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From Miami streets to the Web
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Cops 1, protesters 0 | page 1, 2, 3, 4
Soon a small crowd had surrounded them.
"Why don't you show your badges?!" a
number of them cried. Their cover blown
(perhaps the plastic handcuffs on the
belt were a bit of a giveaway), the
"cops" soon walked off and protesters
applauded, pleased with their
accomplishment. It would be their only
one of the day. Back at the border of Copland-Phishtown,
protesters handed Gainer flowers -- a
bouquet that he held onto for several
hours. On the right, at the scene is
department public information czar Sgt.
Joseph Gentile. Protesters were very
aware of the presence of the media, and
took great pains to be seen as the good
guys. Some sang "We Shall Overcome,"
though they didn't seem all that
familiar with the lyrics. Since the protest movement has no real
leader -- its members shun hierarchy --
it just so happened that the designated
negotiator was a woman who identified
herself as Mary Bull. Bull is shown here
calling out to her fellow "Tactical
Team" members. They'd then retreat to a small huddle
where they'd vote on the various
negotiations with Gainer. Hundreds of
protesters faced a conundrum: They
wanted to make an attempt to get to the
World Bank building and stage a protest,
but none wanted to be whacked upside the
head with a billy club. Thus, they
negotiated with Gainer as to 1) whether
the cops would remove their gas masks
and display their badges as a show of
good faith and a tangible sign that no
one would be gassed or brutalized; 2)
how many steel barricades would go down.
The protesters wanted six, the cops said
two; and 3) how many protesters, arms
linked, could walk through the barricade
and down the street a few yards before
getting -- peacefully -- arrested. The
negotiators wanted 15, the cops had
wanted one at a time, single file.
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