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9:00 PM: Police: 2 arrests out of 800 participants


Police officials say they made two arrests in connection with this evening?s protest. One person was arrested before the march began for allegedly trying to tamper with the wiring of a downtown traffic signal. The second arrest was made during the march, when a person allegedly tried to grab the reins of a police horse. No charges had been filed against either person as of 8:30 p.m.


“We had allowed for a number of scenarios. This one tonight spoke for itself,” First Deputy Police Supt. John Thomas said during a news conference following the march.


Asked whether authorities overreacted to the protest with the overwhelming police presence, Thomas said, “We’re ready to take that criticism, but our position is simply that you can’t be overprepared.”

Police officials estimate about 800 people participated in the march.

7:30 PM: Michigan Avenue reopens to traffic


The crowd of protesters begins to clear at Pioneer Court. There are no major confrontations with police and the march is being referred to as relatively peaceful.

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7:02 PM: One arrest in the Loop


A man is arrested for allegedly disturbing police horses.


The protesters have broken up into their respective groups and are listening to speeches. They are contained in the area along Michigan Avenue from the Chicago River bridge to the southwest corner of Tribune Tower and across the street to the Wrigley Building.

6:49 PM: Who?s Who in the crowd


Among the demonstrators:

  • The Young Democratic Socialists.
  • Revolutionary Communist Youth Brigade.
  • Residents of Cabrini-Green protesting alleged police brutality.
  • The Industrial Workers of the World. Member Matt Kellard, 21, of Chicago, said, ?We?re for the abolition of capitalism. But until then, we also fight for fair wages.?
  • Green Party members said they came to speak out for a variety of causes, ranging from decent living wages for the working poor to more uniform environmental standards. ?There?s not a voice in these types of high level talks for individual interests,? said Sean Reynolds, 31, a Green Party member and hospital secretary who lives in Chicago.


    And, not to go unnoticed:

  • The Pink Bloque, an eight-member, all-girl dance troupe, marched to raise awareness about issues of globalization and unfair treatment of workers.


    ?Whoever likes to dance and believes in social justice can join us,? said troupe member Julie Smith, 32, who wore a sign reading ?2 cute 2 B arrested? on the back of her pink sweat suit as she danced down Michigan Avenue.


    She said the Pink Bloque members were protesting Boeing arms exports, Wal-Mart?s alleged use of sweatshop labor and the dumping of toxic waste in India.

    6:33 PM: Look for the union label

    Also among the demonstrators:

  • Members of United Food Workers Local 881, protesting Dominick?s.
  • United Electrical Workers Local 179, protesting Azteca Foods.
  • Several marchers protesting war with Iraq.

    Seen and heard along the march route:


    Some of the signs:

  • ?Get out of agriculture, you morons?
  • ?Wal-Mart is a bad neighbor?
  • ?Art not ads?
  • ?People above profits?
  • ?I?m here to meet chicks?


    And chants?.

  • ?Don?t the cops look so dumb, look at us we’re having fun.?
  • ?E-V-I-L money can?t save your soul from hell. You?re evil, yeah yeah, you?re evil.?

    6:25 PM: Over the river


    Marchers have crossed the North Michigan Avenue Bridge and are heading east through Pioneer Court next to Tribune Tower. A solid wall of police stretches across Michigan Avenue, blocking marchers from going north on the Magnificent Mile.


    Lindsay Jones, a puppeteer from Wisconsin, decided to march while visiting Chicago this week. She played a violin as she walked and wore a sign on her back reading: ?Vile Music for a Vile Agenda.? ?To protest I?m playing the scariest music I know,? she said. ?A lot of Darth Vadar-Star Wars stuff, some Hungarian tunes, Yankee Doodle Dandy.?

    6:23 PM: Protest no-shows?


    As of 6:20, the official police estimate of the crowd was 300-500. If accurate, that would make the number of marchers well below the number predicted by organizers — at least 1,000. Police aren’t saying how many officers are on the scene.

    6:15 PM: Turning the corner


    The marchers turn the corner of Washington and Michigan Avenue and head north in front of the Cultural Center.

    6:02 PM: Along the route


    As marchers make their way east on Washington Street, police are tightening their ranks and guarding Daley Center Plaza. The marchers are in the street, flanked by long rows of police matching them step by step. They file past the Daley Center without incident.


    Several large buses used by Cook County Sheriff?s Police to transport prisoners are positioned at both sides of the intersection of Dearborn and Washington Streets, and at Washington and Clark Street. The Daley Center is surrounded by two layers of metal barricades. Traffic is blocked at Clark and Dearborn.

    5:41 PM: At the Daley Center

    The march is underway. Chicagoans line the route with cameras poised. Helicopters are hovering over the route.

    Traffic doesn?t seem to be impeded. Even the streets where police are parked have at least one lane still open to traffic.

    5:35 PM: Reaction from protesters

  • Eric Keyser, 25, a computer technician came from work to watch the crowds and police. As protesters walked, some smoked cigarettes, banged buckets and drums, danced and chanted.
    ?It looks more like a pep rally than a protest to me,? Keyser said. ?Cops have good control, it seems organized and it looks like people are having a good time.?
  • Shanna Rossetti, 27, a staffing firm manager, called the protest ?weird.? She said that even after watching the protesters pass she still did not understand their message. ?I have no idea what they are protesting against,? she said.
    ?It?s shallow on my part that I don?t know, but I think they need to make clear their point.?
  • Matt McCarthy, 30, of Joliet, and his co-worker Dennis Smith, 40, of Plainfield, drove from their workplace in Oak Brook to watch the protest. ?What else are we going to do at 4:30 — sit in rush hour?? McCarthy said.
  • David Marquez, 26, a law student at Northwestern University, said these sorts of events seem to be getting smaller and smaller. ?It seems sort of played out. After two years, people are kind of like, ?Enough already.??

