Climate Criminals get melted glacier dump on N30/Seattle anniversary

Ten years ago, a great battle was fought in the streets of Seattle to defeat corporate power. On the tenth anniversary of this victorious fight, DC climate activists delivered “melted glaciers” to the offices of “Climate Criminals.”
stirring finished video

Rough video of Bank of America melted glacier delivery

The DC protests on the 10th Anniversary of the Battle of Seattle were staged to demand that “climate criminals” like Shell,BP, Conoco-Phillips(oil), Bank of America(coal), the American petroleum Institute, and the US Chamber of Commerce NOT send their lobbyists to the Dec 7 to Dec 18 Climate Conference in Copenhagen.

The Bank of America, BP, Concoco/Phillips, and several other corporate targets had water from the glaciers they have melted thrown on the floor of their fancy lobbies. The US Chamber of Commerce and the American Petroleum Institute(API) predicted they would face attack and were too heavily defended, so the melted glacier water was dumped outside, but within the zones they were defending. At API this was over the aggressive objection of security guards who had yellow taped off the building and set a defensive perimeter outside.

Betweeen these targets the march took to the streets in a festive snake march, bottling up traffic in places like I, K, L sts and Connecticut Ave. The total target list was
the Chamber of Commerce at 1615 H St, a branch of the Bank of America at 888 17th st, the offices of both BP ahnd Conoco/Phillips at 1776 I st,API at 1220 L st, the US Council on International Business at 1400 K st #905, and finally the offices of sHell and Chevron at 1401 I st.

Meanwhile, the World Trade Organization is foolishly meeting on the tenth anniversary of the Battle of Seattle, no doubt in another futile attempt to remove the stake from the Doha Round(Seattle Round)’s heart.

On Saturday, November 28, protesters in Geneva, Switzerland, burned luxury cars and smashed banks and upscale shops. Reuters reported that ” A pall of smoke hung over the city centre” though they could not say which side had generated it.

Nov 15 fur protest report:1 arrested, 2 detained-and cops order NO SHOUTING

On November 15th, the old police nastiness returned to fur protests on the MD side of “Furriers Row.” Within a MINUTE of 3 protesters entering the Saks 5th Ave lobby, cops stormed in and arrested one, detaining two others-WITHOUT anyone first demanding that they leave.

Audio on DC Indymedia:

I timed 37 seconds from the start of then protest until the warning that cops were closing in from behind. In seconds more those in the lobby were trapped. This sort of fast response suggests a pre-planned ambush.

Although the cops were inside holding three people at first, protesters continues undeterred, short first 3, then one person-and minus the two bullhorns the cops stole.

Due to the police essentially holding someone hostage, protesters remained on the scene with signs and chants at Saks 5th until the cops had driven away with the person they arrested and released the detainees.

Protesters then continued to Neiman-Marcus on the DC side of “Furriers Row” on Wisconsin Ave. Cops did not show up at all here, possibly hoping the arrest, detentions, and loss of the bullhorns would take the wind out of everyone’s sails. No such luck-loud voices tuned to the resonances set up by buildings on both sides of the blocks kept things good and noisy.

Finally, protesters returned to MD to protest at Dior, a new fur-selling luxury shop where Maxmara used to be.
This is at 5741 E Wisconsin Ave just over the DC line into MD.

Dior boasted on the phone of selling fur when asked-and the very person who did the boasting was the sole occupant of the store, nervousy watching the door, when protesters arrived.

For a while, no cops, then one cop, then another cop and a number of store or building officials entered Dior. After about 1/2 hour, the two cops emerged and told people they were not even allowed to shout-and then started harassing your reporter, probably trying to get their hands on the camera full of shots of them with store/building security or management folks. They failed, of course.

Last year these Montgomery County cops pursued an Indymedia photographer over the DC line trying to get a camera and/or audio recordings. This lawless action by them failed, but now they seem to want to try again.

There were many unlawful arrests and even a beating by Montgomery county, MD police at fur protests last year. They seem to have decided to throw the law books out the window and do anything they can to prevent the Christmas shopping season from being disrupted on Furrier’s Row.