Pierce College Anti-War Rally Becomes Battle of Words, Fists : Protest: Marchers are stopped by demonstrators supporting U.S. policy in the gulf. To school’s dean, it was like scenes of 20 years ago.

With the threat of war looming, more than 300 Pierce College students abandoned classes at the Woodland Hills campus Thursday for an emotional anti-war rally marked by speeches and a fistfight between demonstrators and supporters of President Bush’s policies in the Persian Gulf.

Campus police said an unidentified man was treated at a local hospital for minor injuries received during a scuffle when marchers were stopped by a handful of counterdemonstrators who carried an American flag and called for support of President Bush.

“I haven’t seen anything like this for 20 years,” said Phil Stein, the school’s dean, referring to student demonstrations against the Vietnam War.

No arrests were made but campus police Officer J.D. Burch said three suspects believed to have started the fights were identified. “The injured party would have to press charges before we do anything,” he said.

The rally began peacefully about noon as students carrying signs and banners marched through campus. But minutes later, several students who earlier identified themselves as members of the Pierce football team stood in the path of the marchers chanting, “U.S.A., U.S.A.,” and a fight broke out.

Campus police arrived several minutes later and the march continued without incident. Several Los Angeles police officers watched the rally from a short distance away.

One of the counterdemonstrators, Joe Quintos, 21, said he opposed the rally because students should “back the government. The soldiers over there need our support, not people bad-mouthing them.”

Chuck Nixon, a speaker representing Veterans for Peace, said he was struck with fists and then knocked to the ground when the two groups clashed.

“None of us came here to fight,” Nixon said. “We came here for peace.”

Alex Haydon, Pierce student body vice president, said the rally was intended to show “students are against what is going on in the Middle East. If we go to war, sure, the U.S. will win, but people will die.”

At a rally after the march, students cheered speakers--including peace activist Ron Kovic--who called for delays in a U.S. military assault on Iraqi armed forces now holding Kuwait.

Kovic warned students that “we are being led down the path to a war that has no end.” He called for students to continue peaceful demonstrations until “hundreds of thousands are in the streets” protesting against war in the Middle East.

Other speakers called for the United States to allow additional time for economic sanctions against Iraq to work before fighting. Gregory Cook, of the California League of Conservation Voters, said a war in the Persian Gulf would not only cost untold thousands of lives but also is likely to create a environmental disaster with the smoke from oil-well fires burning millions of gallons a day for months.

Pierce students and faculty said they were surprised by the number of students who participated in the rally.