N30

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On November 30, 1999, the World Trade Organization convened in Seattle, Washington, USA, for what was to be the launch of a new millenial round of trade negotiations. The negotiations, which were unsuccessful, were quickly overshadowed by massive street protests outside the hotels and convention center, in what became the coming-out of the anti-globalization movement. The scale of the demonstrations--even the lowest estimates put the crowd at over 40,000--dwarfed any previous demonstration against a world meeting of any of the organizations generally associated with economic globalization (e.g., the WTO, the IMF, or the World Bank).

Contents

[edit] Protest Organizations and Planning

Planning for the demonstrations began months in advance and included local, national, and internationational organizations. Among the most notable participants were national and international NGOs (especially those concerned with labor issues, the environment, and consumer protection), labor unions (including the AFL-CIO), student groups, religiously-based groups (Jubilee 2000), and anarchists.

The coalition was loose and broad, based more on opposition to "free trade" policies than support for any one political position, but there was a general consensus among the protestors that the WTO favors the rich and powerful multinational corporations over the interests of most of the world's population and that its policies are destroying the lives of people in third world countries. Many complained specifically about the impact of the WTO on Americans in undermining the sovereignty of federal, state, and local governments and siphoning well-paying American jobs to countries with lower wages, poorer working conditions, and few environmental protections.

[edit] People for Fair Trade/Network Opposed to the World Trade Organization & the AFL-CIO

The motivations and intent of many of these groups in coming to Seattle differed drastically. Many NGOs came with credentials to participate in the official meetings, while also planning various educational and press events. The AFL-CIO, with cooperation from its member unions, organized a large permitted rally and march from Seattle Center to downtown.

[edit] Direct Action Network

Others, however, were more interested in taking direct action, especially civil disobedience to disrupt the meeting. These groups loosely organized together as the Direct Action Network (DAN), with a plan to disrupt the meetings by blocking streets and intersections downtown to prevent delegates from reaching the Washington State Convention and Trade Center, where the meeting was to be held. Though the group was a politically diverse one, it did settle on a basic code of nonviolence, including: "We will not destroy property."[1]

[edit] Tactics

The Direct Action Network named the 13 intersections around the Convention Center slices A-M. The separate affinity groups gathered into clusters (50-100 people each). One cluster would hold each slice (using lockdowns, tripods, or whatever nonviolent tactics the members thought appropriate), and additional clusters would stay in reserve. [M. Wingnut]

[edit] Seattle Anarchist Response

However, certain activists (see black bloc) advocated more confrontational tactics, including symbolic action against business in Seattle owned by multinational corporations, such as Oregon-based Nike, Seattle-based Starbucks, various banks, etc.(see Black Bloc communique from N30)

[edit] Police Preparations

The Seattle Police Department (SPD), King County Sheriff's Office (KCSO), Washington State Patrol (WSP), and several other police departments sent forces to prevent the direct actions and allow the WTO conference.

On February 12th 1999, the Public Safety Executive Committee (PSEC) began joint planning for the Secret Service, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Washington State Patrol, King County Sheriff's Office, Seattle Police Department, and Seattle Fire Department; the Bureau of Diplomatic Security, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, Federal Aviation Administration, Bellevue Police Department, Tukwila Police Department and Port of Seattle Police Department also participated. [SPD AAR]

The SPD based their original planning on the 1993 Asia-Pacific Economic Conference (APEC), expecting protests of the same size and using similar tactics. The SPD changed their plans in summer and fall 1999. [SPD AAR]

Most protest planning took place in public; the police knew the overall protester plans, if not the affinity group plans.

The Seattle Police Department deployed its "Demonstration Management Team" on the morning of November 30th under the command on Captain Jim Pugel. This had four platoons for its 2nd (daytime) shift and another platoon for its 1st (morning) & 3rd (evening) shifts.

