Today they came. They came to NYC. The young, the old, the middle aged. They bought their children, they bought their grandmothers. The rich, the poor, all colors, all shapes, all sizes. They came in the bitter cold and biting wind. They came to a rally that they couldn't get near. Closed off by police barricades and a federal judge's ruling. They came to hear speakers and music, only a few blocks away, that they wound up only being able to listen to on the radio. They got penned in like cattle, they got herded like sheep. They came to say NO to war and YES to peace.

Today I have never felt more proud or more disgusted to be a New Yorker. Proud that so many of us were out on the streets saying no to war, proud that so many people from all around the country, all around the world came here to exercise their rights, to voice their opposition to Mr. Bush's insanity. And yet disgusted. Disgusted that my city would treat it's citizens and it's visitors the way that it did.

We arrived in midtown around 11:30. The rally at the UN scheduled for 12. Luckily we were able to find parking at 48th Street and Park Avenue. From there we started our journey trying to get near the rally on First Avenue and 51st Street, a journey that ultimately failed. Along with hundreds of thousands of others, we made our way past the primary barricades to Third Avenue and then to Second. At 48th and Second, we found the streets to First Avenue totally blocked off. The police there told us to head North to 51st Street where the streets were open. At 51st, they told us to go to 53rd. At 53rd, they told us to go to 61st. We walked up Second Avenue, to the chants of "What do we want, Peace. When do we want it? Now!" At around 59th Street, near the entrance to the Queensborough Bridge and the tramway to Roosevelt Island, we ran into the first wave of police imposed people "jam". It was here that we got our first glimpses of the NYPD sharpshooters on the roofs of apartment buildings and stores. With barricades all across Second Avenue, and thousands of more people streaming from the West, the streets were impassable. Traffic was halted by the spillover from the sidewalk. We got delayed there for about 15 minutes until finally the police tape came down and we were allowed to walk in the street. At 61st Street, more and more people were jammed into the middle of the street and yet still the NYPD would let no one East to First Avenue. With car traffic to the North, a sea of stalled humanity to the South and the West and not being able to go to the East, we were stuck there for over an hour. It was here that the peace chants were replaced with another chant, "Let us through!". At one point a metal gate was passed over our heads, I heard later that people had broken through the blockades at 65th Street. A police van incredibly drove through the crowd, turning west onto 61st Street. People were crushed together trying to get out of the way. I was pushed up near the barriers where many were trying to reason with the police. One man who I had seen earlier with a group of schoolchildren was imploring an officer to let them through. Telling him that they had not just children but also elderly people with them, the cop still would not allow passage. Above us on one of the roofs, a man with a megaphone appeared. "You have a legal right to demonstrate. A legal right to walk down the street." The police went wild, the First Amendment forgotten, ramming apartment building doors in an attempt to gain access to where the man was shouting on the roof. Shortly after this, an announcement came that 72nd Street was open to First Avenue. The crowd started to thin out and we were finally able to move and breath again. Instead of heading further uptown where we were sure to meet with more closed blocks and more frustration, we headed away from the crowd and walked down to 55th Street. Standing on the sidewalk getting our bearings we watched as a cadre of mounted police galloped through the traffic on the street towards another crowd that was penned in on the corner of 54th. It was disgraceful to watch as they charged into the crowd. The horses were panicking along with the demonstrators. Disgusted we turned to the West again and moved up to Third Avenue. As we crossed back over the barricades there a police officer stopped us and asked how and where we had gotten through to the East side. He wanted to know so that he could tell people where to go. It's a sad state of affairs when a New York City policeman who has been told to direct people can't even tell them which way to go. I told him that his superiors should be ashamed of themselves and the way that this demonstration was handled and he wholeheartedly agreed............

You would think that leaving the demonstration today that I would feel downtrodden and beaten. Believe me I do not. I would go back again tomorrow and do it all over again. Heck, I'd go back again right now. I left with even more resolve then I went there with. Resolve and strength that massing with others and speaking out against this war, IS the RIGHT thing to do. I will live with the determination that I will not rest until this country stops the war talk and starts speaking peace. That I will not rest until I know that my children will live in a world of peace, that they will never have to fight for peace as we have to today.

