By DeNeen L. Brown Washington Post Foreign Service Saturday, April 21, 2001; Page A16
QUEBEC CITY, April 20 -- What most enraged the demonstrators was "the wall of shame." Running 2 1/2 miles around the convention center where the Summit of the Americas was convening, the hastily erected concrete and chain-link barrier confirmed to them that they and their views would be shut out of the deliberations inside.
This afternoon, they got their revenge.
Euphoric crowds of anti-globalization demonstrators marched to the wall and pushed against it. First a young man scaled it, and then others began rocking it. Soon an entire section gave way. The crowd cheered; its most daring members crossed the boundary into territory officially denied to them.
Some threw bottles and sticks at the waiting riot police. A few picked up a metal barrier and used it as a battering ram against a row of helmeted officers.
Police remained calm, throwing canisters of tear gas, ducking the rocks. Protesters ran as the gas burned their eyes, noses and skin. But often the wind was in the protesters' favor, wafting the white clouds of gas back onto police lines.
The protesters were soon evicted back across the fence line, but they were happy. "It was a little victory," said one protester, who earlier was chanting "We are the champions." The fracas had successfully intruded on the carefully orchestrated schedule of pomp and consultation inside: Several of President Bush's meetings with leaders of other countries were put off, and the opening ceremony was postponed by an hour.
It was the same basic scene that has erupted in the past two years wherever government or corporate leaders meet on a big scale. Seattle, Prague, Davos, Switzerland -- each has drawn a medley of organizations that contest the world's existing capitalist order. As in those other places, much of the violence today was the work of young "anarchists" wearing masks and black clothing.
Early in the day, hundreds of students met to organize the movement in basements at Laval University, their main staging ground. The movement was working overtime. While world leaders slept, the protesters organized.
"They are afraid of us," one of the demonstrators shouted to assembled students. "This is why they have 6,000 police. But we will be heard."
Everyone knew that there would be violence. Demonstrators talked of which "zone" of protest they'd be in, based on how gutsy they were willing to be.
The red zone was the front line, for those prepared to fight by any means, to get arrested, to tear down the wall. Yellow was a bit farther from the police, for those who favored nonviolent disobedience but would "offer support" to those in the red zone. Green was for those who wanted to avoid conflict.
Over and over, anger was focused on the wall. "This is a symbol of the struggle -- to have a discussion behind the wall," said French activist Jose Bove, who's famous in his home country for his attacks on McDonald's restaurants. "I'm here to say what is happening in the Americas is important for people around the world."
By midafternoon, thousands of people had converged at Laval, chanting "Down with FTAA," the Free Trade Agreement of the Americas, the pact under discussion at the summit. Finally, they began to move down Boulevard Laurier toward the old city. As they marched almost five miles, they seemed to get more and more angry. "Corporations are liars and thieves," one man in a green mask shouted.
Ahead they saw the fence, with riot police in rows behind it. When the marchers reached what they believed to to be the weakest section -- some had surreptitiously tested its strength the day before -- they began shouting slogans. The police stood still. The protesters grew louder, shouting "So-So-Solidarity." And then they broke through.
In ensuing hours came a general melee. Police threw grenade after grenade of gas. Anarchists sent many of them arcing back toward the officers' lines. Some reporters saw them hurl a few firebombs as well.
Using loudspeakers, police called on demonstrators to leave, evoking defiant laughter from some of them. Soon arrests began. Police moved in, grabbing at arms and clothing. Demonstrators were pressed facedown on the pavement as police searched and cuffed them.
By late evening, the street battles were still underway, with police helicopters buzzing overhead. Media vehicles were parked with smashed windows. For many protesters, this was just the prelude. Organizers hoped that a march scheduled for Saturday would draw thousands of new bodies and voices to the barricades. ************************************************* Alternative Press Review - www.altpr.org Your Guide Beyond the Mainstream PO Box 4710 - Arlington, VA 22204
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