On The Streets of New York: Courage

Terry J. Allen September 3, 2004

A legal observer joins the ranks of the detained.

During the weeklong protests, New York City Police arrested more than 1700 people, including bystanders, journalists, and legal observers, many of whom were swept up in preemptive strikes on lawful gatherings.

After police disrupted a Tuesday march from Ground Zero to Madison Square Garden, a splinter group reformed and made its way as far as 28^th St. and Broadway before being intercepted and surrounded by scores of police. The group held its die-in on the spot. Before making arrests police cleared the streets and barred media from the scene.

Some detainees were held for more than a day in a converted bus garage dubbed “Guantanamo on the Hudson.” The floor of the facility is soaked with oil, causing some of those imprisoned to develop chemical burns, according to legal representatives.

On the Streets of New York: patriotism | compassion | courage | security | opportunity

Terry J. Allen is a veteran investigative reporter/editor who has covered local and international politics and health and science issues. Her work has appeared in the Guardian, Boston Globe, Times Argus, Harper’s, the Nation.com, Salon.com, and New Scientist . She has been an editor at Amnesty International, In These Times , and Corpwatch.com. She is also a photographer. Her portraits of people sitting in some of the 1900 cars lined up outside a Newport, Vt., food drop can be seen on www.flickr.com/photos/terryallen/albums. Terry can be contacted at tallen@igc.org or through www.terryjallen.com.