anonymous surly comrade submits:

World Says Yes to Cops:

UFPJ Accepts New York Rally Location Imposed by Mayor and Police

Dear UFPJ supporters:

On Wednesday, July 21, United for Peace and Justice made a major announcement about our August 29 “World Says No to the Bush Agenda” protest: We are taking the West Street rally location which was imposed by NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg and the NY Police Department. (Details on the march route and rally location are below.)We did not make this decision lightly. Our central goal for our August 29 event has always been to maximize the numbers of people out on the streets in opposition to the Bush agenda. That’s why we chose Sunday and why we pursued permits. A wide range of other events, which we support, are being planned throughout the convention week, with varying tactics and goals. With the permits for both our march and rally now secured, our August 29 protest will be an event that people from every walk of life can participate in: immigrants, parents with kids in strollers, elderly people, people with disabilities.

Several weeks ago, we won our fight to march past Madison Square Garden, the site of the Republican National Convention, but the rally site remained contested. We have been fighting hard for months to secure the Great Lawn in Central Park, and many of you have supported us in that fight.

Every alternative we proposed to City officials was rejected. Every attempt at resolving concerns was dismissed. The City cut off negotiations and refused to meet with us. Clearly Mayor Bloomberg, a pitbull for the Bush Administration and the Republican Party, is doing everything he can to silence dissent and erode basic Constitutional rights.

Within UFPJ, we had many perspectives on how best to resolve this. We considered everything from canceling the rally and calling for a mass sit-in on the Great Lawn to accepting West Street under any conditions. We consulted our attorneys, discussed the issue with our supporters and allies, and debated at great length.

We knew that this fight was taking up a lot of the time and energy we needed for mobilizing. We knew that many groups’ planning, on everything from bus reservations to feeder marches, was being held up. At the same time, we knew that accepting the West Street site was going to add new logistical needs and that even once we secured a site we would still have to fight the Bloomberg Administration over key matters such as its use of pens and barricades.

With sadness, anger, and yes, some relief, we decided it was time to resolve this issue and focus on building as large a demonstration as possible for Sunday, August 29.

So now we move on. We take with us the victory of a march route past Madison Square Garden, and we will keep fighting to get what we need to make this demonstration successful. We have made a public issue of the bullying tactics of Republican Mayor Michael Bloomberg and his police department. We have also spelled out what we need from the City to make this site work for the massive rally on August 29.

Now is the time for all of us to redouble our efforts to spread the word about August 29, and build the biggest possible demonstration against Bush’s policies. Visit the RNC section of our website at http://www.unitedforpeace.org/rnc for downloadable leaflets, information on order stickers and posters, an endorsement form, and many other resources.

At the same time, we hope that you will contact the Mayor and Police Chief Kelly to keep the pressure on these demands:

1) No Pens: We have made it clear that we do not want the police to use metal barricades to create pens or otherwise restrict movement in and out of the rally site, the assembly site or along the march ro

2) Free Water: Because there is no shade or access to stores or other facilities along West Street, we want the City to provide free water at the rally, as well as assistance with extra port-o-johns.

3) Free Shuttle Bus: We want the City to provide free shuttle buses from the rally site to the closest subway stations, which depending where you are along West Street can be some distance. The City is giving the RNC delegates free subway/bus passes for the week they are here and we would like the have the subway and bus fares waived on August 29 to make travel around town easier for the massive numbers of people expected to join the demonstration.

4) Compensation: Since the City is insisting that we rally on this site, we will incur major additional expenses for an adequate stage and sound system. We think the City should help cover some of these costs.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg

Phone 212-788-3000

Fax 212-788-9711

Email http://nyc.gov/html/mail/html/mayor.html

Police Commissioner Ray Kelly

Phone 646-610-5410

Fax 646-610-5865

Email: http://www.nyc.gov/html/mail/html/mailnypd.html

The details of our march route and rally site are as follows:

We will assemble between 14th Street and 23rd Street, stretching from Sixth to Eighth Avenues. The march will kick off from 23rd Street and head up Seventh Avenue past Madison Square Garden. It will then turn west on 34th Street and head over to West Street, also known as the West Side Highway. We will proceed south on West Street to the rally site, which will stretch north from Chambers Street.



Let us be clear: While this settlement is not our first choice, and we are appalled by the City’s bullying tactics, we are resolute in our commitment to making August 29 a colorful, massive, and diverse display of dissent. On August 29, hundreds of thousands will take to the streets to send a loud and resounding message: The world says NO to the Bush agenda of war, greed, hate, and lies.

We’ll see you in the streets!