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A small group of University of Wisconsin students and other Iraq war protesters marched Friday to highlight the explicit and implicit costs the war has had on Wisconsin.

The rally, which marked the fifth anniversary or President Bush’s declaration of “mission accomplished” in Iraq, was organized by the University of Wisconsin branch of Campus Progress, a progressive student organization with chapters across the country. Campus Progress is a branch of the Center for American Progress, a progressive Washington, D.C.-based think tank that funded the event.

About 50 people attended the rally, which began on State Street Mall and then marched along Langdon Street and back to State Street before ending at the Capitol.

Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Madison, a speaker at the protest, talked about the opportunity cost of the Iraq war at the rally.

“I think people are starting to understand there’s a cost relationship to what the war is doing to the economy,” he said. “There’s definitely a connectivity between what happens in Iraq and what happens here, and now we have to make some tough decisions that will impact our education, safety and health care because of one bad decision on the federal level.”

Pocan said he has been active with anti-war groups on campus since the March 2003 invasion.

Julie Waisbren, a UW junior and rally participant, echoed Pocan’s concerns.

“I’m protesting because the Iraq war is taking money not only away from the country, but also Madison,” she said. “There is a lot of money that went to war that could have gone to infrastructure, Madison schools and health care.”

Like others at the rally, Waisbren said she supports a “responsible troop withdrawal” that would reduce a possible destabilization in the region.

“We should continue to provide support to civilians in Iraq, but the troops need to be out, and the money needs to stop pouring in,” she added.

The rally was initially organized by moveon.org, a prominent progressive organization, but was taken over by Campus Progress in later planning in order to give the event a more student-oriented and “grassroots” feel, according to UW Campus Progress co-founder Mitra Jalali.

Jalali also said she hopes the event sparks more student activism on campus, an activity she believes has fallen out of favor among many students.

“I would like this to be the first step forward toward more student activism,” Jalali said. “I feel like this campus has lost some of its activist spirit.”

UW College Republicans Chair Sara Mikolajczak said high costs were a “necessary evil” in a time of war.

“We got ourselves into this war for a good reason, to overthrow a fascist dictator,” she said. “Right now, we need to spend money to make sure the job is done.”