Actually, J - so was I. From the beginning at the press conference at Oak and Michigan, through the arrests, and back on down to Dearborn. And I was also on the scene to view how the senior CPD command staff onsite -- including Sherry Mecklinberg - reacted when folks took off down Clark.

And I'll say it again. After recovering from the surprise, they were more than content to see you go march on down Clark, although it did create some initial deployment problems for them - particularly with closing east west traffic routes. But not many. (incidentally, the Deputy Superintendent was not calling the shots on Saturday.)They did not dispatch the CPD tac units being held in reserve after you, but the Illinois state police, because simply put, they were not particularly worried that you'd deviate from that route.

But then again, why would they be upset? After all, you guys just did what the M-19 Coalition vowed publically never to do during a press conference an hour before that had been dispersed by police batons, - which is to under no circumstance agree to repeat the march route imposed upon us by sheer force last year. Little wonder the Trib used the word "capitulate' in the description of these marches. Hardly a brilliant street action.

Like it or not, the cops saw this as a clear tactical and political victory - particuarly since it decreased their concerns about managing the shrunken Dearborn contingent - whom they suspected would try again for either State or Michigan, if they returned down Dearborn.

No doubt many in the Clark march undoubtedly felt good about being able to safely march. And being together with few cops around can be empowering. But marching just for the sake of marching wasn't the goal of the M-19 action. If it had been, there would have been no problem accquirng police permission to march down Clark at all..since what they offered from the beginning since the permit fight broke out. The goal, as CG stated in an earlier post, was to have an anti-war march where people actually were on a Saturday afternoon in the Loop and get the anti-war message out. And reassert our right to march down a street that some 700 people were arrested on two years earlier for exercising just that right. To their credit, at least the Dearborn contingent tried to make some contingency plans for moving back to State - the second busiest street in the Loop - even if they failed to realize them.

But there was also an fallback alternative for folks who did not wish to risk arrest, but still wanted to get an anti-war message out across the Loop before the 2 PM rally. You might take the time to actually read one of the 7000 flyers the M-19 coalition distributed at Oak and Michigan with a recommendation on how to react to a cop dispersal order, avoid arrest, and avoid being herded down Clark.

As it turned out many folks who wanted to avoid a confrontation who arrived at Oak and Michigan acted on the recommendations made in this flyer, and made their own way down to the Federal Plaza rally, leafleting shoppers along the way, -- rather than repeat the Clark St. route - for just that reason. Still, some of them were threatened with arrest for just handing these suckers out. But as I said, they may have had the biggest success in getting an anti-war, pro civil liberties message out there.

BTW the All American Anti-War Marching Band was actually prevented by the CPD on two occasions from actually leaving Bughouse Square to the east. They exited the Square down Clark because that was the only exit open to them. No doubt they also didn't want to get caught up in any shit that might have gone down, as did many CAWI folks - but their options had already been limited by the police. That was not the case with folks who left Dearborn to join them.

PS - I've been riding CM since its inception in Chicago, and will be in the next ride. Black IndyFab frame.