[edit] Police Deployments on N30

Seattle Police Department (elements)

  • Demonstration Management Team (Captain Jim Pugel)
    • A (Adam) Platoon (Lieutenant Dan Whelan) (Unarmored)
      • 6A Squad (12 Officers)
      • 7A Squad (11 Officers)
      • 8A Squad (11 Officers)
      • 9A Squad (11 Officers)
    • B (Boy) Platoon (Lieutenant Mike Sanford) (Armored)
      • 6B Squad (11 Officers)
      • 7B Squad (11 Officers)
      • 8B Squad (11 Officers)
      • 9B Squad (11 Officers)
    • C (Charlie) Platoon (Lieutenant Andy Tooke) (Armored) (arrived after 9:00)
      • 6C Squad (11 Officers)
      • 7C Squad (11 Officers)
      • 8C Squad (11 Officers)
      • 9C Squad (11 Officers)
    • D (David) Platoon (Lieutenant Ken Conder) (Unarmored) (arrived after 9:00)
      • 6D Squad (12 Officers)
      • 7D Squad (11 Officers)
      • 8D Squad (11 Officers)
      • 9D Squad (11 Officers)
    • Chemical Agent Team 1 (4 Officers)
    • Chemical Agent Team 2 (4 Officers) (arrived after 9:00)
    • Prisoner Processing Team (14 Officers)
    • Mounted Patrol (12 Officers)
    • Mobile EMT Platoon (3 Officers)

King Country Sheriff's Office (elements)

[edit] N30

At 5:00 A.M. on the morning of November 30th, the Direct Action Network's plan was put into action. Several hundred activists arrived in the deserted streets near the convention centre and began to take control of key intersections. Over the next few hours, a number of marches began to converge on the area from different directions. These included a student march from the north and a march of citizens of the developing world who marched in from the south. Some demonstrators held rallies, others held teach-ins and at least one group staged an early-morning street party. Meanwhile, a number of activists still controlled the intersections using lockdown formations.

The control of the intersections, plus the sheer numbers of protestors in the area, prevented delegates from getting from their hotels to the Convention Center. It also had the effect of cutting the police forces in two: the police who had formed a cordon around the convention centre were completely cut off from the rest of the city. The police outside of the area eventually decided to attempt to break through the protestors' lines in the south.

[edit] Police Attacks

At 8:40 am, the Seattle police fired tear gas canisters into a crowd on 6th Avenue. By 9:55 am, they were also shooting demonstrators with rubber bullets and pepper spray, in order to force as many WTO delegates as possible through the blockade. Apparently acting on a previously-determined policy, police initially refused to arrest demonstrators (in some cases pepper-spraying those non-violently presenting themselves for arrest). When they did attempt to make arrests, they found themselves unable to do so. Anyone who the police tried to arrest would immediately be "un-arrested" by the crowd, in defiance of police authority. Some police began beating demonstrators and engaging in other acts of violence, even towards bystanders who were not participating in the demonstrations. In a few hours, the police expended all their tear gas, and rushed to other police departments to get more.

About 30% of eyewitnesses' accounts of the morning action, including protesters, legal aid, and reporters, reported that they were injured by police weapons, particularly tear gas and pepper spray; others reported low-level exposure.

[edit] Property Destruction

The situation was complicated around noon, when perhaps a few dozen black-clad anarchists (in a formation known as a black bloc) -- likely from Eugene, as mentioned above -- began smashing windows and vandalizing corporate storefronts. This produced some of the most famous and controversial images of the protests (one particularly widely-distributed photo showed a Nike-wearing anarchist vandalizing Niketown). Reaction from other protestors was mixed (some attempted to physically block their activities) and the police were unable to make arrests.

The police were eventually totally overwhelmed by the mass of protestors downtown, including many who had chained themselves together and were blocking intersections. Meanwhile, the late-morning labor-organized rally and march drew tens of thousands; though the intended march route had them turning back before they reached the convention center, most ignored the marshals and joined what had become a street-carnival-like scene downtown.