Maureen Godwin
NYC - February 15, 2003

Brooklyn Antiwar Chant =
1-2-3-4 We Don't Want No Stinking War

I was at the protest & though the police were inadequately prepared for the numbers that turned out & charged with enforcing an ill-conceived plan, they were for the most part restrained & courteous from everything I saw. There may have been some exceptions. But to call them "pigs", calling up decade-old images of wanton beatings and ingrained hostility, is unfair to the average NYC police officer that I observed yesterday. I think our movement does not gain support or credibility through the use of such terms.

 http://wusb.fm/mutant/nyc20030215/

on 53rd and 3rd at about 2pm after the horses trampled people the cops were slamming everybody back when there was no room for anyone to go.
i saw someone behind me reach forward for a riot cops badge and the cop immediately started banging me with his club and reached for my cardboard heart sign, with nothing left to do but toss my water bottle in defense it got all over him and the next thing i knew i was on the ground screaming with like 5+ cops kicking me and slam,ming me, cuffing me with plastic and then they put me on bus after bus and chain gang after chain gang from 2 until 1 in the morning i was detained without food, water, or bathroom.
i got the chance for the first time in my teenage/adult life to piss myself gratuitously. while being harassed by cops who knew absolutely nothing about what happened or who arrested me or what was going.
the NYPD were highly underprepared.
i now sit with a neck and shoulders that i can barely move and egg-bruises on my head and knees.
i saw thousands of cameras yesterday but there's VERY little publicity on the cops beating innocent people because there was no room for anyone to go because they blocked the side streets.
the NYPD caused the traffic problem that they then needed to fix by crushing people.
more people need to know this.

Thanks for the great pics, Dr. Hemp. You must have been standing right next to us. We were at the corner of 52nd and Lex. My sisters and I were apalled when they charged the horses right into us. There was a car parked between us and the sidewalk and when they charged, there was no place to go. Fortunately, we were not injured but both my daughter and my niece were quite shaken and we had to leave. We were especially disappointed with the commercial news media's coverage. I was watching that NBC cameraman and he actually put the camera down during some of the most blatant police assaults. While the print media have done a better job of covering the growing anti-war movement, the tv news, which is the only news source for too many Americans, has barely mentioned and grossly minimized our efforts and numbers. Thanks for letting me vent. S.A. Lang

I was there yesterday and on the most part we had a peaceful time. I saw the tail end of the harrasment on 51st and 3rd with all the horses and cops. That was a tense moment after such a wonderful day. The energy at the rally really showed me how many of us are angry and want our voices to be heard. I was so saddened that my home town of NYC was the only city in the whole world that didn't let it's citizens march. That is pathetic.They would have been wise to let us and I think they would have managed the crowd alot better. We must stop the unelected resident from war in Iraq. We must have regime change here at home.

This must be the unifying theme of all protesters: the quest for 1st Ave, and the ridiculousness of the "directions" by the cops. I was among the 2nd Avenue gang right when they cut off access South of 60th street. At that point few of us realized what wa really going down; the separate and dominate mentality of crowd control.

It's true that most of the police really didn't know what they were doing and were as confused about the orders they received as we were bewildered at the impediments to marching. I have to say that most of the police didn't have a bad attitude, only a few looked like they were getting off on their control.

But nevertheless, whether those cops were "nice" or not is irrelevant. Their ACTIONS were not nice, they were oppressive, and in fact more dangerous to our own security than any claim to conrolling the crowd for those purposes could be. As protesters, we were not ready for this response either, and there was no consensus for action.

It's clear that in the future we need to have a better plan on how to deal with these situations. Shouting "Whose streets? Our streets! and "let us through!" became an embarassing act of futility.

