Anti-War Protests today disappointing

rikki | 30.03.2002 18:49

Report on today's anti-war CND march/rally and planned action at Grosvenor Square.
Where were you DAAWN? Were all the postings just a wind-up for the cops? Anything happened today?

We walked alongside the samba band near the front of today's march. Compared to previous marches, numbers were much lower and police presence much higher. Despite that, there was a short symbolic sit-down at Piccadilly Circus, and a little bit of running around and space creation.

After listening to some of the speeches at Trafalgar Square, I took a stroll up to Grosvenor Square hoping to take part in the 'Picnic For Peace' there. This must have been a little after 3 o'clock.

At the Square, all the gates were closed and police were posted at each gate. The US Embassy was heavily fenced off and the cop there told us that they "had some intelligence (I resisted the obvious joke) that a group known as the Wombles were hell bent on defacing statues and damaging property" and so the area was no-go. We wandered off singing the Wombles theme tune and asking the bored looking coppers whether they'd seen any Wombles yet.

So, today's protest was really a damp squib - depressing really!

What the fuck happened to our Summer of Protest? - not an auspicious start.

Other breaking news is of course the queen mum's death. I predicted this would happen before June 4th so that the Firm could scale down their jubilee plans without looking like they were intimidated by the planned anti-monarchy protests.

I just hope people are going to be really creative and make something special happen on Mayday.

Peace

rikki

Comments

Hide the following 10 comments

apologies

30.03.2002 20:27

well i wasnt part of the decision making process in the organisation of the demo but when we realised the whole place had been fenced off we had to make an on the spot decision as to what our action was going to be.
unfortunately whether or not we stayed there would have been no protest at all in grosvenor square due to the police. In hindsight, we should have stayed there but this seemed difficult with the police there and the multiple entrances to the square.
In the end we decided to go on the march and participated in a sit down protest in piccadily circus and later another sit down protest outside downing street. Although we made an initial bungle, we made decisions on the spot and still managed to pull off an alright action.
however it is still an obvious organisational error on our part that meant many people did not find DAAWN at all. As for the reference to wombles, many people in the DAAWN are from the Anarchist Youth Network and the police have been monitoring and being suspicious of us ever since we were formed.
Next Demo will be when kissinger comes to town. there will be a meeting to plan it which you should come along to.
sorry about what happened but ultimately we didnt predict the police presence and made an incorrect decision on the day.
against all authority

against all authority

Infopoint ? where!

30.03.2002 20:29

The info we got by web didn't help us to find the meeting point of the demostration. The timetable was wronge and the indication confused.

So if we want a great "summer of protest" first give up at the community more details.

Epid

?

30.03.2002 21:08

But isn't this exactly why organisations like Stop the War Coalition and the SWP as part of that have to be organised? For which they constantly get slagged off by various people here. To get large numbers of people active, a large network is needed - selling papers to build support is one way of creating that network. Spreading info via that network brings thousands out on the street. Better than a few people not anticipating the problems and getting lost isn't it?

John

I thought it was good.

30.03.2002 21:45

Sure the whole of grosvenor square was closed off, locked up, guarded by mounted police, squads on each corner, and police spaced out evenly in the centre park, but there were still more people on the main march than I thought there would be, and some of the best speeches I've heard at such a demo, several repeating the call for direct action against war and any uk government collaboration in the american star wars missile defence system. There was a good half hour of drumming in the sun after the speeches had finished until the police started being anal and wanting to clear the square, which they did when the band finished playing.

Don't be so negative people - felt like summer to me.

sunnycity

Failure?

30.03.2002 22:07

We shut down Grosvenor Square didn't we? And we didn't even need to go there. Seems like a result to me. There were also sit-ins at Picaddily Circus (this time ended by the police - who mannaged to surround the worng people - rather than collaborative stewards) and Downing Street. After the latter we got taken to the river and then followed by a few cops who eventually got pissed off with us and threatened us with Section 12 or something. Then we went to Trafalgar Square and then on to the ultimate destination of all revolutionaries, the pub.

We finished off our day with a walk to Grosvenor Square (via the Mall carrying an anarchist flag just after the Queen Mum died...) where we stuck up some posters and stuff and then we made our way home.

Look at the state tremble before us... OK it wasn't great, but we're working on it... honest.

Disillusioned kid

closed off stuff

30.03.2002 23:36

They tried to close off Whitehall too, claiming they'd agreed that with the organisers. Typical of their bullshit, to organise a demo, so long as we don't bother anyone.

Still, quite a few got through to Downing Street, and we had a good sit down there.

And the Queen Mother news makes this the best day EVER.

Jack
mail e-mail: choked_victim@yahoo.com

Cheer up kiddies

30.03.2002 23:44

Demo looked great to me. This is really encouraging.

Light candles, don't curse the darkness.

The queen mother-fucker just fuckin' died. We're winning big time. Onwards to Mayday!

old man

Not anti-War

31.03.2002 05:07

The demonstration was anti-Star Wars not specifically anti-war. This is the reason I didn't join the protest.

I am against both but but London is long way away and I can't go to everything.

I would anticipate another anti-war demo to be huge. I for one will definitely be there.

Steve

Bomb scare

31.03.2002 10:05

In reply to Sunnycity above, the reason the band stopped was because the police had begun to clear the square. They came up to us and told us that there was a suspect package outside Canada House and that they were evacuating the area. Don't know if that was them bullshitting or not.

sambaista

Hey, Rikki !

31.03.2002 14:46

Re your prediction that the self styled "Queen Mother" would die before June 4th, what are you suggesting ? A Queen Mum Conspiracy Theory ? Fascinating !

hoo nose hoo