NATO protest takes aim at wars and other issues
Demonstrators and diplomats were divided by a matter of blocks as the NATO summit began Sunday. But they might as well have been on different planets.
At a noontime Grant Park rally and then on a march to the shadow of McCormick Place, where President Barack Obama held court with NATO leaders, thousands of protesters made abundantly clear their disdain for the Western military alliance and all it stood for.
“The people of Afghanistan, Pakistan, Libya, Syria and Iran should not be in the cross hairs of NATO,” said Meredith Aby, of the Anti-War Committee, who traveled from Minnesota. “NATO should not get to decide whether the people of the world die or suffer under occupation. From Afghanistan to the Middle East, we demand justice, we demand peace.”
Condemnation of war was an overarching theme at the rally, but it was far from the only one. Speakers also railed against economic injustice, climate change and bank foreclosures while pushing for green jobs as well as gay rights, immigration rights and Palestinian rights.
“I think we’re seeing a lot of different concerns,” said rally participant Lillian Moats, 65, of Downers Grove, as she looked out over a diverse sea of people including self-described anarchists dressed in black and people made up as clowns. “If we weren’t spending such outrageous amounts on war, we’d have money for human needs. It seems like our country’s priorities are upside down.”
Photo Credit: (Eric Thaye/Reuters)
-
Follow the @bylinebeat team(galleries.apps.chicagotribune.com)
NATO summit protest photos: Sunday, May 20
Photo Credits: (Chicago Tribune)
Men accused of plotting attacks around NATO summit
Three activists who traveled to Chicago for a NATO summit were accused Saturday of manufacturing Molotov cocktails in a plot to attack President Barack Obama’s campaign headquarters, Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s home and other targets.
But defense lawyers shot back that Chicago police had trumped up the charges to frighten peaceful protesters away, telling a judge it was undercover officers known by the activists as “Mo” and “Gloves” who brought the firebombs to a South Side apartment where the men were arrested.
“This is just propaganda to create a climate of fear,” Michael Deutsch said. “My clients came to peacefully protest.”
On the eve of the summit, the dramatic allegations were reminiscent of previous police actions ahead of major political events, when authorities moved quickly to prevent suspected plots but sometimes quietly dropped the charges later.
Prosecutors said the men were self-described anarchists who boasted weeks earlier about the damage they would do in Chicago, including one who declared, “After NATO, the city will never be the same.”-
The suspects are Brian Church, 20, of Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.; Jared Chase, 24, of Keene, N.H.; and, Brent Vincent Betterly, 24, of Oakland Park, Fla.
-
Photo Credit: (Chicago Police Department/AP)
-
Follow the @bylinebeat team
Chicago cops’ new weapon
This week, Occupy Chicago welcomes allies from around the country and the world as they descend on the Windy City to protest the weekend’s NATO summit. The Chicago Police Department is ready: Not only has the city passed strict new protest ordinances, but it’s been stockpiling serious riot gear in anticipation of conflict with the protesters.
According to a report from the Guardian’s Adam Gabbatt, in recent months the Chicago police have spent over $1 million on riot equipment, including purchasing a controversial LRAD (long-range acoustic device) — a sound cannon designed to cause extreme pain to those in its path.
The Chicago Police Department is pitching the LRAD largely as a means to communicate with large crowds:
“This is simply a risk management tool, as the public will receive clear information regarding public safety messages and any orders provided by police,” Chicago Police spokeswoman Melissa Stratton told the Guardian.
Photo Credit: (toronto.ctv.ca)
-
Follow the @bylinebeat teamOWS: Cheap shot on cop in Los Angeles
Police say the officer was hospitalized with a concussion.
Video Source: (YouTube.com)
(Brooklyn, New York) The police helicopter buzzed, swooped, and hovered over the gathering to mark what used to be called Labor Day in the United States until the post-WWI hysteria against anything deemed “red” separated this land from the rest of the world, which still commemorates the struggle for labor rights as May Day. It was only natural that Occupy Wall Street got involved. Observing and tagging along through a blazing hot afternoon, a massive column funneled out from Byrant Park and spilled out onto Broadway—against the wishes of fellow ninety-nine-percenter cops, who were seen beating back a few onto the sidewalks until, in an evitable crush, the swarm could not be contained.
Not that the police had anything to fear. Nearly all of the few thousand or so marchers were peaceful. As this reporter ran through the streets to catch up or keep pace, and at times the column of protesters stopped and started, a gaggle of guitarists strummed the strains of “This Land is Your Land,” an anthem of a bygone era that held resonance for those who attended and gave cover to the myriad causes for which they marched: immigrant rights, jobs that pay living wages, peace activism and other strands that tied together at the northern edge of Union Square in the form of a sculpture whose sign read “All of Our Grievances Are Connected.”
Follow the @bylinebeat team(Brooklyn, New York) The police helicopter buzzed, swooped, and hovered over the gathering to mark what used to be called Labor Day in the United States until the post-WWI hysteria against anything deemed “red” separated this land from the rest of the world, which still commemorates the struggle for labor rights as May Day. It was only natural that Occupy Wall Street got involved. Observing and tagging along through a blazing hot afternoon, a massive column funneled out from Byrant Park and spilled out onto Broadway—against the wishes of fellow ninety-nine-percenter cops, who were seen beating back a few onto the sidewalks until, in an evitable crush, the swarm could not be contained.
Not that the police had anything to fear. Nearly all of the few thousand or so marchers were peaceful. As this reporter ran through the streets to catch up or keep pace, and at times the column of protesters stopped and started, a gaggle of guitarists strummed the strains of “This Land is Your Land,” an anthem of a bygone era that held resonance for those who attended and gave cover to the myriad causes for which they marched: immigrant rights, jobs that pay living wages, peace activism and other strands that tied together at the northern edge of Union Square in the form of a sculpture whose sign read “All of Our Grievances Are Connected.”
Occupy Wall Street - LIVE STREAM
(Source: @TimCast/Twitter)
Occupy Movement - May Day March
Photo Credit: (@weeddude/Twitter)
-
Follow the @bylinebeat team