The opening of the meetings was delayed, and it took police much of the afternoon and evening to clear the streets. Seattle mayor Paul Schell imposed a curfew and a 50-block "No Protest Zone" of dubious legality. Businesses lost approximately $9 to $18 million in sales, and suffered $2 to $3 million dollars in property damage (mostly covered by insurance). There were further losses in tourism due to damaged reputation, and/or public apprehension in living or visiting Seattle.

[edit] D1

Over 600 people were arrested over the next few days, although virtually all of them were later acquitted due to inappropriate police procedure during the arrests. One particularly violent confrontation occurred the evening of December 1, when police pursued protestors fleeing from downtown into the bohemian Capitol Hill neighborhood, indiscriminately using tear gas, pepper spray, and physical force and injuring some neighborhood residents.

[edit] Casualties

The exact casualty rates are unknown and controversial.

Some 37% of eyewitnesses' accounts of Tuesday's street blockades and breakaway marches, including protesters, legal aid, and reporters, reported that they were injured by police weapons, particularly tear gas and pepper spray; others reported low-level exposure. Similar rates are reasonable for the night actions and for Wednesday. At least one protester died during the protests from tear-gas inhalation. [Stephanie Banerian: Interview by Jim Compton] At least one woman suffered a broken jaw from impact rounds. [Richard DeAndrea: Interview by Jared]

Another 600 protesters were arrested. At least one was tortured in police custody. [Richard DeAndrea: Interview by Jared]

Street medics treated most injured protesters. [Louis Porter and Nathan Isaacs, "Downtown Shut Down,"]

Area hospitals treated only 92 casualties. [SPD AAR]

[edit] Aftermath

The conclusion by many in Seattle was that the WTO convention was not worth hosting due to the economic damage caused by the protests. Controversy over the city's response to the protests resulted in the resignation of Seattle police chief Norm Stamper, and arguably played a role in Schell's decision not to run for re-election in 2001.

Similar tactics, on the part of both police and protesters, were repeated at subsequent meetings of the WTO, IMF/World Bank, Free Trade Area of the Americas, and other international organizations.

The long-term impacts on WTO policies remained decidedly unclear, and it is an open question whether the WTO's actions since that time have been influenced significantly by these events.

On January 16, 2004, the city settled with 157 individuals arrested outside of the so-called no-protest zone during the WTO events, agreeing to pay them a total of $250,000.

[edit] Influences on popular culture

Several punk rock bands have shown support for the anti-globalization movement in the aftermath, such as Anti-Flag (whose song "Seattle Was A Riot" was based on the events of the protest), Pennywise (who wrote the song "WTO" in protest to their actions) and Against Me! (the chorus to their song "Baby, I'm an Anarchist" refers to the riots).

Rage Against the Machine used footage of the protests and subsequent police actions in their music video of 1999 song "Sleep Now in the Fire".

Additionally, the band Leftöver Crack released a CD in 2005 entitled Fuck World Trade and have, with the Crack Rock Steady 7, repeatedly shown their support for the riots and the anti-globalization movement. This may have been inspired by the No WTO Combo, who were scheduled to play at the protests but ended up cancelling due to the riots. The Seattle-based Infernal Noise Brigade, founded as a musical group to play at the protests, remained together until 2006; they travelled to perform during protests at events such as the 2004 Republican National Convention and the 2005 31st G8 summit in Auchterarder, Scotland.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

Protesters' accounts and reports:

  • M. Wingnut, How we Shut Down the WTO With One Eye Open.

Police accounts and reports:

  • (SPD AAR), Seattle Police Department After-Action Report.

Seattle city records:

  • ARC 9228, (Draft) King County Sheriff's Office Final Report.
  • ARC 9327, Seattle Police Department Overview.
  • ARC 9345, [Rosters of various platoons and teams commanded by Captain Jim Pugel].
  • ARC 10357, [Event Matrix for Demonstration Management Platoons].
  • ARC 10400, Rob Reichert's After-Action Report.

[edit] External Links

Retrieved from "http://www.infoshop.org/wiki/N30"
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