BOSTON—Chanting, “What do we want? Troops out! When do we want it? Now!” 1,000 people marched through the downtown area here October 17. The protest demanded, “All troops home from Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iraq now.” The action was one of 40 held across the country that day.

The march was preceded by a rally that featured speakers from Iraq Veterans Against the War, Code Pink, an anti-foreclosure activist from City Life, and the president of United Electrical Workers District 2. A member of the Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan, who is touring the United States, also spoke.

Holly, a high school student from Concord, New Hampshire, said a bus came to the march and rally from New Hampshire. It picked up students in about a half dozen towns.

—TED LEONARD