Pittsburgh braces for more clashes at G-20 summit
Saturday, 26 September 2009
PITTSBURGH, Sept 25(AP): Authorities braced for scattered protests at dozens of businesses and organizations Friday, one day after riot police turned back hundreds of demonstrators on the first day of the Group of 20 summit, arresting nearly 70 people.
Police, in an overwhelming show of force, declared a Thursday afternoon march illegal almost as soon as it began, firing rubber bullets and canisters of pepper spray and smoke after small bands of anarchists responded to calls to disperse by rolling huge metal trash bins, throwing rocks and breaking windows.
Mayor Luke Ravenstahl commended police for their “swift decisions to send a message to the anarchists that we will not tolerate unlawful behavior,” adding there was minimal property damage as a result.
According to Pittsburgh police, 24 people were arrested during the day and 42 more were arrested overnight in the city’s Oakland section, where protesters and students thronged near the University of Pittsburgh. Police said six people were treated for injuries and other medical problems, including heat exhaustion and reaction to pepper spray; two people were taken to hospitals, but details weren’t available.
Protesters complained about the city’s response, saying their rights were trampled and that violence would not have broken out if police had allowed the marchers their say.
Jesse Ericson of the Pittsburgh G-20 Resistance Project, an umbrella organization of protest groups, condemned the city for a “bumbling and violent police action.”
The G-20 Resistance Project has encouraged “affinity groups” to protest Friday morning at companies that it says represent greed, exploitation, warfare and other social ills, with potential targets including banks, Starbucks, McDonald’s, grocery stores and a Marine Corps recruiting center.
“We’ll continue to make sure our neighborhoods are safe,” he said.
Thursday afternoon’s march turned chaotic at just about the time President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama arrived for a meeting with leaders of the world’s major economies.
The clashes began after hundreds of protesters, many decrying capitalism, tried to march from an outlying neighborhood toward the convention center where the summit is being held.
The protesters clogged streets, banged on drums and chanted “Ain’t no power like the power of the people, ‘cause the power of the people don’t stop.”
The marchers included small groups of self-described anarchists, some wearing dark clothes, ski masks and bandanas and carrying black flags. Others wore helmets and safety goggles.
Police, in an overwhelming show of force, declared a Thursday afternoon march illegal almost as soon as it began, firing rubber bullets and canisters of pepper spray and smoke after small bands of anarchists responded to calls to disperse by rolling huge metal trash bins, throwing rocks and breaking windows.
Mayor Luke Ravenstahl commended police for their “swift decisions to send a message to the anarchists that we will not tolerate unlawful behavior,” adding there was minimal property damage as a result.
According to Pittsburgh police, 24 people were arrested during the day and 42 more were arrested overnight in the city’s Oakland section, where protesters and students thronged near the University of Pittsburgh. Police said six people were treated for injuries and other medical problems, including heat exhaustion and reaction to pepper spray; two people were taken to hospitals, but details weren’t available.
Protesters complained about the city’s response, saying their rights were trampled and that violence would not have broken out if police had allowed the marchers their say.
Jesse Ericson of the Pittsburgh G-20 Resistance Project, an umbrella organization of protest groups, condemned the city for a “bumbling and violent police action.”
The G-20 Resistance Project has encouraged “affinity groups” to protest Friday morning at companies that it says represent greed, exploitation, warfare and other social ills, with potential targets including banks, Starbucks, McDonald’s, grocery stores and a Marine Corps recruiting center.
“We’ll continue to make sure our neighborhoods are safe,” he said.
Thursday afternoon’s march turned chaotic at just about the time President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama arrived for a meeting with leaders of the world’s major economies.
The clashes began after hundreds of protesters, many decrying capitalism, tried to march from an outlying neighborhood toward the convention center where the summit is being held.
The protesters clogged streets, banged on drums and chanted “Ain’t no power like the power of the people, ‘cause the power of the people don’t stop.”
The marchers included small groups of self-described anarchists, some wearing dark clothes, ski masks and bandanas and carrying black flags. Others wore helmets and safety goggles.