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Volume 40, Issue 4
October 15, 2002

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Bush's visit spurs protest

By Benjamin Leatherman
For the Mesa Legend

Photo by Benjamin Leatherman/Special for the Mesa Legend
Jonathan Mahler, former MCC student, mixes it up with authorities as part of a protest rally against the possible war against Iraq. The rally occurred during President Bush's visit to the Valley for a Matt Salmon fund-raising event at Phoenix Civic Plaza. An estimated 1,500 demonstrators took part in the rally.

Liz Gerth does not like President Bush.

She does not want the United States to go to war with Iraq.

"I've never been happy with the Bush Family, I was raised not to be happy with the Bush Family," she said. "I do not like him; I don't like what he's done for this country."

Greg Iannelli likes the president.

He feels that the United States should take action against Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.

"We're just working in the best interest of the country and peace and freedom in the world. If it takes war to do that, then historically that's what it's taken to do it," he said.

Gerth and Iannelli are so steadfast in their beliefs that they stood on the opposite sides of a anti-war demonstration on Sept. 27 in downtown Phoenix, which attracted approximately 1,500 participants, including students from MCC, ASU and other local colleges.

The demonstration coincided with the president's visit to Phoenix to speak at a $700-a-plate fundraising dinner for Republican gubernatorial candidate Matt Salmon being held at the Phoenix Civic Plaza.

The four-hour protest was mostly peaceful, with only minor scuffles between police officials and protesters. Seven protesters were arrested on various charges, including Eleanor Eisenberg, director of the Arizona Chapter of the ACLU.

The biggest headache for law enforcement officials was keeping the throng of protesters gathered at the northeast corner of Third Street and Washington from pouring out onto the streets and snarling downtown traffic even further.

Officials were forced to shut down all but one lane of traffic, due to the overwhelming crowd, which also included members of ASU Campus Republicans, members of a Pentecostal church convention meeting at the civic plaza and Diamondback fans making their way to Bank One Ballpark.

This mass of humanity that was present during the protest gave the demonstrators a better chance to spread their message.
Gerth, a freshman at Paradise Valley Community College, said wanted the chance to express her dissatisfaction with Bush's administration.

"I think he's gonna screw us up," she said. "I mean he's just doing horrible things. I mean he didn't even rightfully get into office."
Chip Francis, MCC student, also wanted to publicly display his feelings for the president at the demonstration.

"Just protesting the war, man," Francis said. "Actually, the war and the administration."

Francis was accompanied by his friend and fellow MCC student Heather Powell, who hoped they could convey a message of peace and tranquility to those attending the Salmon fundraiser.

"Hopefully they'll listen to the message (and) try and understand," she said. "Hopefully they'll get a better idea of what's going on in the world and try to open up the eyes of other people."
Gerth, Francis and Powell were but a small portion of the largely diverse anti-war faction that gathered at Patriots Square Park a few hours before the fundraiser began.

Punk rockers with multi-colored hair mixed with aging, tie-dyed-clad hippies and retirees from North Scottsdale as they prepared signs stating such message as "Bombs kill women and children!" and "Peace is possible."

Members of local activist groups such as the Phoenix Anarchist Coalition and Anti-Racist Action distributed flyers about their organizations and their feelings towards Bush.

Some of the older protesters started singing "We Shall Overcome" as the leaders of the demonstration started organizing people for the event.

As the group of about 500 protesters started marching three blocks east to the civic plaza, people began to chant "One, two, three, four, we don't want your father's war!"

When the throng arrived at the designated protest area, a joint task force from Valley police departments—including riot cops from the county sheriff's office and Arizona Department of Public Safety— prohibited them from crossing the intersection.

Law enforcement officials also prevented the activists from impeding pedestrians and forming human chains across the road.

Not to be outdone, Bush supporters gathered a short while later on the opposite side of the intersection, holding hastily written signs stating "I Love G.W." and "GO BUSH!"

Members of the Pentecostal convention also joined the supporters and the groups began singing "The Star Spangled Banner," "God Bless America" and religious hymns.

Some Bush-followers cheered when a life-size cardboard cutout of the president was brought out by one of the supporters, while others made a "W" with their fingers—similar to the popular gang-style gesture—in order to mock the anti-war crowd.

Members from both end of the political spectrum crossed the intersection to engage in heated debates about the issues they were demonstrating.

Iannelli, an ASU junior majoring in English, said he found it ironic that the anti-war protesters' message conflicted with their actions at the demonstration.

"I was just saying that the people over there are all shouting for peace, but they're the only one's getting in fights with the cops," he said.

Jordan Smith, an ASU freshman majoring in psychology, said some of the protesters "over there are a little more crazy than that, a little more violent."

Jonathan Mahler, former MCC student, said before the event that the anti-war activists did not plan for a violent demonstration.

"I've been to quite a few protests, both on campus here and then throughout the Valley and they've never gotten out of hand," he said. "I don't think there's really any groups within Phoenix who I think would want to act out violently."

Seth Apfel, a legal observer with the Arizona chapter of the ACLU, said he believes he saw "a lot of violations of constitutional law" due in part to overzealous police officials.

"(The) cops when they crossed the street, came pushing people back before anybody did anything else," said Apfel. "They were the aggressors not the people."

Regardles of how it turned out, some demonstrators said they looked upon the situation as a way to discuss the issues and express their opinions publicly, including Eric Sprattling, an ASU junior majoring in Journalism, said he enjoyed the event.

"I think it's pretty crazy, but it is pretty fun, just to have people expressing their opinions like this," he said. "You got some people with big brass ones coming over here with their own signs you got to respect them for that at least."

Brian Dille, MCC social science professor, said even if the public is not "swayed" by a particular protest, the act of stating your views openly is beneficial to society.

"Protesting can work if the public is swayed. Even when it doesn't 'work,' it provides an outlet for voicing opposition," he said. "The whole point of a protest is to declare that the majority is wrong and needs to rethink things."

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