On Tuesday, the Navy said the USS George Washington group will not train in Vieques in mid-May as planned, because of the protest. Amid the uncertainty, one thing is clear. Puerto Rico, a U.S. commonwealth of nearly 4 million people, has never seen anything like the Vieques furor. The campaign to peacefully oust the Navy from the island, which is part of Puerto Rico and about eight miles off its eastern coast, has cut across political and social lines. Priests say Mass at a makeshift seaside chapel where troops practiced amphibious landings a year ago.
Holy water is sprinkled where bombs used to fall.
San Juan's Archbishop Roberto Gonzalez gives sermons about civil disobedience. Bobby Kennedy Jr. is the latest celebrity to visit the protest camps. Even Puerto Rican pop singer Ricky Martin has called for the Navy to stop bombing Vieques . Protesters are scattered among 14 camps that dot the beaches and sun-baked fields. Berrios is one of the oldest enclaves.