Posted on 01/09/2002 9:00:22 AM PST by ThreeYearLurker
Portland, OR, Jan. 9 - Someone apparently duped 500 chanting protesters into believing that President Bush had canceled his Saturday visit to a Northeast Portland job training center.
The announcement, made over a bullhorn, prompted cheers and caused nearly everyone in the crowd to wander away happily, thinking that their presence had put a stop to the president's visit.
They were wrong.
Ten minutes later, the president's limousine came into sight for his visit to the job center on Northeast Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. The 30 protesters remaining on the police line were unable to marshal much more than a few dispirited chants against a backdrop of barking dogs.
The protest was over before Bush arrived, derailing a tense and potentially violent confrontation with police.
In the few days since, no one has taken responsibility for the misinformation. Neither the Portland Police Bureau nor the Portland Peaceful Response Coalition, one of the primary protest groups there, knew whether the information was the result of subversion or a misunderstanding.
"We don't know, and I don't think we'll ever know," said David Zundel, a spokesman for the coalition of protesters.
"It smells like a disinformation campaign," said Kathleen Juergens, who announced the incorrect information over the bullhorn after it was reported to her. She said she had no solid evidence other than her belief that law enforcement agencies are capable of such disinformation.
A photographer, however, reported hearing a voice over a police radio frequency saying: "The misinformation is working. They're leaving."
A police spokesman said the bureau would look into possible police involvement in the incident.
In the end, however, Zundel said the coalition doesn't care much about assigning blame.
Protest follows pattern The rally started at 11 a.m. Saturday at Irving Park, about four blocks from the Northeast One Stop Career Center, 3034 N.E. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., which Bush was scheduled to visit. About 500 marchers, under close police scrutiny, walked from the park to MLK Boulevard and then south to a point about two blocks from the site of the visit.
There the familiar pattern of Portland protests kicked in - a blend of performance art, politics and street theater. The crowd included several political factions drawing attention to a range of issues, among them energy policies, environmental policies, labor issues, justice issues, civil rights and trade.
Most, however, seemed interested in protesting the war in Afghanistan. There were a few anarchists, including a black-clad band that set its political ideology aside long enough to perform in sync with one another.
There were chants, songs, dance, political slogans and a few heated shouts at police, who remained silent. Most encounters with police fell within the law.
At one point, a smiling guy with a banjo worked his way into the crowd and started playing happy banjo music. He found rhythm in formless political chants and turned them into cheery, melodic folks songs.
Over her bullhorn, Juergens led the crowd in chants. She addressed the crowd as "my dear comrades" and kept the crowd updated on Bush's progress. At 1:29 p.m., she announced that Bush had arrived in Portland and that the crowd should stay "until he gets his rotten little butt here."
Two minutes later, however, an organizer for the coalition heard over her walkie-talkie that "the news" was reporting that Bush had canceled the stop. She told Ray Ludwig, another organizer; he whispered the report to Juergens, who made the announcement to the crowd over her bullhorn. The crowd cheered, and a jubilant Juergens encouraged protesters to make their way to Parkrose High School, Bush's next stop.
Confusion or deception?
Within 10 minutes, most of the crowd had drifted away. But then the flashing lights of Bush's motorcade came into view two blocks south.
Zundel said the coalition isn't sure where the report came from. Only a few walkie-talkies were in use by the group, perhaps three but maybe one or two more, Ludwig said. They were devices that anyone could buy at an electronics store, which means anyone could have broadcast over the channel that protesters were using.
The woman who first heard the report said it was a male voice. Zundel said he hadn't yet spoken with every protester assigned a walkie-talkie. It could have been a coalition member who misunderstood a news report, Zundel said, or it could have been deception.
Portland police and leftist protesters have viewed each other with suspicion in recent years. Twenty protesters were arrested in a 2000 May Day march, but last year's march went off without a hitch. Activists accused the police of spying on them but then praised the city for not helping the FBI interview Middle Eastern immigrants during the recent terrorism investigation.
Zundel said he didn't think Saturday's event would disrupt the relationship between Portland police and leftist groups.
"It's not like we're buddies," he said. "But we're not opponents, either. If we do something big like we did on Saturday, we let them know. Police like to know what's going on, so we tell them what we're doing so we don't get in each other's way."
Jim Redden contributed to this report.
Surely that DUposter jests...
Why should anyone's 'head roll' just for saying like 'the pres has called it off' over a walkie talkie, in conversation with someone else? That's insane. The protesters weren't told anything- they just overheard it, because they were being nosey. What happened was the protestors were listening to police communications and got burned.
I can picture the investigation:
Investigator: "Did anyone use the radio today?"
All the police officers and agents raise their hands. Investigator: "OK. Did any of you say that the event was called off?"
One guy raises his hand.
Investigator: "OK... Did you know the protesters were listening?"
Cop: "I didn't know, but I suspected they would."
Investigator: "Hmmm. So you knew they might be listening and might assume that Bush wasn't coming?"
Cop: "Yeah, but I really didn't think anyone would be that stupid, not even those people."
Investigator: "Don't you know that what you did was cruelty to dumb animals?"
Cop: "It was?"
Investigator: "Yes. You did horrendous damage to their self-esteem."
Cop: "Self-esteem?"
Investigator: "Next time, just lob some tear gas on them- that's the proper way to make them disperse, and it gives their egos a self-righteous boost. Being fooled is so degrading."
Cop: "Well, I can't take it back, now. Am I going to be put on disciplinary leave or what?"
Investigator: "Not exactly, but you have been very, very bad. We're going to give you a time out in true liberal fashion, and you'll get no sprinkles on your donuts for the next week."
Please pass this message on!
Attached is a list of contact information for U.S. based companies doing business in Indonesia, who need to be pressured to do something about the situation in East Timor. This is based on the list of 7 companies so helpfully provided by the Oregonian last week. It is definitely NOT a complete list of all the U.S. corporations who are in Indonesia, nor an exhaustive list of products, activities, etc., just all I've been able to find out so far with some web-searching and a few phone calls. At least it's a good place to start.
If anybody would like some sample verbage to use, Kathleen also provided a sample letter I can forward to you upon request.
--Peace and Justice Works
About 20 local activists were at the port to protest Italian police handling of demonstrations last month at the Group of Eight summit in Genoa.
"We're planning to stay as long as it takes that ship to turn around," said Kathleen Juergens, one of the activists.
The ship is managed by Italia Di Navigazione.
One truck driver who was trying to pick up a shipment of clothing at the dock, but couldn't because workers refused to load his truck, was upset with the protest.
"We all get paid by the load," said David Wende of Titan Freight Systems.
"I don't understand the politics involved," he added.
Dozens of activists, including Sherman Sparks, 23, of Salem, and Morgan Hager, 20, of Portland, say they were physically and mentally abused by police in Genoa after being arrested at the summit protests.
Could've simplified it by just saying an assortment of socialist-anarchists and those who just plan hate Bush.
Well it's certain that environmentalists would believe "the sky is falling"!
A police officer who lies over a walkie talkie should be fired but a president who lies under oath has commited no offense????
Doc
What happened was the protestors were listening to police communications and got burned.
Well, we don't even know that it was the police communicating, do we? And we know it wasn't a Freeper, none of us are THAT modest. I suspect that a person who knows Kathleen personally (and doesn't like her) is responsible for this magnificent head-fake. He certainly knew all the right buttons to push, didn't he? Imagine thinking that a group of 500 is going to scare off any president, let alone this one. She WANTED to believe that and it was put to her in just the right way, so that she DID believe it. Masterful.
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