Tombstone-shaped posters marking symbolic graves on the metal fence behind Wells Hall on Thursday rendered images of dead Iraqi children and soldiers.
Faces of victims were often so blood-smeared they were unrecognizable. Each gravestone had a different phrase such as "Iraqi civilians slaughtered in your name" scrawled on it.
About 20 protesters dedicated their day to telling campus about the impact of the war on Iraqi civilians. Speaking through a megaphone, they told those passing by about the dangers of war.
"This is to force people to think about what life is like from the Iraqi perspective," said Michael Perez, co-founder of Students for Peace and Justice, "since we already know what it's like from our side."
But the opposition also made it out to the protest.
"If this is really an unjust war, then more people would be here," said Matt Thome, spokesman for the MSU College Republicans, adding the cold temperatures wouldn't have kept people away. "Some of the information they're giving us is ridiculous.
"They have every right to be out here, just like we have the right to go support our troops."
Some protesters got into heated arguments with passers-by, but Perez said he just agreed to disagree.
"I'd be willing to concede if the government was doing anything right," said Perez, an anthropology graduate student. "If you're not with us, you're against us."
Others chose to shout obscenities at the protesters.
"A few people were more concerned with insulting than with dialogue," Perez said. "It says more about them."
Kathie Kuhn, a Lansing Community College student, came out clad in a Grim Reaper costume to represent how she felt about the war.
"It's appropriate," Kuhn said, "This is how many people in the world view the United States right now.
"I consider the people of Iraq my brothers and sisters and I can't stand by with silence as they're massacred."
Malek Towghi, a retired MSU professor and East Lansing resident, said he was passionately opposed to the war and gladly took part in the protest.
"The whole thing is a personal war," he said. "This war is not serving out national interests. It really is a stupid way of solving economic problems."
Andrew Gaber, a high school sophomore from Vermontville, Mich., who was passing by Wells Hall and stopped to check out the protest, said the demonstration was an effective way for students to get their message to others.
"It opens up the stage for discussion," Gaber said. "To make the democracy work, this should happen."
