WTO conflict
Continued from Page 1
ing, rain beneath the vandalized
facade of NikeTown Seattle, a
group including more than 50 Eu
gene residents took over the major
intersection of 6th Avenue and
Pike Street, a mere block from the
convention center. Their intent
was to block access to the confer
ence and make a statement by
their refusal to be moved, even as
police were unleashing clouds of
teargas and rubber bullets on pro
testers less than a block away.
“The WTO is up to no good,”
said Michael Carrigan of Eugene
PeaceWorks. “The more we delay
it, the more we put obstacles in
their way, the better we’re going
to be. Nothing good will come out
of this conference, so if we can
i { Our number one goal is
non-violence ... We’re
making sure we get our
point across without anyone
getting hurt.
Jeremy Moss J J
Olympia, Wash, resident
disrupt it, great.”
In the very center of the inter
section sat a group of hard core
protesters, willing to risk arrest.
Many wore goggles and gas masks
to protect themselves from police
tear gas and pepper spray. Sur
rounding them was a human wall
of “support people” including
several with medical training to
provide first aid to anyone injured
in conflicts with police.
“The things that gets me is the
spirit of it,” said Charles Gray of
Eugene Alliance For Democracy.
“I think that Eugene has had a
long tradition — at least since the
Vietnam War — of a whole lot of
activism.”
As the day wore on, more pro
testers from all walks of life filled
the intersection. They carried
banners, wore costumes and
chanted, sang and beat drums in
protest of the WTO. A wall of po
lice in riot gear held a boundary
that prevented the protesters from
advancing further toward the con
ference center. This same scene
was played out in other intersec
tions throughout the commercial
core of downtown Seattle.
The overwhelming majority of
protesters had come to stage non
violent acts of civil disobedience.
“Our number one goal is non
violence,” said Jeremy Moss, an
Olympia resident who became a
spokesman for many of the peo
ple camped on the street. “This is
all about civil disobedience; it’s
all about Martin Luther King and
Henry David Thoreau. We’re
making sure we get our point
across without anyone getting
hurt.”
It was obvious, however, that
not all protesters shared these
sentiments as buildings and store
fronts in the city’s posh commer
cial district incurred some form of
vandalism or graffiti. Slogans de
faming the WTO and greed in
general were painted on doors
and walls, and windows were
smashed and dumpsters over
turned.
Such riotous acts were met
with the disapproval of the mass
es. As three men were kicking the
logo letters off the roof of the en
trance to NikeTown, the crowd
gathered on the street below be
gan chanting “peaceful protest”
and “shame on you” until the
men stopped.
Caught in a cloud of teargas released by Seattle police, a protester struggles to catch his breath and tlee the area.
Scott Barnett Emerald
When the darkness of evening
approached, Mayor Paul Schell
held an impromptu press confer
ence to impose a curfew from 7
p.m. to dawn Wednesday for
most of the downtown area. Po
lice, who had made at least 19 ar
rests throughout the day, began
pushing the crowds out of the
now-restricted area and out of
downtown. Those with bullhorns
in the crowd urged their fellow
protesters to return the following
day claiming their work was yet
unfinished as the conference runs
until Friday.
A state of emergency in Seattle
and King County was also de
clared by Gov. Gary Locke. He
called upon two National Guard
task forces to be on duty this after
noon to assist Seattle police.
President Clinton is scheduled
(( This [protest], I think, is
going to be the beginning of
a change in trade policy.
Peter DeFazio
U.S. representative
to address the WTO conference
today, which will necessarily ex
tend the perimeter police must
protect around the convention
center.
The march
More than 100 Eugene resi
dents gathered on the steps of the
Opera House at the Seattle Center
around noon in preparation of the
officially sanctioned AFL-CIO
march that would begin in a half
hour. They rehearsed chants and
songs, reviewed the march route
and prepared to join the miles
long procession slated for 12:30
p.m. Lining up behind a 20-foot
blue banner that read, “Eugene
Says No to the WTO,” many in
the group expressed excitement
for their strong show of solidarity.
“I think it’s an incredible
chance for people coming togeth
er and working against oppres
sion,” said University instructor
Nadia Telsey. “I came here be
cause I have to do something.”
Junior Spanish major Lesley
Marcus was enthusiastic about
the merging of so many differing
groups for a single event.
“The amazing thing is that the
labor movement, the environmen
tal movement, the human rights
movement have completely com
bined forces to fight the WTO,”
she said.
Aaron Grieser, part of a group
of 16 LCC students donning or
ange head and arm bands and
identifying themselves as PWK
WUAADWI, or People Who
Know What’s Up and Ain’t
Down With It, said it’s the way
the WTO is structured that in
spired his group to make the trip
north.
“We started a political discus
sion group this summer and stud
ied WTO issues,” he said. “We
came up here to make a differ
ence.”
Rebecca Fink, sophomore hu
manities major, traveled to Seattle
on a bus of 40 from Eugene,
though they could only stay for
Tuesday’s events because of work
or school.
“The WTO is a really big issue
in the community,” she said. “I
think the Eugene community it
self is very aware and conscious.”
The Eugene group joined union
workers from around the country
as the procession made its way
from the Seattle Center to the
heart of downtown. There they
met up with other protesters who
had been occupying intersections
all day.
The city streets were filled with
people as the protest reached its
zenith about mid afternoon.
“Five years ago, when I’d say to
people that this WTO is danger
ous, their eyes would cross or
they’d say, ‘You’re some kind of
wacko protectionist,”’ said U.S.
Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Eugene,
who broke from the march to at
tend a meeting related to the con
ference.
“Now people realize that it’s a
threat to the environment, it’s a
threat to our health, the food sup
Scott Barnett Emerald
Above: Seattle resident Megan Young symbolically burns a dollar bill In protest of the
WTO conference. Other forms of protest included singing and chanting, and some people -
even resorted to vandalism, which was ended after disagreement from the masses.
Below: Face offs such as this one were a common sight in downtown Seattle Tuesday.
Protesters pushed the limits of the police department in its containment efforts.
ply, to working people and hu
man rights. It’s just great to have
so many people come together on
these issues.
“We’ve given an extraordinary
authority to a group of un-elected
trade bureaucrats who are ma
__ ", ? |
nipulated behind the scenes by
the largest multinational corpora
tions in the world, and this is a
great day.
This [protest], I think, is going
to be a beginning of a change in
trade policy.”