Chicago ? Six protesters disrupted the beginning of Cardinal Francis George’s Easter homily to shout their opposition to the Iraq war.

The demonstrators, who call themselves “Catholic Schoolgirls Against the War” despite their male and female membership, squirted fake blood on themselves and nearby worshipers as security guards tried to usher them from Holy Name parish’s auditorium, where Mass is being said during repairs of the Roman Catholic cathedral in downtown Chicago.

The protesters, in their late teens to mid-20s, were all charged with felony criminal damage to property and two counts of simple battery for defacing church property and the worshipers clothes with the fake blood.

Mike Harding, a friend of the protesters who was not at the service, said that if the demonstrators’ actions ruined someone’s Easter, then perhaps they’ll have more empathy for Iraqi citizens who have seen their holiest days marred by violence.