Do you think that calling people "Horseface the Pig" is going to help anything! If you call someone a name that gives them the right to call you what every the hell they want and that makes us look bad 'cause the main stream media is going to cover what the cops say and of corse they are trying to make us look bad so i think that you do not need to call people names like that!! i was there i do know that the cops can be kind very nasty!! but you have to beleave in people!! thank you all forcoming out and i hope we can stop this madness!!! please let me know what you think!!
in peace kate ithaca ny

I was there, in the dead middle of 53rd and 3rd, when things got bad. I had gotten separated from the group of friends I was with, was trying to get to 2nd to find my other friends (one of whom was arrested before I got there), and there was no where to go. The police were using the horses to shove thousands of people back into a space that didn't exist. I made my way through as best I could, people trying to help me get to the other side with the limited movement space. All the while we were chanting "Whose streets? Our streets!" When I finally made it to the other side, and started up 53rd toward 2nd, I ran into a metal barricade and twenty cops, most of them in full riot gear. Same thing on the other sidewalk. On the 3rd avenue side of the barricade, it was thousands of people being shoved into each other with no way out. On the other side of the barricade, 5 feet of space occupied by police, and then other protesters. It seemed that the only intent was to prevent us from getting to 1st ave and the actual rally. When we asked why they were doing this, they refused to answer. When we tried to push through the barricades, they beat us back with nightsticks. The only reason they didn't spray us was because of all the police withOUT riot helmets on.
Where are all the cameras that have footage and photos of this? Why are they not being publicized to prove to the world the brutality of the police force, and their utter lack of planning?

I agree with Art Godin; the use of the term 'pigs' is inappropiate for our movement. In fact, most of the policemen & women that i talked to were quite nice. They didn't WANT to be herding us like sheep into pens or blocking us from getting to 1st Ave., they were doing thier job & following orders. Granted, some of the police were bullying jerks who seemed to get off by exersizing thier power, but that does not justify using the derogatory term 'pigs'. ANYWAY, the planned rally/spontaneuos marches on 2nd&3rd were amazing.Sure, the police effectively prevented most of us from joining the official rally, but we made our voices heard loud & clear on 2nd and 3rd. The whole "we're doing this for your safty" line that all the police repeated is a load of garbage, and we all know that. it would have been a much safer event had we been granted a permit for a march! and the timing of the 'high-alert' state of emergency blatently stems from the fact that over half a million dissenters came to nyc yesturday. The government is scared of our dissent--and so they are "protecting" us from...who? ourselves mostly! one cop told me that 7,000 cops were pulled into Manhatten for the rally. thats a lot of cops! i witnessed them as the rally/march was dying out--hanging out in stores to keep out of the cold. there were SWARMS of them--and none of them wanted to be there... nor did they know what was going on! my family & i approached a random line of cops assembled near times square. when asked 'what are you blocking us from?' one cop replied 'i don't know--nothing' when we asked, 'then what are you doing?' 'we're trying to confuse you' that's right! it seems that the main purpose of the 1,000's of cops present was not for our safty, but to separate, discourage and confuse us. But they did NOT succede in discouraging us, thats for sure! At around 5pm when we thought people were generally dispersing, we witnessed a few hundred energized people skipping down the street toward times square, where dozens of cops in riot gear were waiting for them (was anyone in that contingent? what happened?) Despite the efforts of the city and the federal government to use the cover of keeping us safe from terrorists to squash our dissent, our voices were loud & clear yesturday! i am saddened to hear of the police brutality that occured yesturday, but im also overjoyed at the perseverence and stength of the demonstrators. Thank you organizors & demonstrators! it is so disgusting to me that the nyc protest was the only one in the world where peaceful protesters were penned and arrested for expressing our dissent. is this a democracy or a policestate? since when do u need a photo ID to walk down a NYC street? (even at 6pm the police wouldnt let us onto 1st ave.. unless we had IDs) and its scary to think that the only reason we were on "code orange" is because of a peaceful group of political dissenters--not to mention that even ON code orange, the cops had no idea what was going on...AND all the federal $ is being drawn out of education & social services & put into police forces whos only purpose is to squash dissent. this is not democracy.

The Times later changed that quote to read, "Crowd estimates are often little more than politically tinged guesses. The police commissioner, Raymond W. Kelly, put the crowd at about 100,000, while the organizers said 400,000 people attended. Given the sea of faces extending more than a mile up First Avenue and the ancillary crowds that were prevented from joining them, it seemed that something in between was probable."

Tell the NY Times about police abuse and another complaints about coverage-- To send comments and suggestions (about news coverage only) or for more information about errors that call for correction, e-mail  nytnews@nytimes.com or leave a message at 1-888-NYT-NEWS--as well as other news sources.

