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I attended the J20 inauguration protests in Washington DC. It was cold as hell that day. The sidewalks were filled with that black stuff that really isn’t snow but isn’t water either. Washington DC was a police state and made no attempts to conceal this.
People we met on the street told us we might not even get in to the parade. Apparently several protestors had already been denied. We had to wait in line at a military checkpoint to get in. We were lucky we only waited like half an hour. Some people I talked to later said they waited as long as three hours. It was funny because both the Bush-supporters and the demonstrators all had to wait in the same line to get in. Most of them looked down their noses at you like you were dripping with slime. Our line was mostly Bushhites and it made me worried that we would be the minority at the parade. The checkpoint was just like the airport except the people checking you are armed to the teeth and in space age police uniforms. You had to empty your pockets and get scanned by a metal detector. You couldn’t even bring food. They were apprehensive about sort of tomato throwing incident. Some people had their signs taken away at the checkpoint. God bless America.
On admittance we walked a few feet and immediately were greeted by yellow tape and riot police informing us that if we wanted to “express our opinion” we were confined to a “Free Speech Zone.” This separated us from the exquisite Bush supporters and of course from the view of the media. I loathe the very idea of Free Speech Zones. These have been popping up at a lot of protests lately and need to be contested. The world is my free speech zone. We moved further down the line and eventually found a spot along the barricades.
President Bush started his speech soon after. That crowd on TV you saw hooting and hollering for the president was bused in. The buses left shortly after the speech ended, from the front of the Whitehouse. Handpicked to make the president appear adored. There was no way any demonstrator could get near him. The speech was full of Orwellian lies. The whole thing was about conquering tyranny, ending racism and fighting slavery (slavery?). He said freedom would be spread to the far corners of the Earth. This from the most tyrannical leader of my generation. Depending on your interpretation the speech was either really rhetorical or really apocalyptic. Maybe he went on a trivial rant about freedom and patriotism reminiscent of high school history class? Or maybe he was serious? Did I witness the unfolding of his plan for a global crusade? Time will tell.
We stood there forever waiting on the parade. It was delayed over and over. Some anarchists courageously tried to tear down a barricade on 14th and Pennsylvania. I think this was one of the reasons it took so long to start. The commentator kept coming on the PA and saying the most ridiculous things. The cops kept moving around. Various squads would move through acting important. Everybody was freezing their asses off.
Finally the fucking parade started. Hordes of police cruisers and SUVs shot down the street. Following them various military units marched down single file. The entire parade was the military, the police, and then the politicians circa Triumph of the Will. They went in order: Bill Clinton, Trent Lott, Tom Delay...When they got to my section they all received a chorus of boos, middle fingers, and obscenities. The cars all sped up to avoid us. Finally the president was announced. About ten black SUVs followed by twenty secret service guys on foot rushed through. Huddled in the middle was a black limo with all tinted windows. On the side read “George W. Bush.” The crowd erupted in a cacophony of hatred. I yelled every foul term I could conjure. “Murderer” Fascist” “Corporate Sponsored Dictator” “Mother Fucker.” One group turned their back on him. Dickhead Cheney followed and was greeted similarly. The spectacle of military might ensued and we got bored with this celebration of American Militarism and left.
We ended up falling upon the most exciting spot in DC, the Anarchist march. The anarchists clearly had control of the street and we all enjoyed the lawless environment. They were in the process of disrupting a center for the international media. We all hung out in the streets socializing, chanting, and singing songs. A couple people were arrested and we surrounded the scene. We did a rendition of “Yellow Submarine.” “We all live in a military state, a military state, a military state.” People were getting arrested and maced for nothing. It is ridiculous. Police oppression at its most blatant. The riot police were dispersed and some kids walked beside them hands in the air in a Nazi salute, mocking them. It was hilarious. The police didn’t even do anything to stop them. Maybe they thought they were on their side or something.
That was it for my day. Despite the police and authoritarian climate I had a really good time. There was a real sense of unity and solidarity amongst the demonstrators. I think the demonstrations were effective as long as the people who met utilize their experience to coordinate activities in the future. Their were actually far more demonstrators than Bush supporters. Washington DC was just one of over twenty cities that protested the policies of the Bush Administration on Inauguration day. Information about these protests is available at infoshop.org and dc.indymedia.org. The Bush Administration’s agenda for the next four years is clear. The government is now completely under right wing control. What are we gonna do about it? Resistance is necessary.
