Community members gathered at the Liberty Bell in Downtown Bakersfield for a silent demonstration. Demanding an end to the U.S. led war against Iran, and to bring troops home.Instead of yelling, the protesters kept mostly silent to prove to the community that voices can resonate without a single scream. Their message urged Americans to unite for lasting peace.During the demonstration, protesters held a moment of silence to honor the memory of 168 Iranian children who died on February 28. When a U.S. missile strike devastated a girls' elementary school in Minab."These shoes and books that we have here today represent the 168 children for the bombing that occurred at their schoolhouse. Those are not the people that we need to protect ourselves against. That is a war crime and that is not okay," Audrey Chavez said.Chavez, a community activist, emphasized the need to focus on domestic issues rather than overseas conflicts."Its important to fight because a lot of these battles have been fought before. We want peace and we want our country to be able to work on itself to get our matters in order. To uplift our people, to have healthcare, stopping the ICE raids, and all of these other things that are happening that are unconstitutional," Chavez said.People from diverse backgrounds attended the demonstration, expressing concern for future generations."My mom was my daughters age when she got her rights, and now my daughter is that age and losing her rights. Thats not the way. How can we say we are trying to save the world when we are bombing a girls' school. How can we claim to be the best country on the planet and we are threatening to annihilate an entire civilization," Nicholas Cacopardo said.Community members said they hope their efforts today can shape a better country for generations to come."I want to make sure that democracy is still here in our country generations from now. I feel like our democracy is being threatened. Do not dissent, stand up for your rights. Stand up, make sure we have a voice!" Vicky Gilley said.The end of the war remains unknown, but community members are standing by their neighbors and praying for it to end soon.This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.Stay in Touch with Us Anytime, Anywhere: Download Our Free App for Apple and Android Sign Up for Our Daily E-mail Newsletter Like Us on Facebook Follow Us on Instagram Subscribe to Us on YouTube ...read more read less