Members of the Coalition Against NATO Intervention protested the bombings on Yugoslavia Friday afternoon.

The coalition members said they hope to inform Iowa State students and faculty about the bombings and about the U.S. media’s misrepresentation of the crisis in Kosovo.

About 20 people gathered in the free-speech zone between Beardshear Hall and The Hub. They held signs and handed out fliers about their mission.

Ed Snook, junior in English, and Jeremy Varner, junior in history, organized the protest.

“The NATO strikes have a negative effect on the conflict,” Snook said. “On any level, I can argue it.”

Snook said the United States is making a mistake by putting itself in the conflict.

“We’re trying to force peace,” he said. “We’re making demands and refusing to negotiate.”

Many Yugoslavian natives participated in the protest. Ksenija Pavlovic, senior in psychology, attended to show support of her country.

“The bombings are destroying the whole country,” she said. “It has to stop, or I won’t have a country anymore.”

Though protesters said the U.S. government is claiming to bomb only military targets, they are concerned about bombings in civilian areas.

However, Milan Crnogorac, graduate student in chemistry from Yugoslavia, said he knows many civilian areas that have been bombed.

“There is no military target within miles of those civilian targets,” he said.

Coalition members blame the media for the way they have covered the crisis.

“The media coverage seems to be oversimplifying the situation. [It is], ‘Serbia is bad, and Kosovo is good,'” Varner said.

Pavlovic said this representation is not accurate.

“Serbs are the victims, too,” she said. “[However], the Serbs are being blamed for everything.”

Members of the coalition suggested alternatives to bombing that the government could implement in handling the crisis.

“We need to take care of the humanitarian situation,” Snook said. “We need to do all we can to alleviate humanitarian crises and act as a mediator.”

Crnogorac said the countries involved need to work together to solve the crisis.

“Negotiations should be held,” he said. “The United States hasn’t tried to negotiate.”

The coalition hopes their protest will gain the support of ISU students and faculty.

“We have the freedom to participate in our government and start at the grass roots level,” Snook said.