    5:18 PM: At the marchers? destination


    Police are ready for the march when it ends at the Sheraton Chicago Hotel & Towers, 301 E. North Water St., where the business summit is taking place. In the lobby, a supervisor of 10 plainclothes officers dispatched them to guard various entry points. ?Challenge everyone,? he said, even those who say they?re employees.


    Phil Soucy, spokesman for BAE Systems, a London-based defense and aerospace manufacturer, was reading conference materials in the lobby of the hotel. Soucy said he wasn?t concerned about the possibility of violence: ?Everything I?ve heard is that protesters wish to have a peaceful demonstration. I believe that.?

    5 PM: Sleepless at Starbucks

    Merchants along the march route watch and wait:

  • Rich Jones, an employee at Chicago Sports & Novelty, 328 N. Michigan Ave., said. ?Chicago police know how to handle it better than (the Seattle police) do. Chicago police know how to handle these kinds of situations better than most cities. They?ve got better training and better equipment.?

  • Erin Wall, an employee of the Starbucks, at 205 N. Michigan Ave.: ?Our managers just came in and said in Seattle, a hundred Starbucks were targeted, so they are really nervous about this.? Still, no special precautions are being taken, and the store plans to stay open until its normal 8 p.m. closing time.

  • Sergio Rito, a cook at Hank?s Franks, at 332 N. Michigan Ave.: ?The place has an alarm, but there?s nothing we can do, because we?re going to be out of here.? They?re not boarding the windows or taking any other precautions.

  • Carlos Godinez, a supervisor at the Chipotle restaurant, at 316 N. Michigan Ave.: ?We?ve invited a lot of police to come in and hang around the restaurant. We?ve seen them (protesters) pass by 10 or 15 minutes ago. They seemed harmless from the few that I?ve seen.?

    4:50 PM: Puppets and a classroom field trip

  • Protesters hold up two large plywood and cardboard puppets about 10 feet tall. The puppets are exaggerated faces in suits and ties. One has a sticker on it that reads, ?WorldCom.? The other reads, ?Enron.?

  • Claude Dufour, associate professor at DePaul University, who teaches a class in political protest, brought 15 students to take part in the protest. ?A lot of them are from the suburbs, and this is their first protest. I wanted them to get a chance to see firsthand how this technically works — the reaction from the media, the police, and how effective getting a message comes across.?

    4:45 PM: Streetwise indeed

    Lester Cherry, 46, a Streetwise vendor working the corner of Michigan and Wacker: ?If I see some (protesters) coming right now — if it was more than 10 or 20 — I would definitely split. If the protest comes before 5:30, I?m splitting just for safety. I don?t want to see nothing happen on my block.?

    4:45 PM: Parking ban remains in effect

    Street parking is prohibited from Congress Parkway to Wacker Drive between Michigan Avenue and Canal Street. Street parking also is banned from the Chicago River to Oak Street in an area between Lake Shore Drive and Clark Street. Columbus Drive has been closed from Illinois Street to Wacker Drive.

    4:32 PM: Outside Boeing headquarters.

    Sampling of protester signs:

  • ?Wal-Mart is a bad neighbor?
  • ?Give us clean energy?
  • ?Globalization equals neo-colonialism?
  • ?They exploit, oppress, control. They are the imperialist elitist fascists.?
  • ?Art. Not ads.?
  • ?Blagojevich.? Huh?

    Sherry Wolf, a Chicago resident and an activist with the International Socialist Organization: ?We should live in a country based on human need, rather than corporate greed.?

    4:30 PM: The view from inside

    Boeing workers are watching the crowd from their offices, drinking coffee and standing behind police barricades.

    4:22 PM: Outside Boeing headquarters.


    Hundreds of Chicago police and demonstrators are massing outside the Boeing Corp. headquarters at Canal and Washington Streets for a rally expected to begin about 4:30 p.m., followed by a march through the Loop.

    Some of the demonstators explained why they’re here to protest the two-day meeting of the Trans-Atlantic Business Dialogue, a group of international executives:

  • John Zupkus, 28, solar panel installer in Chicago: “I’m concerned that a few people take advantage of lives. I hope all of us coming here today raise questions about what TABD does.”

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  • Chris Drew, 50, an artist in Chicago, said he is protesting executives ?attempting to set the agenda and using their clout to usurp local political rule.”

  • Jose Ramirez, 20, of the Logan Square neighborhood in Chicago, representing the Anti-Racist Action Skinheads. ?I want to see how Chicago reacts.?

    4:00 PM: At the Sheraton


    Boeing CEO Phil Condit steps outside the hotel to thank a police supervisor for the department?s efforts.


    Tribune staff writers Aamer Madhani, Jimmy Greenfield, Oscar Avila, Matthew Walberg, Amy Nevala, Mark LeBien, David Ibata, Dan Kening and Rudolph Bush contributed to this report.