Also contact Jimmy Breslin who had a positive article about the demonstration
 Jimmy.Breslin@newsday.com
 http://www.nynewsday.com/nyc-bres0216,0,1430647.column?coll=nyc-topheadlines-right

Someone had asked what happened around 4 or so in Times Square. The calvary/Nazi-agressors known as the NYPD were waiting for us when a big group of mostly young people with their arms linked marched towards them and as the cops began closing in on them, they layed down in the street, and when they began kicking them and pushing them, alot of the protestos got up and ran towards the crowd on the sidewalk and the cops charged us and hit us. I was grabbed and my mom was pushed. This was pure and simple arrgression and intimidation as well as a violation of our rights, Where were the ACLU people???? This brutality and policestate must be brought to the publics attention! Peace, Evan

Dear Protesters of New York City.


This letter of support comes to you from across the Atlantic. London Stop the War Coalition commend you for your courage and offer kind words to soothe your battered bones and pepper-sprayed eyes.

I have read the reports on indy-media and united-for-peace and am appalled at the restrictions upon your civil liberties that prevented many of you from being able to reach the peace rally. The heavy-handed and short-sighted ‘crowd-control’ strategy of NYPD were an absolute disgrace and their tactics of impounding you in metal pens make a mockery of the democratic values that they claim to represent. We would like to express sympathy to all those who incurred the ugly and blunt blows of truncheons.

Britain too has witnessed similar exercises in state control, during the Miners’ Strike and The Poll Tax Riots to no name but a few. I have personally been on marches where the police have penned us into corners and charged us with the cavalry. Yet it would be unfair to present all police here as being completely evil. Some of the demos of more recent years have seen positive consultation between protest groups and police alike, and some of our ‘coppers’ genuinely try to administer in a professional way.

I thought a couple of the postings on your websites were quite mature in reflecting similar sentiments. They pointed out that not all of the cops were out to get you. Despite the obvious iniquities of certain sections of the NYPD, it never helps to slip into an ‘us and them’ mindset. As soon as we fall into that trap we follow the logic of the extremists on both sides of the current political equation who are so anxious to create a world where Muslims are opposed against Christians and other such absurd and divisive ideas. Our march, like yours, had its strength in its diversity; and that’s the thing that scares the politicians the most. They know that if they can’t divide, they can’t rule. Keep up the pressure!!

Yet despite the fact that not every cop on the street is a bully, the back-room boys at NYPD clearly had a strategy of divide and rule. Their policy shows that they are scared by your numbers, by your integrity and by your refusal to swallow the lies spewing forth from Capitol Hill and Congress. The whole world over, ‘ordinary’ people made a stand against the power structures of multinationals, media and munitions companies. And it’s so important that you guys in New York, in that city that experienced so much pain on 9/11, were prepared to make a stand against the madness of war. Your voices spoke with common sense and reason and said, quite simply: ‘Let us not become the evil we deplore.’

We send encouragement and Good Wishes

All the Best

Tom Wood, Hackney Contingent of London Stop the War Coalition.

Like the WEF protest last year in New York, this one was spectacularly huge, and largely peaceful. I don't see a way to do a large-scale protest any better than this while living in a highly policed city, which all of us should acknowlege is the case. The way I see it, the organizers did the best they could.
I made my way, with great difficulty, to 61st and 1st Ave by about noon, and I had a great time. I wish everyone who attended the protest felt the same. I sometimes feel that there are people who go to the march looking for a fight, and when they get one, complain about it. I don't see the individual cop as my enemy; he or she is merely a tool of the state. They have to live with that.

As was said before the police were not there for the protection of the people but to confuse and disrupt a peaceful protest. While not all cops are bad there seems to be an overwhelming number of them that are. For this they are labeled PIGS. I'm tired of people sayin 'theyre just doin there job' it basically eqautes to BUYING SOMEONES ETHICS (which i guess is what americas all about - take a look at reality tv shows for 1). If these cops were truely good they would nt compromise themselve for financial gain. On the other hand many of them were out to crack a few heads, to get out some of that aggression. Frankly we're lucky that no one got killed. It is the fool (tool) that follows orders without questioning. What kind of person does it take to: try and trample innocent unarmed people; severly beat someone for waving a sign; trapping hundreds of thousands of people in inhospitable weather for hours on end. Ill tell ya who does that - THE PIGS IN OUR POLICE STATE
keep up the fight -- Pastor M

"If they come for me in the day, they'll come for you in the night"

My boyfriend was arrested for protecting a women who was getting beat down by the cops. I believe that if she can be found something could change because she must be pretty badly bruised up, with fractured ribs. She's a middle aged women with short red curly hair, about 5'1"-5'5", and probably around 140lbs. The day of the protest she had on a purple sweater - if anyone knows who this is, or if this is you please contact  U_TDAnna@umassd.edu LETS DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS!!!!

