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Dispatches from the Front Portland greets George Bush, Jr. by Sean Luse November 18, 2002 On August 22nd George Bush, Jr. came to Oregon to attend a fundraising dinner at the Portland Hilton for Sen. Gordon Smith (R, OR). Local activists used this occasion to let the un-elected president know that the citizens of Portland do not support his administration and its endless wars. Portland has a rich history of opposition to the Republican regime, and this time there were numerous near-riot street protests when Bush, Sr. came to town. This aggressive opposition to the Bush’s war machine caused some White House staffers to label Portland “little Beirut,” a name most radical Portlanders take with pride. A few hours before Bush was to speak at the fundraiser, close to 2000 people had gathered in a downtown park, preparing to march on the Hilton. It was a splendid display of freedom and diversity, with parents and children, Vietnam vets, black bloc anarchists, greens, tree sitters, and everyone in between turning out to express their feelings. A carnival atmosphere was enjoyed by all, with many costumes and a large marching band. It was like a holiday. People were excited to take this festival of resistance to the streets. The march itself was powerful and loud. The march leaders were able to snake around the city and block the road that the motorcade was to use. The police had to intervene and push back the crowd so that Bush could be whisked through to the Hilton. As Bush and his entourage whizzed by, the police could barely hold back the angry crowd. The most interesting part of the protest may have been watching the Republicans try to wade through the hostile crowd to get to their million-dollar fundraiser. The police somehow forgot to make an entrance for attendees besides Bush, so these “poor” Republicans had to negotiate their entrance through a swarming pack of dissidents! The protests lasted until well after dark with a handful of arrests and numerous injuries due to pepper spray and less-than-lethal rounds fired by the police. An investigation into police misconduct is ongoing. While King George and Mad-Dog Cheney continue their global war-mongering the grass-roots opposition to the “War on Terror” continues to grow. |
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