Two teenagers are on a journey.
They have endured 3,000 miles of desert, mountains and hot Midwestern plains on foot and bike since their journey began.
Ashley Casale, 19, and Michael Israel, 18, left San Francisco on May 21 for Washington, D.C., in hopes of inspiring people to protest the war in Iraq and to get citizens more actively involved in government.
Casale got the idea for the march as a freshman last fall at an anti-war protest at Wesleyan University in Middletown, Conn. She said she thought a march would bring more attention to these causes than the smaller protests she participated in.
Although Casale sent out hundreds of fliers and gained a lot of support from other people and organizations, such as Not In Our Name and the Nebraskans for Peace, in the end only she and Israel are making the cross-country journey. Another woman dropped out two weeks into the trek.
"I think it's a huge committment and I think that not everyone has the luxury and freedom to quit their lives and not go to work or school. Ashley and Mike represent thousands of people who are with them in spirit," said Maya Jones, organizer of Not in Our Name, a group of activists that includes family members of people killed on Sept. 11.
Before embarking, Casale called Nebraskans For Peace and asked if they would help plan a rally in Omaha, since it is close to the midpoint of the journey.
"We would love to end war as a way of dealing with conflicts. Since war doesn't solve problems but does kill people and squander resources, our biggest goal is to find peaceful solutions instead, just as our name implies," said Elaine Wells of Nebraskans for Peace.
Wells has helped to coordinate the rally in Omaha for Casale and Israel.
"Casale asked us to do a special event to create awareness of the march and all the ideals that it's supporting. Casale and Israel are trying to encourage people, especially young people, to get actively involved in solving global problems," Wells said.
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln chapter of Nebraskans for Peace was contacted to participate in the march and in the rally but is not involved in the organization of either.
"Obviously the Iraq war is a big issue of ours and we do as much as we can to raise awareness on what's going on down there and things that people can do to take a stand against the war," said Ricky Hull, president of the UNL chapter of Nebraskans for Peace.
Nebraskans for Peace holds weekly vigils outside of the capitol Wednesdays at 5 p.m. While in Lincoln, Casale and Israel attended one of the vigils.
"Democracy is meaningless unless the citizens participate," Wells said. "It doesn't do us any good to create democracies across the world if we aren't taking an active interest in what is happening in our own country."
