Protesters' Encounters With Delegates on the Town Turn Ugly

utside a hotel in Times Square, delegates to the Republican National Convention were swarmed by protesters dressed in black and swearing at them. Blocks away, delegates engaged in shoving matches with protesters seeking to spoil their night at the theater. And outside "The Lion King" on 42nd Street, a delegate was punched by a protester who ran by.

Although the organized protests yesterday and Sunday have been largely peaceful, there has been a starkly different tone to smaller incidents in Midtown and elsewhere: angry encounters and planned harassment of convention delegates as they go out on the town.

Sometimes the delegates answer back in toe-to-toe, finger-pointing shouting matches. Other times the police, who are guarding delegate gatherings, have dispersed protesters, who move on to other locations to taunt other delegates.

Since platoons of heavily armed police are guarding the convention site at Madison Square Garden, anarchists and other radicals are carrying out a coordinated plan to strike out at delegates at their hotels, breakfasts, parties, and on the streets.

The incidents are the result of months of planning by opposition groups, who report that they have obtained copies of plans and addresses for delegates' parties, caucuses and other gatherings outside the Garden.

Their efforts are aided by a support network that uses cellphone text messaging, among other means, to stay in communication. The cellphone messages were used extensively in a bike protest on Friday night and during demonstrations in Times Square on Sunday to direct protesters and alert them to where police were assembling.

"CT delegation breakfast everyday @ Maison (7th ave & 53rd) from 7-8:30. Can we get some dissenters?" said one text message yesterday, apparently referring to the Connecticut delegation's plan to gather at a Midtown restaurant. "Maison has outdoor buffet. It would be direct contact with delegates."

One Internet discussion list used by protesters posted an advisory about where some delegate buses would be idling in Midtown every morning. Another message included phone numbers and e-mail addresses for convention officials and advised that delegate hotels would be busiest in the morning and evening.

The harassment of delegates came as organized protests continued to draw thousands of people. The Still We Rise march by advocates for social issues was peaceful, and a Poor People's March, a column several blocks long, proceeded from the United Nations to the Garden yesterday after the police decided to let it go ahead even though organizers had not obtained a permit.

When marchers approached the Garden, a police officer was kicked repeatedly in the head by at least one male demonstrator and was listed in serious condition at an unidentified hospital, the police said. There was no immediate word of an arrest in the assault, the police said. As of 9 p.m., the police said there had been eight protest-related arrests.

The police are bracing for another round of unsanctioned demonstrations today, which protesters have designated a day of "nonviolent civil disobedience and direct action." Among the parties expected to be a target is the Tennessee delegation's gathering at Sotheby's. A group calling itself the Man in Black Bloc plans to protest it, saying it is angered that the convention intends to honor the late country singer Johnny Cash, who typically performed dressed in black.

Yesterday, Jamie Moran, who lives in Brooklyn and describes himself as an anarchist and helps direct the rncnotwelcome.org Web site, was roaming Times Square with a band of protesters shouting at delegates. "These people are in a bubble," he said. "This is absolutely better than standing outside the Garden and shouting to let them know they are not welcome here."

As delegate buses arrived at the Garden yesterday afternoon, protesters who had gathered for a demonstration screamed obscenities and gestured rudely at them. When the police spotted Pete Coors, a Republican candidate for United States Senate from Colorado, walking near the group, they swiftly steered him away.

Clearly, the protesters were not deterred by entreaties by former Mayor Edward I. Koch that New Yorkers be nice and an offer by Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg to give peaceful protesters buttons and shopping discounts.

Adam Chase, 23, who said he came from Michigan for the protests, said that while he believed demonstrators should not be violent, "I think it is quite unfair for the R.N.C. and the delegates to tell us we should not be telling them we think they are exploiting the fears of the people."

Mindful that delegates are targets, police officers guard their hotels and ride aboard their chartered buses around town, and several receive police escorts. Numerous officers are assigned to many events outside the Garden.

"New York City is a fortress, and I love it," Joseph Kyrillos, the New Jersey state Republican chairman, said yesterday at a delegate breakfast. "We need to thank the New York police for all the protection."

Leonardo Alcivar, a spokesman for the convention, said officials recommended that delegates not respond to heckling and taunts, which he said have been "few and far between."

Still, he said, "Our delegates understand the old adage, do unto others as they do unto you."

The tensest encounters between delegates and protesters so far occurred Sunday evening when large groups of demonstrators moved through the theater district while delegates were attending shows under arrangements prepared by convention planners. Several protesters were arrested for trying to block hotel and theater entrances, and face-to-face standoffs abounded.

Outside "Bombay Dreams" demonstrators shouted at and videotaped people standing outside for intermission.

At "Aida," a group of protesters unfurled a banner and hurled invective at delegates leaving the show. Some looked nervous, but a few shouted back, "You're sick, sick."

