held up a sign urging the president, who is spending the month of August in Texas, to "Next Time Vacation in Iraq."
"I'm disgusted that he's riding his bike and reading novels while this is going on," Cooper said. "He seems to be on vacation all the time."
Bill Black, also of Washington, wore a sticker that read "patriot" and held up a sign: "Draft the Bush Twins."
In all, MoveOn.org, a liberal group that helped promote the vigils, said that about 100,000 supporters of Sheehan would gather at more than 1,400 sites nationwide, though by Wednesday afternoon about 60,000 had signed up on the organization's website.
"My experience is that the number of people who attend is significantly higher than those who RSVP," said Tom Matzzie, MoveOn.org's Washington director. The vigils were not even planned until four days ago, he said.
Matzzie credited Sheehan with helping to "personalize the cost of war." He said that until now, the majority of the American people had been desensitized to the conflict.
Vigils also were held in New York, Boston, Atlanta, Denver, Houston, Chicago, Phoenix, San Francisco, Los Angeles and elsewhere.
Vigils and rallies were held around the Southland, with hundreds of people gathering and lighting candles from West Hollywood to Santa Monica, Hermosa Beach and Long Beach.
In Studio City, about 500 people turned out at the intersection of Laurel Canyon and Ventura boulevards for a candlelight vigil and rally. The noisy crowd, some carrying signs saying "Meet With Cindy" or "Impeach Bush," was greeted with honking horns and peace signs from passing motorists.
