About 80 people of all ages gathered outside the gates of the Blackwater North facility in Mount Carroll, Ill., on Saturday afternoon.

This was no ordinary protest, and not just because of the location — a narrow road that winds through hills and farmland in a remote corner of Northern Illinois.

If the organizers have their way, this will be remembered as the vanguard of a national movement against military contractors who feed on tax dollars but operate in the shadows, with no public oversight.

"This is the first time a group of unarmed citizens have stood at the gates of a private military firm," said Dan Kenney of the DeKalb Interfaith Network for Peace & Justice, who pointed out that the annual vigil outside the School of the Americas started out with six people and has grown to more than 20,000.

"Today we stand here, and we stand up for democracy and the pillars that support it," Kenney said. "Today, we stand up against the lies of war profiteers. Today is just the beginning."

The action was organized by Clearwater, a coalition of activists from Northwest Illinois and the Chicago area. It took several weeks to organize but came together almost seamlessly, despite logistical challenges that included a last-minute change of plans imposed by Jo Daviess County police.

Stay tuned for a complete report.

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