Antiwar \'Grannies\' Briefly Make Toys \'R\' Us Store Their Battlefield

Marilynn K. Yee/The New York Times
Lillian Pollak, left, and Corinne Willinger, led groups of older women on Wednesday inside the Toys “R” Us store in Times Square to protest what they said was the prevalence of violence in toys and games.

Clamors for peace inside the mammoth Toys “R” Us emporium in Times Square might not be unusual coming from parents and directed at their toddlers demanding yet another Barbie doll or another ride on the store's Ferris wheel .

But on Wednesday, the exhortations for peace were coming from an unexpected source â€" older women who belong to the Granny Peace Brigade and the Raging Grannies, two groups that have gained widespread attention for their demonstrations against the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars.

On Wednesday, they took their message into Toys “R” Us to protest what they said was the prevalence of violence in children's games and toys. They have staged similar demonstrations at other stores, including Target.

It was the fourth consecutive year that the groups had demonstrated inside the store, at Broadway and 44th Street. The first two years they rode the famous Ferris wheel, waving signs and banners until they were forced to get off the ride by store employees.

This year, the nearly two dozen women changed their tactics and divided into thre e groups. One group went to the video game section downstairs, another went to an area that features war-themed toys and a third group stayed in the store's lobby.

The protest began promptly at 12:45 p.m. with them singing “All we are saying is give peace a chance.” They chanted “Don't buy war games, don't buy war toys,” while customers and store employees looked on, clearly perplexed. One employee said: “Are they even allowed to do that? I've never seen anything like that.”

Other onlookers were more supportive of the demonstration.

“I think it's a really good thing that they're out here,” said Stephen Beckwith, 38, from Toronto. “I have two boys at home and I don't let them play with violent toys.”

“Video games can be terrible,” he added. “The ones that kids play these days are the worst. It's just kill, kill, kill.”

After about 15 minutes, the demonstrators were asked by a security guard to leave.

Eva-Lee Bair d, one of the “grannies,” said that as retirees, many of them believed it was a great time in life to protest.

“This kind of protest is really for the old and the young,” said Ms. Baird, 72, a grandmother and retired New York City schoolteacher. “My overworked mid-40s daughter can't be here.”

Lillian Pollak, 97, the oldest member of the Raging Grannies at the protest, said that she had protested many things in her life and that it was natural for her to keep attending demonstrations even at her age.

“During World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War, I went to Washington to demonstrate,” said Ms. Pollak, a great-grandmother, author and retired teacher. “I would like, before I die, to see a world closer to peace.”

Soon after being asked to leave the store, and being politely escorted out, the women continued their demonstration outside, standing beside people dressed in costumes that included Mickey Mouse and Cookie Monster.

Mary Raymond, 53, a high school teacher from Connecticut, was leading a school field trip when she stopped to watch the demonstrators.

“I don't agree with them,” Ms. Raymond said. “I think toys are toys. Children - they're just playing.”

One of her students, Adam Witek, 17, echoed the sentiment, saying, “I've had gun toys all my life and turned out just fine.”

The Granny Peace Brigade and the Raging Grannies made headlines in 2005 when 18 protesters were arrested and charged with disorderly conduct for blocking the entrance to a military recruitment center in Times Square. The women were acquitted of the charges in 2006.

Ms. Baird, who was among those arrested, said that it was in preparing for the trial that the women realized how much they enjoyed one another's company.

“These w omen are teaching me how to grow old,” she said. “There's a sisterhood here.”

“We hope we've made a bit of a difference,” she added. “We don't solve all the problems, but it would be worse if we weren't here.”