Republican National Convention, Day 1, Part One

With me on the bus from Denver were a number of freelance journalists covering the conventions for various independent outlets. One of them writes for TheUptake.org, which also hosts streaming video of protest actions. Another was an Irishman, normally a part-time worker for a homeless project in Limerick, who has taken two months off to find out what makes America tick and is relying on couch surfing for accommodation.

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The major protest on Monday was the antiwar march from the Capitol—shown in the distance, above—to the Xcel Center, where the marchers were channeled back on themselves (below) and kept away from the delegates.

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A fire hose was poised to wash any protesters off the fence if they tried to climb in, but nobody did. They did break up into small groups and scatter across the city, so there were a lot of uniformed forces stationed at various places around the outer perimeter of the convention site.

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Above, the Minnesota National Guard blocks access to a road that skirts the Xcel Center.

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Above, at the corner of Robert St and Kellogg Blvd, which formed a kind of outer, outer perimeter, police in bulletproof vests and gas masks were at the ready. All bystanders were told to move away from the area where I took this photograph. This subsequent report on a local newspaper website shows why.

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--PEACE--

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