Anarchy Party In DC; 500+ Arrested

September 27, 2002
By Jonathan D. Salant, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON –– Demonstrators chained themselves together, bicycled through downtown streets and rallied at downtown parks Friday as finance ministers began a weekend of meetings. About 500 protesters were arrested and one was slightly injured.

Although the protesters had pledged to shut down the nation's capital, there were only minimal disruptions to the morning rush as the demonstrators made their way through downtown Washington protesting against the Bush administration's environmental policies, the World Bank and "corporate greed." Others protested a war against Iraq.

Most of those taken into custody were charged with blocking sidewalks or entrances and parading without a permit. About 65 people were charged with rioting after they clashed with police, broke some windows at a Citibank office and tossed smoke bombs in Washington's business district. Elsewhere, about 200 demonstrators arrested inside the White House's security zone were charged with refusing to obey a police order, according to Chief Charles Ramsey.

The financial meetings that inspired the protests began without interruption – surrounded by fences, closed streets and lines of police.

At one downtown intersection, protesters chained themselves together. Elsewhere, demonstrators danced through the street with mud and leaves smeared on their hair and clothes. Fire trucks were called to put out a few tires set ablaze on the outskirts of town.

"This is not a police state, we have a right to demonstrate," chanted a group of mostly young people, some wearing bandanas over their faces. After police led dozens away, the sidewalk was littered with their personal items – jackets, gas masks, helmets, goggles, a journal.

In a grassy area a few blocks from the White House, officers on motorcycles, horseback and foot arrested about 200 protesters who banged on drums and plastic buckets.

Among those arrested: a nude woman chanting slogans against the World Bank and International Monetary Fund. Police officers threw a sheet around her before she was taken into custody.

Braced for two more days of protests around the financial meetings, Ramsey said his officers wouldn't interfere with lawful demonstrations.

"As long as they're peaceful, they'll be OK, but we make a judgment call," he said.

The district's police force received 1,700 reinforcements from around the country.

Many emergency calls to 911 proved false. "It's another protester tactic," Officer Tony O'Leary, a police spokesman, said of the calls. "It's something we're prepared for."

Dan Ueda, 25, said he was nervous as he awaited the signal to lock arms with fellow protesters for a "snake march" through the city.

"We're hoping not to get arrested in the first five minutes," said Ueda of Cliffside Park, N.J.

Said Andrew Pearson, 25, of Chapel Hill, N.C., "I wish more of our movement concentrated on its message than its tactics, like running through the streets."

Many commuters heeded officials' advice to avoid driving into the downtown area and, with only a few exceptions, traffic kept flowing.

In April 2000, police arrested about 1,300 people during similar, but generally peaceful demonstrations.

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On the Net:
Mobilization for Global Justice: http://www.globalizethis.org
Anti-Capitalist Convergence: http://www.abolishthebank.org
District of Columbia police: http://www.mpdc.dc.gov
Jubilee USA: http://www.jubileeusa.org

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A11203-2002Sep27.html