Protest Reports
DES MOINES -- A new campaign to place the Iraq war in the center of Iowa's presidential caucus races kicked off in Des Moines yesterday. But as often happens, it wasn't so much the protest that made the story as the reaction to it.
"Seasons Of Discontent--A Presidential Occupation Campaign," or SODAPOP as its organizers dubbed it, targeted the campaigns of Rudolph Giuliani and Hillary Clinton, taking over their offices in the Iowa state capital and disrupting both campaigns for several hours before a total of 19 people were arrested.
The "law and order" Giuliani campaign waited only about two hours to call on the suburban Clive, Iowa police to arrest 10 activists. The Clinton campaign appeared more reluctant to remove the protesters, waiting almost eight hours before requesting the Des Moines Police Department remove nine activists. The last two hours of the Clinton occupation generated reactions from young staffers that typically send a candidate's damage control unit into overtime, especially when that candidate is trying to appeal to rock-solid Democratic voters.
"Seasons Of Discontent--A Presidential Occupation Campaign," or SODAPOP as its organizers dubbed it, targeted the campaigns of Rudolph Giuliani and Hillary Clinton, taking over their offices in the Iowa state capital and disrupting both campaigns for several hours before a total of 19 people were arrested.
The "law and order" Giuliani campaign waited only about two hours to call on the suburban Clive, Iowa police to arrest 10 activists. The Clinton campaign appeared more reluctant to remove the protesters, waiting almost eight hours before requesting the Des Moines Police Department remove nine activists. The last two hours of the Clinton occupation generated reactions from young staffers that typically send a candidate's damage control unit into overtime, especially when that candidate is trying to appeal to rock-solid Democratic voters.
CHICAGO -- On March 10, 2006, approximately 100,000 people converged in downtown Chicago under the slogan "We are America." The overwhelmingly immigrant crowd demonstrated for immigrants' rights and protested U.S. House Judiciary Committee Chairman James Sensenbrenner's (R-WI) bill HR 4437, which would "...amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to strengthen enforcement of the immigration laws, to enhance border security, and for other purposes" via means such as increased legal penalties for illegal immigrants and employment eligibility verification programs. A number of politicians and community activists spoke in support of the rally, including prominant Democrats Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley and Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich, pictured in this set.
View the photographs
View the photographs
Protesters stood in front of the Dispatch for the third week in a row, demanding an apology regarding a cartoon of Bill Moss printed two days after he passed away.
Monday August 22 at noon, protesters stood outside of the Dispatch offices chanting "Dispatch. Disgrace" in anger to what they perceived as disrespect to the memory of local social crusader Bill Moss. Two days after he unexpectedly passed away, the Dispatch ran a cartoon caricature of him beating a shoe demanding to get into heaven. There has been an uproar in the Columbus over what was perceived to be a very disrespectful and unfair portrayal in death of a former school board member and community leader.
Barry Edney of the Ordinary People's Movement said "This was payback for Bill Moss's telling the truth. The Dispatch spent thousands trying to get him off of School Board and the decision to run the cartoon involved Mike Curtin, an editor and the cartoonist." When he was asked what he thought about the comment on the radio by Mike Curtin that Bill Moss would have laughed at the cartoon, he said "Yeah but it would be more of a chuckle at their ignorance."
Monday August 22 at noon, protesters stood outside of the Dispatch offices chanting "Dispatch. Disgrace" in anger to what they perceived as disrespect to the memory of local social crusader Bill Moss. Two days after he unexpectedly passed away, the Dispatch ran a cartoon caricature of him beating a shoe demanding to get into heaven. There has been an uproar in the Columbus over what was perceived to be a very disrespectful and unfair portrayal in death of a former school board member and community leader.
Barry Edney of the Ordinary People's Movement said "This was payback for Bill Moss's telling the truth. The Dispatch spent thousands trying to get him off of School Board and the decision to run the cartoon involved Mike Curtin, an editor and the cartoonist." When he was asked what he thought about the comment on the radio by Mike Curtin that Bill Moss would have laughed at the cartoon, he said "Yeah but it would be more of a chuckle at their ignorance."
The “Army of God” (AOG) made a brief appearance in Columbus during June 26 Pride activities. Army of God “Anti-abortion Hero of the Faith” Chuck Spignola and AOG agitator and roving “photo journalist” Jonathan O’Toole accompanied by well-known local “sidewalk abortion counselor” Repent Man, a posse of (mostly) teenage boys wearing “Got AIDS Yet?” tees, and a crew of videographers, attempted to disrupt the annual Pride interfaith service, held in conjunction with Comfest, at the Goodale Park Gazebo. After about a 40 minute tete-a-tete with Columbus Police and Comfest representatives, the group was escorted off the premises. O’Toole and Spignola argued, often heatedly, that the police and Comfest were violating their First Amendment Rights. Police later allowed re-entry at another point, but the group made no attempt to interfere with the service still in progress.
I attended the United for Peace and Justice conference in Chicago, on
June 6-8, as a delegate of a local group Columbus Campaign for Arms
Control ("over 500 participants attended, from 38 states and
approximately 350 organizations," according to UFPJ). I'm happy to
have attended the conference, meeting many organizers and
intellectuals whom I wouldn't have been able to meet otherwise
(networking is always the best part of any conference). More or
less, I got what I bargained for. I chose to go to the UFPJ
conference, rather than the May 17-18 International ANSWER conference
(which about "850 activists and organizers" attended, according to
ANSWER), because I thought that whether or not I attended the ANSWER
conference would make no difference in its outcome. The politics of
ANSWER is clearly determined by its steering committee, whose members
are strongly united by a principle of anti-imperialism. For better
and worse, there wouldn't have been much to be discussed at the
ANSWER conference. UFPJ, a coalition of national and local groups
with divergent perspectives on many issues, is another story.