Our beautiful pink table in the middle of Pennsylvania Avenue is set for 200.

Today we announced the Troops Home Fast in a beautiful public event in Washington DC. It started at 2pm in Dupont Circle, where the fasters greeted the Granny Peace Brigade that just arrived after their march from New York City. Then we marched to the Gandhi Statue, where we paid tribute to the spirit of Gandhi and non-violent resistance to oppression, recalling Gandhi's words: First they ignore you, then they ridicule you, then they fight you, then you win."

We then marched, hundreds strong, through the streets of Washington DC to the White House, where we held a moving press conference before breaking bread at our Fast Supper, dinner for 200 donated by Food Not Bombs.

The speakers included a diverse group of fasters--peace mom Cindy Sheehan, actor/comedian Dick Gregory, Pentagon Papers Daniel Ellsberg, diplomat/colonel Ann Wright, Iraqi analyst Raed Jarrar, Reverend Yearwood, Father Louie Vitale, and Reverend Sekou.

“Two-hundred-thirty years ago we declared independence from another oppressive George, and today we're declaring independence from an oppressive George who has taken us into an unjust war, killed our children, infiltrated our peace groups, eavesdropped on our calls,' said Cindy Sheehan. “We, once again, declare independence from oppressive rule.”

CODEPINK cofounder Medea Benjamin announced that so far, over 3,000 people around the U.S. and in 18 other countries have joined the fast. “This has obviously touched a chord. Every day hundreds of new people are signing up for the fast. Some communities are doing rolling fasts, each person taking a day. We have celebrities like Susan Sarandon and Sean Penn, writers like Alice Walker, activists like Dolores Huerta, congresswomen like Lynn Woolsey. This is sparking a new level of commitment to get out of Iraq.”