A rally yesterday against United States support of the upcoming elections in El Salvador attracted 40-50 protesters to the steps of Pattee.

The rally included a speech and the reading of a letter written by Monsignor Romero, a priest killed by El Salvador's government in 1980, said Monica Somocurcio (senior-psychology), former president of Friends of Latin America, which sponsored the rally.

The letter -- addressed to the Carter Administration -- asked the United States to stop funding elections in El Salvador, she said. Romero was killed soon after it was written, she added.

Somocurcio said the U.S. government spent over $2 million to elect Jose Napoleon Duarte during El Salvador's last presidential elections in 1984. The United States also sends $1.5 million per day to the El Salvadoran military, she contended.

Another rallier, Andrew McInerney, former FOLA president, said he was satisfied with the rally's effect. "It was good in the fact we got information out," he said.

He said the small rally still got its point across and larger national demonstrations -- like one to be held Saturday in New York City -- will bring even more attention to El Salvador. "I'm not disappointed," he said.

John Black, who hosts a talk show on WPSU called "View from the Left," said he was satisfied with the rally, and compared the elections in El Salvador to those of Nazi Germany.

"You can only vote for the people in power, you can't vote against the people in power," he said. "I don't want my taxes to go for that," he added.