This article was later posted on the Twin Cities Daily Planet website. As a member of the Coalition to March on the RNC and Stop the War, I felt compelled to respond. Gonzalez suggested that those who organized the permitted anti-war march on the opening day of the RNC should have tried to prevent "unruly elements" from engaging in direct action or should have denounced those who did the next day. He suggested that our message was stolen by "a few who acted mindlessly" and that we should have stood "side by side with police" to denounce them.
I was troubled but not surprised by this analysis. Blaming fellow protesters for police violence and judging those whose tactics involve risking arrest have often marked the aftermath of mass actions. This pattern of backstabbing and finger pointing has left movements fractured and demoralized. In St. Paul, we deliberately tried to create something different: principles that would allow us to focus our energy on the injustice we oppose, engage in the tactics we feel are most strategic, and do so in a way that would build our capacity and inspire unity, even among activists of differing ideological backgrounds, experience levels, and philosophies.
As someone who helped organize the permitted march on September 1, I want to be completely clear about how we anticipated our demonstration interacting with other protests that day. We were fully aware of well developed plans to engage in direct action and civil disobedience on September 1. We were not surprised this took place and do not agree that our message was "highjacked" by anarchists. We worked in coalition with several groups including the RNC Welcoming Committee to establish principles of unity that would prevent counter-productive, "good protester-bad protester" labeling. The "St. Paul Principles" we established included a respect for a diversity of tactics (not just legal, permitted ones) and we agreed that different tactics would be separated by time or space so that we could complement, rather than interfere with each other.
This was achieved with great success. On September 1st, 30,000 people from a diversity of backgrounds, income levels, ages, and struggles marched together under one banner: U.S. Out of Iraq Now; Money for Human Needs Not War; Peace, Justice, and Equality for All. Also on September 1st, a significant number of people chose to directly confront those most responsible for war, poverty, and injustice by engaging in blockades and other methods of direct action. Organizers of the permitted march supported their decision to do so. Many of us believe that elements of civil disobedience and direct action are appropriate and necessary for any movement desiring to mount a serious challenge to the violent, imperialist forces that are exploiting and destroying the lives of millions.
In his article, Gonzalez claimed that the RNC Welcoming Committee's website indicated a desire for "violent confrontation." Anyone who was present in downtown St. Paul during the RNC could see that it was the police who were constantly unleashing violent confrontation. Who was it that brought riot gear, tasers, rubber bullets, batons, and chemical weapons to the streets of St. Paul? It was the police, whose only mission was to protect power and privilege and crush anyone in their path.
The very use of the word "violence" to describe the actions of protesters in the face of the police state we witnessed is ridiculous. Pepper spraying a girl repeatedly in the face after she attempted to hand a flower to a police officer is violence. A broken Macy's window is not. And even though some activists don't prefer property damage as a tactic, maintaining some amount of perspective is important. What is a broken window compared to a million Iraqis killed, or entire cities destroyed by the U.S. occupation forces? A whole lot of windows get broken when the U.S. drops bombs. Which is the bigger concern? Which is a real reason to be pointing fingers?
I and other members of the Coalition to March on the RNC stand in solidarity with all who spoke and acted against the Republican agenda in St. Paul. We didn't denounce each other before the action and we aren't going to start now. And we would never, EVER stand with the police at a press conference and denounce our partners in the struggle. The very suggestion is absurd after the systematic way the police attempted to violently shut down ALL dissent at the RNC. On September 4th, members of our coalition were shot at close range with rubber bullets while holding an anti-war banner, tackled to the ground while chanting for an end to the war, and attacked with pepper spray while holding signs demanding peace and justice. This occurred in response to a large crowd who dared to march after a city-issued permit had expired.
We demand that all charges be dropped against the 818 people who were arrested September 1-4, including the RNC 8, who are unjustly accused of "conspiracy to riot in furtherance of terrorism." The only terrorists in St. Paul that week were the police and the war criminals in the Xcel Center.
Anyone professing a sincere commitment to justice should make an effort to hold police accountable for their crimes at the RNC and to end the criminal policies of war and oppression waged by the U.S. around the world, rather than criticize march organizers for failing to shun our fellow activists. We are committed to building and strengthening a diverse movement for just social change. We are not interested in betraying and judging one another.
Anyone waiting for us to do so or advocating such hypocrisy needs to wake up. The most dangerous people in St. Paul that week were the delegates to the Republican National Convention, as well as the army of mercenaries who attacked people on their behalf. Anyone who opposes violence and property destruction should join us in opposing current U.S. policy as a top priority. Our military, police, and anti-immigration agents engage in violence and property destruction every day for the benefit of wealthy politicians and corporate executives. The system works against us. We must work together, in diverse ways, against it.
-Katrina Plotz
Anti-War Committee
Coalition to March on the RNC and Stop the War
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