San Francisco -- A group of demonstrators broke away from the huge crowd at
San Francisco's Civic Center area at the end of Sunday's anti-war march and
clashed later with police on Market Street during a 4-hour confrontation
marked by hit-and-run vandalism.
Members of the group broke windows at several businesses and on a pair of
police cars during their rampage. They spray-painted buildings and other
objects with graffiti. They burned trash, climbed onto a cable car, and
later tossed bottles and other objects at mounted police who were trying to
control them.
At one point, the group -- which began with about 1,000 people and dwindled
to about 200 -- took over the intersection of Market and Eighth streets.
Around 7 p.m., dozens of police in riot gear surrounded demonstrators who
refused police orders to clear the intersection. They arrested 35 to 40
people while others protested from the sidewalks. By 8 p.m., the
intersection was reopened to traffic.
Following the arrests, about 70 demonstrators marched to the new jail at
425 Seventh St., where they rallied in support of those arrested.
Police said two officers were injured during the confrontation and taken to
San Francisco General Hospital, where they were treated and released.
Deputy Police Chief Greg Suhr said the day's earlier, enormous anti-war
march had been peaceful, "but the second demonstration is probably the
worst (we've had) with assaults on officers and malicious mischief.
"It's anti-war," Suhr said. "It's kind of like anti-everything."
Police Sgt. Jim Seim said it appeared that about 40 to 50 members of the
group were responsible for most of the evening's mischief. He said the
attitude of the troublemakers seemed to be, "If we go to war, it will get
worse."
The breakaway crowd seemed to be mostly made up of young "Black Bloc"
anarchists like those who broke windows and spray-painted buildings during
last month's march.
Many wore masks and black clothing, and they seemed to favor hit-and-run
tactics, engaging in random acts of vandalism and violence, then racing
away from pursuing officers.
The group pulled out of the Civic Center area when the main demonstration
was all but finished and many of the original participants had left the area.
Around 4 p.m., a group that Suhr estimated at around 1,000 began moving
down Market Street toward Hallidie Plaza. The group arrived at the foot of
Powell Street near the cable car turnaround shortly after 4 p.m.
Vandals broke windows at McDonald's on Powell Street and Old Navy on Market
Street, as well as the window front at Abercrombie & Fitch in the San
Francisco Centre.
A dozen or so protesters also ran through the main entrance to the mall and
threw rocks at some stores to try and break windows, without success.
The protesters then moved back up Market to the intersection of Eighth
Street, where they broke the windows of two SFPD patrol cars.
Around 5:15 p.m., some protesters sat down on the Muni tracks on Market
Street between Eighth and Ninth. Using bullhorns, police declared the
gathering an unlawful assembly, warning people they would be arrested if
they did not disperse.
Some protesters left and others began throwing objects -- bottles, sticks
and garbage -- at police on horseback. The terrified horses began bumping
against each other and finally, the mounted officers galloped away to
cheers from the crowd.
The dwindling group was boxed by police into the center of the intersection
at Market and Eighth, and police began arresting some of them and placing
them in sheriff's vans.
Some people present accused police of using excessive force.
Andrew Johnson of Santa Cruz, one of the demonstrators, said he was struck
on the arm three times by an officer without provocation.
"It was totally unnecessary," he said. "We weren't doing anything."
But others said some of the protesters shared responsibility for the violence.
Nicole Jackson, 31, of San Francisco, said there was more than enough blame
to go around. "The police showed a lot of restraint. Some of the younger
folks got carried away."
http://www.infoshop.org/inews/stories.php?story=03/02/17/2310499
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