People we met on the street told us we might not even get in to the parade. Apparently several protestors had already been denied. We had to wait in line at a military checkpoint to get in. We were lucky we only waited like half an hour. Some people I talked to later said they waited as long as three hours. It was funny because both the Bush-supporters and the demonstrators all had to wait in the same line to get in. Most of them looked down their noses at you like you were dripping with slime. Our line was mostly Bushhites and it made me worried that we would be the minority at the parade. The checkpoint was just like the airport except the people checking you are armed to the teeth and in space age police uniforms. You had to empty your pockets and get scanned by a metal detector. You couldn’t even bring food. They were apprehensive about sort of tomato throwing incident. Some people had their signs taken away at the checkpoint. God bless America.
On admittance we walked a few feet and immediately were greeted by yellow tape and riot police informing us that if we wanted to “express our opinion” we were confined to a “Free Speech Zone.” This separated us from the exquisite Bush supporters and of course from the view of the media. I loathe the very idea of Free Speech Zones. These have been popping up at a lot of protests lately and need to be contested. The world is my free speech zone. We moved further down the line and eventually found a spot along the barricades.
President Bush started his speech soon after. That crowd on TV you saw hooting and hollering for the president was bused in. The buses left shortly after the speech ended, from the front of the Whitehouse. Handpicked to make the president appear adored. There was no way any demonstrator could get near him. The speech was full of Orwellian lies. The whole thing was about conquering tyranny, ending racism and fighting slavery (slavery?). He said freedom would be spread to the far corners of the Earth. This from the most tyrannical leader of my generation. Depending on your interpretation the speech was either really rhetorical or really apocalyptic. Maybe he went on a trivial rant about freedom and patriotism reminiscent of high school history class? Or maybe he was serious? Did I witness the unfolding of his plan for a global crusade? Time will tell.
We stood there forever waiting on the parade. It was delayed over and over. Some anarchists courageously tried to tear down a barricade on 14th and Pennsylvania. I think this was one of the reasons it took so long to start. The commentator kept coming on the PA and saying the most ridiculous things. The cops kept moving around. Various squads would move through acting important. Everybody was freezing their asses off.
Finally the fucking parade started. Hordes of police cruisers and SUVs shot down the street. Following them various military units marched down single file. The entire parade was the military, the police, and then the politicians circa Triumph of the Will. They went in order: Bill Clinton, Trent Lott, Tom Delay...When they got to my section they all received a chorus of boos, middle fingers, and obscenities. The cars all sped up to avoid us. Finally the president was announced. About ten black SUVs followed by twenty secret service guys on foot rushed through. Huddled in the middle was a black limo with all tinted windows. On the side read “George W. Bush.” The crowd erupted in a cacophony of hatred. I yelled every foul term I could conjure. “Murderer” Fascist” “Corporate Sponsored Dictator” “Mother Fucker.” One group turned their back on him. Dickhead Cheney followed and was greeted similarly. The spectacle of military might ensued and we got bored with this celebration of American Militarism and left.
We ended up falling upon the most exciting spot in DC, the Anarchist march. The anarchists clearly had control of the street and we all enjoyed the lawless environment. They were in the process of disrupting a center for the international media. We all hung out in the streets socializing, chanting, and singing songs. A couple people were arrested and we surrounded the scene. We did a rendition of “Yellow Submarine.” “We all live in a military state, a military state, a military state.” People were getting arrested and maced for nothing. It is ridiculous. Police oppression at its most blatant. The riot police were dispersed and some kids walked beside them hands in the air in a Nazi salute, mocking them. It was hilarious. The police didn’t even do anything to stop them. Maybe they thought they were on their side or something.
That was it for my day. Despite the police and authoritarian climate I had a really good time. There was a real sense of unity and solidarity amongst the demonstrators. I think the demonstrations were effective as long as the people who met utilize their experience to coordinate activities in the future. Their were actually far more demonstrators than Bush supporters. Washington DC was just one of over twenty cities that protested the policies of the Bush Administration on Inauguration day. Information about these protests is available at infoshop.org and dc.indymedia.org. The Bush Administration’s agenda for the next four years is clear. The government is now completely under right wing control. What are we gonna do about it? Resistance is necessary.