Delegates lined up to see "Phantom of the Opera" ended up in a sing-song, tit-for-tat with protesters. One protester shouted, "The phantom dies at the end."

Flora Rohrs, a delegate from Colorado, burst into song, "This is my country," with bits of "God Bless America" thrown in. She said, "What is going on here is we are still going to get George Bush re-elected."

"A person came by and used an explicative and stuck his finger in our face," said Deb Etcheson, an alternate delegate from Iowa. "But I don't blame that on New Yorkers. I just love this city."

Some delegates seemed perplexed, even hurt, not because they did not expect protesters to be here, but because they did not expect them to get personal. "They were using foul language, getting real ugly," said Kim Kirkwood, a delegate from Amarillo, Tex. Her husband, Jim, said he could not understand it. "I have friends who are Democrats in Texas, and we talk about things, agree to disagree."

Reporting for this article was contributed by Anthony Ramirez, Marc Santora, Mary Spicuzza and Jennifer Steinhauer.

Oh, but it's not without it's subtleties, as you can see:

Outside a hotel in Times Square, delegates to the Republican National Convention were swarmed by protesters dressed in black and swearing at them.

</font color>Notice the passive voice in this sentence. The delegates are the subject.

Blocks away, delegates engaged in shoving matches with protesters seeking to spoil their night at the theater.

</font color> It's those naughty delegates doing all the action again!

And outside "The Lion King" on 42nd Street, a delegate was punched by a protester who ran by.</font color>

That dumb delegate used his face and/or body to attack that poor protestor's fist!

the National Lawyers Guild says 20 were arrested today, and the total so far 600.

http://nyc.indymedia.org/

EVERYBODY COME OUT FOR THIS PARTY

DETAILS: Tuesday, August 31, 2004, 6 pm
1. Register your cellphone at www.txtmob.com
2. Join the a31streetparty group.
3. Be at midtown at 5:45 PM and watch your phone!

BRING confetti costumes instruments drums friends and a whole lotta attitude!

Location: Unspecified, will be relayed to activists via text messaging for cell phones at txtmob.com (group name on txtmob is a31streetparty) and it will also be available via the voice mail at 212 561 0746 and we will post it on the web at counter convention. Moving.

Bring what you want to see take place at the street party (ie, soccer balls, food, music, whatever you can think of).

The theme of this party is celebration of our solidarity as activists, asserting the idea that the streets of Manhattan are public domain, and transforming the space around us to reflect our vision of a better world.

While we will not be inviting arrest and will do our best to maneuver around it, we will proceed with the awareness that that 31st is a day of direct action and police may consider the street party a form of direct action. Those who wish to participate but choose to not risk arrest will be accommodated to the best of the abilities of the participating groups and individuals. In following, we ask that the environment of the street party remain chemical and alcohol free.

We are committed to recognizing that people of color, trans folks, undocumented people, and people with disabilities are targeted disproportionately and more severely by the police and court systems. We ask that people with privilege step up to deal with police and law enforcement officials and that people with less privilege step up to speak to the media.

We are a coalition of musicians, artists, and activists who are calling for a moving street party on the evening of Aug 31, a day of direct action against the RNC. We intend to stay in locations until we come to consensus as a group to move to a new location or until we feel compelled by the situation to move. We will use navigators and bike scouts to help direct the group with regard to demands from law enforcement and requests from other groups performing actions in the area. We will disperse from party locations following our navigators and the music in all directions available, forming smaller street parties which will then move to the next location.

Decisions will be made by the group using a three-quarters consensus model: meaning that sometimes we will move forward, despite 25% blocks. However, the actual stopping points will be designated by a committee of roughly ten organizers/navigators who are representatives of the various affinity groups taking part in the action. This is to ensure that fewer police will be involved in knowing what we're doing and to raise our unpredictability factor while providing representation for as many groups partaking as possible.

We ask that any direct action that groups/individuals decide to take within the street party is done with careful consideration of its implications upon the whole group. And, that any action is taken in a space designated for such action after notifying the navigators. This will help the navigators coordinate the group activities and provide as much protection as possible for those who can not be involved in other actions. It will also allow navigators to relate the current situation as described by the scouts to those intending to perform an action thereby ensuring that the action is performed with as much security as possible.

We are committed to supporting actions that will be taking place throughout the city at the same time. And, hope to be able to lend our festivities and energy to raise the spirits of and provide support for those groups involved in other actions.

One additional possibility for an after party is that the street party could, as other actions wind down if they do without all being rounded up, collect those remaining into an even larger street party and perhaps move down towards 1 police plaza to show solidarity with the legal support who will be there. In getting back downtown, depending on how tired people are, we might use a subway and have a subway party on our way downtown. Again, this could all be worked out by navigators/consensus of people still out on the streets.

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