KOLKATA witnessed another historic rally of tens of thousands of people that roared against imperialist aggression. People mostly from Kolkata and its adjoining districts participated in the rally to mark their protest against the US aggression and to commemorate the Anti Imperialism Day on September 1. Braving heavy downpour, thousands of people marched almost seven kilometres from Ramlila Maidan near Maulali in central Kolkata to Deshbandhu Park near Shyambazar in the north. Fifteen Left parties organised the anti-imperialist rally this year. The rally was decorated with flags, festoons and tableaus. There was heavy downpour when the rally was about to start. But nothing could dampen the spirit of the people. The stream of people with red flags, banners with anti-war slogans, innovative artworks marched despite rain, raising anti-imperialist slogans. Many tableaus depicted imperialist aggression, particularly photos of barbarism in Gaza. Songs were rendered from the tableaus as well as by people gathered at several important traffic intersections. The rally took almost one-and-a-half hour to cross the Sealdah flyover. The procession was so large that when the tip reached Deshbandhu Park, the tail was still in Maulali. Left Front chairman Biman Basu, while addressing the gathering at Deshbandhu Park, said that the US-led forces are using our markets to meet their internal crisis. They are trying to control our economy. We must keep our struggle on against such imperialist aggression. The US is now promoting financial imperialism in countries like India and other third world nations. Banks, insurance sector, pension funds, and the food security scheme are facing US policy controlling and our central government is trying to promote such intrusion. Basu referred to the prevailing situations in Iraq, Palestine, Syria, and explained how children and women including innocent people of Gaza were facing seize on life in the name of Operation Protective Edge initiated by Israel and supported by the US. The world is aware of the facts and fallacies of the Israel’s war on Gaza (Palestine), yet the Indian Government is observing stoic silence and somewhat extending its “protective edge” to someone by not allowing any debate on the Gaza situation in Parliament. Basu said the struggle against imperialism does not end by joining or organising a rally on the Anti Imperialism Day, the real struggle has to be waged by unifying it with the continuous struggle against oppressive measures of the capitalist rule. While addressing the gathering, leader of the opposition in West Bengal Assembly Surjya Kanta Mishra slammed the Indian government for sharing the country's internal issues and spaces to the imperialist power. He sharply criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ongoing trip to Japan, saying that it is a trip to make relations with the imperialists. Thousands of people not just from Left Parties but also a huge share of common people participated in the rally. The fifteen Left parties which called upon the Anti Imperialism Day rally are the CPI(M), CPI, Forward Bloc, RSP, DSP, RCPI, Marxbadi Forward Bloc, Biplobi Bangla Congress, Workers’ Party, Bolshevik Party, SUCI(C), CPI(ML)-Liberation, CPI(ML)-Santosh Rana, CRLI and Communist Party of Bharat. It was popular participation which made this rally a huge success. Those who shared the road were high on spirit and knew that their demands and “rights are to be taken, not requested; seized, not begged for”. And then the rally shouted the demand for a peaceful and prosperous world for all, not for a few. The rally shouted the demand of living a rightful life anywhere in the world. There are people who are always enthusiastic to announce a typical demise of ‘imperialism’. The voice of rejection from the streets of Bengal has shown them ‘How different today's parade has been!’