240 Arrested in Protest at Pentagon on Latin Policies

WASHINGTON — Chanting “Shut it down!” about 600 demonstrators blocked entrances to the Pentagon in a six-hour protest against Reagan Administration policy in Central America that ended peacefully with about 240 arrests.

The demonstrators, including famed activists from anti-Vietnam War protests, called for the United States to remove its military advisers from El Salvador.

The demonstrators also placed several hundred crosses on one side of the Pentagon to memorialize those who have been killed in the war between the U.S.-backed government and leftist guerrillas.

The protests ended peacefully shortly after noon with a peaceful rally. Daniel Ellsberg, disseminator of the Pentagon papers outlining the U.S. role in Vietnam, asked the crowd, “Do you have a better way to get El Salvador on the evening news?”