Thousands of war protesters continued their push for U.S. troops to get out of Iraq, raising signs, banners and voices as they marched.

Not far from the protesters, thousands of Bush supporters rallied a few blocks away on the Mall, a gathering that was designed to show support for U.S. policy and that drew relatives of U.S. troops overseas. One of those was Marlene English, 35, a lobbyist who lives in Arlington and has a cousin serving in the 3rd Infantry Division. "Freedom of speech is a wonderful thing, but while they're there, we need to support them," English said of the troops.

At Freedom Plaza, protesters from Wisconsin, New York, Michigan, California, Northern Virginia and various points in between rallied under sunny skies at 14th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW. They also marched past several downtown corporate offices, targeting companies that they say profit from the war and media outlets whose coverage they criticize.

"I still stand against the war," said Cathina McFadden, 24, of Kalamazoo, Mich., a student at Western Michigan University, who arrived yesterday morning with about 50 classmates and draped a sign around her shoulders reading, "Don't kill me and call it liberation." She added: "Saddam Hussein is a dictator, and he needed to be taken down. But I don't understand why we're still fighting. We're doing more harm than good."

The demonstration coincided with weekend war protests in San Francisco, Los Angeles and Seattle, as well as in numerous countries around the world, organizers said.

The antiwar event signaled a shift in the movement's message, as marchers tweaked their chants and crossed letters and words from signs to focus less on the war and more on the U.S. occupation now that allied forces have toppled Saddam Hussein's regime. Their signs questioned whether U.S. plans end in Iraq. Paper and cardboard signs that a few weeks ago declared, "Money for jobs, not for war," now read, "Money for jobs, not for empire." Someone added Syria to a "Stop Iraq War" sign, and someone else taped over the "q" to change the sign to read "Iran."

A group of college students who drove through the night from Flint, Mich., sat on the steps of the plaza, soaking in the sun and solidarity of their first big protest. Around them was a melting pot of American dissent and causes: People staffed booths on the sides of the plaza selling "Free Palestine" T-shirts and promoting literature on socialism and fighting police brutality, among other issues.

"I would like to see us not do this to anyone else," said Nicole Dunckel, 21, whose sign read, "The ends do not justify the means." Dunckel and others in the group said they wanted to see peacekeeping efforts in Iraq that are far more international and diplomatic than the current military campaign.

With reports of hospitals in Iraq overflowing with wounded civilians, other activists compared the U.S. assault and occupation to a brutal regime. "Our movement recognizes that this is the extension of a U.S. empire-building strategy, taking over a formerly sovereign country for U.S. interests," said Brian Becker, 50, an organizer with ANSWER, the antiwar coalition that sponsored yesterday's event.

Organizers said the demonstration drew more than 25,000, fewer than previous ANSWER marches in Washington, but Becker described the protest as a success. He said that by the time the march began about 2:30 p.m., under heavy police escort, the crowd took up five blocks of Pennsylvania Avenue, and many demonstrators still had not left the plaza. Organizers have often disputed police estimates, saying they were attempts to belittle their efforts, but this weekend police estimated that as many as 30,000 attended.

Along the march route, at 10th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue in front of the FBI, the protesters chanted, "Tapping our phones, reading our mail -- the FBI should go to jail." Heading up Ninth Street, protestors, who appeared to stretch over seven downtown blocks by that time, shouted outside the Justice Department, "Get the hell out! Get the hell out! Get the hell out of Iraq!"

In one of the day's few police-related incidents, authorities said protesters tried to break off from the main group about 3 p.m. as the march headed up Ninth Street NW at G Street. Some got through a police line, and in the ensuing scuffle between police and protesters, some activists fell to the ground and an officer was knocked off his bicycle. Police said the officer's injury did not require hospitalization.

"They pushed over the officer, unfortunately," said D.C. Police Chief Charles H. Ramsey. Observers said several protesters were injured, as well. One person who was there, Will Potter, 22, of the District, said he was hit by a baton and added: "The cops came up and started grabbing at us, telling us to clear the street. . . . They just kind of unleashed on everybody within that intersection." Ramsey said police did not use inappropriate force, adding, "We're not going to let them just run over us."

In another incident, at 18th and K streets NW, D.C. police said they arrested three people, two for assault on an officer and another for failure to obey. Police said an officer suffered minor injuries.

At one point, a wall of police tried pushing protesters away from the center of the street, throwing some to the ground. At least two were injured in the incident, an ANSWER coordinator said. Police said they were unaware of any injuries to marchers.

The marchers' route included The Washington Post on 15th Street NW, where they booed and charged the paper with being a "press agent for the Pentagon." At the 18th and M offices of Halliburton Co., the energy firm once headed by Vice President Cheney, some in the crowd chanted, "Halliburton, war criminals!"

Other demonstrations are scheduled today, when anti-globalization demonstrators and Latin America supporters hold a rally at 11 a.m. at Meridian Hill Park in Columbia Heights. The event leads to a 1 p.m. march to the Foggy Bottom headquarters of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank.

In preparation for the protests yesterday and today, police closed a large section of downtown to motorists and pedestrians, including the White House grounds and streets in and around the World Bank and IMF. About 10 streets were closed, many for several blocks, a move that caused officials at the Downtown Cluster of Congregations to request that some streets be reopened to allow for Palm Sunday morning worshipers.

Police said they had no plans to alter the security perimeter.

Staff writers Allan Lengel, David Montgomery and Nancy Trejos contributed to this report.



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