Anarchists and others to disrupt Republican convention

BY DARYL KHAN
Staff Writer

August 2, 2004, 8:12 PM EDT


Bickering between the city and protesters over rally points and metal pens has dominated the discussion of the coming wave of anti-Republican National Convention protests, but other protests are planned that are well beyond the reach of permits, designated routes, schedules and spokesmen.

A group of anarchists working as a loose collective has been organizing a freewheeling day of civil disobedience and guerrilla street tactics to disrupt the convention. The anarchists said they need to use direct action -- not staid, staged protests -- to spread their message that government is bad because people know what is better for them then anyone else.

"It's more immediate, it's more visceral, it has a direct impact on the people," said Jaime Moran, 30, an anarchist active with the organization RNCnotwelcome.org.

Anarchists embrace direct action -- protests intended to disrupt authority -- as opposed to traditional forms of political activity like petitions and voting. For them, going to a march sanctioned by police would be the equivalent of voting for John Kerry -- not good enough.

"I think that for an awful lot of people who are angry about what's going on, there's something very disempowering about going to a big march," said Eric Laursen, 44. "Picking up a sign, marching down a city street surrounded by a phalanx of cops, sitting in a cage where you're not allowed to interact with people in the streets, and then going to a rally in some far flung corner like the West Side Highway -- it makes you feel like you have no impact."

United for Peace and Justice, a coalition of anti-war groups, recently agreed to Police Department terms for their massive rally after extended and often contentious negotiations.

Asked how they plan to combat unplanned disruptions, police officials would say only that they will enforce the law at the convention.

Anarchists from 20 states have met in apartments, coffee shops, Internet cafes, an art loft in Brooklyn and at St. Mark's Church in the East Village. Some anarchists have speculated that the 2004 Republican National Convention has inspired the largest meeting of modern anarchists in one place.

"It's like a conference for us," Flanigan said. "It has given us all a chance to exchange ideas, talk about tactics."

The anarchists say they want to capitalize on the visibility of the convention to articulate their political principles, which they feel is often obscured by unfair caricatures.

"The word has a black eye," said Moran, a soft-spoken web designer. "In popular culture, it's represented as mischief and mayhem and blowing things up."

What they're actually planning are a wide range of protests, from street carnivals to sit-ins and barricades of RNC sponsors and companies tied to war. A group called the A31 Coalition is billing Aug. 31 as a day dedicated to direct action.

The events range from the whimsical, dressing up in stereotypical stuffy outfits of khakis and button- down shirts and taking to the streets, to the serious, attempting to blockade Madison Square Garden and prevent Republican delegates from entering the convention and siphoning off the massive anti-RNC march and flooding in to Central Park.

"This is one mobilization where we could draw people who aren't activists but are really angry about what's going on and get them out in the streets," Moran said.

An anarchist group's pamphlet promises that anarchists will, "occupy the areas around buildings of war profiteers and the corporations that have hijacked our air, water, land, pensions and voice."

"You have to put your body on the machinery," said Laursen, who joined other students who took over a Columbia campus building during Apartheid protests in the 1980s. "You have to go there yourself and say you are going to stop this from going on. This opens up a whole new agenda of things."

The philosophy of anarchy is tightly wed to direct action as a means of political expression. Anarchy is a philosophy deeply rooted in a political tradition dating to the ancient Greeks. The word itself is from Greek, meaning "lack of a ruler."

"What I hope happens," Laursen said, "is that, decades from now, people will look back and say this is where protest politics really turned in to a movement to create a really different type of society."

 

coolness.

 

Why the hell are they disrupting the RNC?, i don't remember any activists disrupting the DNC. This is why i hope there are counter-protestors to balance it out. Most of those delgates aren't profiting from the war at all, they are just there supporting the party. Remember Kerry and his ilk are just as responisble for the Iraq war as any republican who voted for it is.

 

people hate Bush and he is the sitting republican president, makes sense to me.


I'm pissed that they are having this in NY, they don't need an extra reason to be targeted.

Have it in Texas, where people might actually like Bush.

 

NYC's past two mayors have been republicans, so Bush probably has alot of support. Think about how much money all these delegates will spend on goods and services while in NYC. Nothing but good can come out it.

 

yea like another terrorist attack.....


I really don't think NY needs a boost in its economy, especially not like other areas of the country.

I think Bush is a fool to have th convention there, every protestor is the eastern US is going to be there. He'd best stick to the rural areas with high numbers of fundamentalist Christians..

 

thats what they said about the DNC, but as it turned out, the only people in the city were the delegates. nobody else was there, the city was vacant except for the delegates. thats not good for anything. and if the same thing happens in NYC, that won't be good either. so we'll see how it turns out.

 

My point is, why the hell would you put this in NYC right now....there will be more protestors than any other place would have, its one of the most densely populated areas in the country, it has already been hit by terrorists, and threatened many more times.

I agree, its stupid to disrupt the security process, but put it somewhere more easy to secure.