From this website. The police are trolling and monitoring this website and others. Do not directly contact anyone soliciting information who is either not in the offices of NYCLU or UFPJ.

Do not contact individuals directly, they may be police posing as protesters. If you feel you must, open a hotmail account from a public terminal (at an internet cafe) and make the contact anonymously.

Above all, if you've been beaten, accused of a crime, are a witness to police abuse or arrests -protect yourself. Contact NYCLU, speak with one of their lawyers, ask if it's okay to make contact with a stranger from this website.

> The NYCLU (New York Civil Liberties Union) has
> received numerous complaints of police interference
> with people trying to get to Saturday's anti-war
> rally. Over 200 people were arrested, most on minor
> violations.
>
> The NYCLU has set up an email address to gather
> reports of police abuse and interference with people
> trying to get to the demonstration on Saturday. It is
>  nyclu215@aol.com
>
> Reports should include as much relevant detail as
> possible: time, location, witnesses, badge numbers and
> a description of what happened. Information regarding
> video reports will also be useful.
>
> Please indicate whether you wish your report to be
> kept confidential.
> PLEASE PASS THIS REQUEST ON TO OTHERS WHO MAY BE
> INTERESTED.
>
> This information will help the NYCLU document the
> policies and practices of the NYPD that interfere
> with lawful protest so that we can advocate
> effectively for a change.
>
> Thank you.
>
> Donna Lieberman
> Executive Director
> New York Civil Liberties Union
> 125 Broad St.
> NY 10004
> 212-344-3005

Take a look at Ghandi's revolution in the early 1900 against English dictatorship. Emaculate resistance. Look at Pinochets overthrow in Chile and Denmarks refusal to cooperate with Nazis. Poland, South Africa and good old Nashville Tennasee all overthrew fascist rule through the methods of non-violence. The movement must be nonviolent on our behalf and some people will get brutalized and jailed. But I think freedom is worth it. We can overthrow this government through non-violent measures. In fact, Bush's authority has been throroughly weakened by our protest. There is safety in numbers, do NOT use violence it weakens the cause and it is futile and you could get seriously hurt. Does anyone else know about the law suit against the Bush administration regarding stripping our country of checks and balances by giving military dictator GW Bush absolute authority? I read it on a link from Democracy Now. Think about it folks, we have so much communication, the minority can never stop us. Relax and stay informed. Wait for the next call to duty. This is how it is done. And we are winning.

Protesting is a political threat to the powers that be, after all it's what helped stop the Vietnam war, and was a powerfull tool Civil Rights Movement. Police set the stage for disruption by not having consistant direction, was it simple passive negligence, or intentional negligence by higher ups? After all, was treatment like this from police given to people on functions like New Years, 911 gatherings etc..?? As far as the Brutal acts of police, to them I say don't tarnish the memories of your fallen friends by beating innocent people, everybody is in pain since 911, but violence won't bring them back, lets move forward to peace, NYPD get off your horses and start walking along side us, all of us. Americans are just plain old human beings, simply brothers and sisters, lets finish this thing together and get on with life!

Greetings comrades in the United States of America.
This comment is just a happy "Hello" and a hug from us. The non-parlamentical left movement in Sweden thanks you for your work in the states. The injustice, the capitalism, fascism, neo-nazism and exploitation of this very planet and it´s inhabitants (with two legs or more) is a global thing. That will not stop us since the resistance is global aswell! Keep up the good work over there, and we will keep on doing our share over here.

KROSSA FASCISMEN! STOPPA KRIGET!

/Engelholms Autonoma (NW Scania)

Maybe you types shouldn't of cheered when pro-life demostrators were being beaten by police. What goes around comes around.