Fitzy is right, Manhatttan is going to be shut down, not raking in money.

 

I was watching a daily show special, and apparently a dominatrix and all strip clubs in manhatten are booked for the week of the RNC.........

 

I think they purposely want to get attacked so they can enact some more patriot acts and gain more control over the masses....not like they already do

 

Thats hilarious, the conservative republican party rolls into manhattan, scores some coke, and heads straight for the strippers and dominatrix,s

 

Brokenwingz, if they GOP had such control over the masses, why is Kerry ahead in the polls?

 

here's the opinion of a real new york girl who is a friend of mine, works in rockefeller center



gjb66: out of curioslity, i was discussing this...are people in new york pissed off that the republican convention is going to be in manhattan
gjb66: that seems idiotic to me at this point in time
gjb66: just makes ny more of a target than it already is
iamfrey : oh yeah, most people are leaving town, 1/2 the people are work with will be out in the hamptons. starts on my birthday.ick
gjb66: are you going out of town too?
gjb66: i hope you guys all do really
gjb66: ain't safe]
iamfrey : sylke and i are trying to figure soemthinhg out
iamfrey : these guys that live down the street have ahouse upatate and there's tubing and trees. maybe something like that.

 

There are plans for a "counter-protest" by Bush supporters. I'd hate to burst your bubble Honky Tonk, but the likelihood of them "balancing out" the anti-Bush people is quite slim.
Between 300,000 to a million protesters are expected to converge on the city; around 50-300 "counter-protesters" are expected.

In which direction is the political pendulum(sp) swinging now? It's becoming harder not to notice just from walking out your door.

Fitzy, I'm pretty damn sure it'll be VERY different in NYC

"The plans by the anarchists to disrupt the securty processes is absolutely idiotic. I do not understand the reason behind purposely distracting security personnel."

Inagoda, I can assure you that the plans are NOT to disrupt "security personnel", but to disrupt the mobility and "pleasant time" of the republican delegates. Laying down in a street is hardly a security threat. It's more of a disruptive party more than anything. There will be street theater to accompany the mass sit-ins. We're taking our streets back for a short time, nothing more.

"My point is, why the hell would you put this in NYC right now....there will be more protestors than any other place would have, its one of the most densely populated areas in the country, it has already been hit by terrorists, and threatened many more times.
I agree, its stupid to disrupt the security process, but put it somewhere more easy to secure.
Fitzy is right, Manhatttan is going to be shut down, not raking in money."

Seamonster, the main reason (or at least the "public" reason given) that the republicans are holding the convention in NYC is to "commemorate" the victims of the 9-11 tragedies...which in reality is a euphemism for EXPLOITING the tragedies to rake in dow and to strengthen connections with NYC republican elite members.

Now if Manhattan winds up getting shut down, it'll probably be due to the actions of the Direct Action protesters...who (since Seattle) have attempted to make their point "directly and concretely" made to "shut down busines as usual". Many of them, as anarchists and others, are self-described anti-capitalists. So the worst thing they can be accused of is imposing their views "on others". They can in no way be described as violent because they take a strict non-violent stand. I know because I've been to several meetings, and I've been to quite a few "anti-capitalist" demonstrations. All the violence has consistently come from the police. There's documented evidence you'll never hear about on corporate media.

 

A major convention is just what we need in NYC. As if traffic and congestion weren't bad enough in the city already, now Midtown is going to be a no-drive, no-walk zone and god knows how many protesters clogging the streets. Wonderful!

 

Max, if you wanna look at it that way (protesters "clogging" the streets) that's your call. Stay home if you choose.

There's something called the "First Amendment of the Constitution" that gives the right to ALL Americans the freedom to "clog streets"...or rather, peaceably assemble.

So stick it lil' man

 

I'll stick it up the first protester's ass who tries to get in the way of me coming home from work. It's kind of hard to "choose to stay home" when I've got shit to do. I have no problem with people protesting, what pisses me off is that they choose to do it in a place that's crowded and congested enough already.

 

Did i hear something about them shutting down some of the subway lines?!


I would take a few days off if I were you.

 

I haven't heard that, but if they are I'll be fucked. With midtown blockaded, getting uptown above ground will be impossibly difficult as it is. If they shut down the subway lines, it'll be even worse.

 

Max, blame the republican party, not the protesters, for it is the republicans who have chosen to hold their convention in new york city FOR THE FIRST TIME IN AMERICAN HISTORY.

get your priorities straight and stop blaming the wrong people. i swear man, it's people like you who'd jail the rape victim while giving the rapist a nobel peace prize.
If you got shit to do, um, well, is it life-threatening if you hold off for a couple days? Maybe you can walk among some of the protesters and ask what their personal reasons are for showing up. You might find that many are cordial, polite, intelligent and articulate, and maybe you'll learn something instead of sounding like the conceited jackass you make yourself out to be here on these forums (which I can't blame you for, afterall...you're a modern-day mainstream american). power to the dollar!!