As is their wont, this year’s crop of anti-IMF protesters did indeed take to the streets of Georgetown yesterday evening. Vox wasn’t there, but we did get a first hand account from Georgetown student Carlos Hernandez, who found himself in the middle of the protest while walking back from a movie last night (emphasis mine):

My roommate, a friend and I were just leaving the movie theater after seeing State of Play and approaching the intersection of Wisconsin Avenue and M Streets when we noticed there was a lot of commotion. Since we had seen a marked Secret Service car, we figured it was a high-profile official in the area for dinner (possibly Obama at Cafe Milano). Once we reached the intersection, a police convoy with bicycles, motorcycles, marked and undercover cars, SUVs and vans started making its way north on Wisconsin Avenue. We followed the convoy to see what was happening. Above us, a police helicopter was hovering and shining its search light on the intersection of Wisconsin Avenue and N Streets.

There was some confusion among passers by as to what was happening. Since I had seen earlier reports of civil disturbances at the IMF/World Bank headquarters downtown, I thought that they might be related. After asking a few people, we were able to come to that conclusion. Overall, the entire situation happened pretty quickly. The protesters were confined to the corner by Paolo’s. They were shouting something, but no one really understood what they were saying. At one point, some of the protesters started going into the restaurant; the police stopped them. It did not appear to me that any arrests were made. One protester was being held by a police officer, and when the police officer appeared ready to put handcuffs on him most of the other protesters started yelling and moving up Wisconsin Avenue toward Five Guys. The police presence was very collected and coordinated.

The protesters seemed pretty disorganized. There were several pockets of them along Wisconsin Avenue. I am not sure what they were protesting, but it was entertaining/fascinating to watch some of our basic civil liberties (freedom of speech and freedom of assembly) in action. The police opened up southbound traffic on Wisconsin Avenue a few minutes later. My roommate and I then walked back to campus on O Street. We did not see how things ended since it appeared everything was under control.

The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank are holding their annual meetings in D.C. this weekend. Along with discussions of economic policy, these meetings inevitably involve protests. This year, protesters have already broken bank windows and spray painted cars near Logan Circle (City Paper has some good photos of the damage).

A couple of years ago, protesters took to the streets of Georgetown and turned violent, hitting a young woman in the face with a brick near the Ambercrombie & Fitch store on Wisconsin Ave.

The protesters will be heading over to nearby Washington Circle tonight to play baseball and soccer “in the streets of the rich” as a way of protesting the public financing of the Nationals Stadium. Hopefully they’ll keep their conduct sportsman-like this evening…

Photo from Flickr user mar is sea Y, used under Creative Commons license.

Well, that was a disappointment. Last night’s anti-IMF, anti-World Bank protest, which was going to be so good I advised watching for phalanxes of riot police, was actually a big flop with only about 20 protesters. It was so quiet WTOP doesn’t even know it happened.

There were at least 2 police officers for every protester, presumably intended to dissuade lawbreaking. The night started with Captain Herold from MPD telling protesters he wouldn’t brook with any lawbreaking, but it really began when he called one protester a pussy.

Things were looking up when the protesters grabbed makeshift drums from a Metro station entrance. When the police asked them to stop using the drums, the protesters, incredibly, complied. What about the bricks, guys? Once the protesters decided not to make noise, the night became a peaceful midnight stroll with the 2nd District police.

After the jump, one picture describes an entire night: a ridiculous protester and a cop wondering if it’s too late to take that job in Phoenix.

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The hotly anticipated IMF protest this weekend is shaping up:

Join us at Dupont Circle at 1:00 am on the night of Saturday, Oct. 11th into the morning of Sunday, Oct. 12th for a rowdy, noisy march to the hotels where delegates are staying. Bring noisemakers to wake up the caretakers of global capitalism and tell them they’re not welcome in DC!

Dupont Circle is only a short walk away, though, so you should go check out the controlled chaos of an anti-IMF march. I covered Disrupt Georgetown last year and nearly got arrested for it, so I’m uniquely qualified to show you a good time once Homecoming fun fizzles. Here are four tips to keep your head from getting slammed against a wall:

• Get messy: Some people think standing on the sidewalk and watching cops and protesters scuffle is a good time. Hardly! Protesters will probably be marching down the middle of the street with bicycle and motorcycle cops encircling them, so you need to run in right from the start and get caught up in the rectangle. When it comes time to escape, be firm with the bicycle police trying to keep you inside.
• Stay with the violent ones: Some coalition of vegan pansexual socialists will probably show up with no intention of smashing windows. They’ll complain to you about the masked anarchists (above), and will try and split off from the main protest at one point. Don’t join them. It might be tempting because they’re nicer, but none of them are going to get arrested or smacked around, and that’s what you’re here for.

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Hello again

Last year, Georgetown neighborhood quaked as anti-IMF and World Bank protesters calling themselves the October Rebellion rolled down M Street and caused a ruckus. A young woman was hit in the face with a brick, but it was no Battle of Seattle. The protesters will get a second chance next weekend, when the IMF-World Bank has its next annual meeting in DC.

At last week’s Advisory Neighborhood Commission meeting, MPD’s Sergeant Hackley (of bull’s head fame) said there would be some action in Georgetown. Hackley’s said MPD’s plan basically involved putting more officers on the street. Newly re-elected Councilman Jack Evans blasted her, saying MPD should have a better plan than just more officers. He also talked about peaking out at protesters last week from behind his blinds.

I haven’t found any proof online yet that they’ll specifically target Georgetown, and MPD’s Special Operations division didn’t know or wouldn’t talk. Still, Georgetown’s status as an iconic rich DC neighborhood must make it hard to resist, and they could screw with Homecoming.

Whether or not the marchers come to Georgetown, later this week I’ll give you tips on how best to enjoy an anti-globalization protest.

The October Rebellion, an umbrella group of protest groups, launched an unpermitted march through Georgetown Friday night. The march started at Washington Circle and ended when police cordoned off protests and released them in small groups. According to police, a young woman was hit in the face in front of Wisconsin’s Abercrombie and Fitch and was taken to the hospital. More on the Voice’s Flickr account.

These two protesters were arrested after a policeman was knocked off his motorcycle.

Groups met at St. Stephen’s Church. I saw a can of spraypaint and a slingshot. Someone near me said, “I have three rocks for throwing or whatever.” When they found out we were journalists they threw us out.

But at least we got a picture of their gender-neutral bathroom first!

The Abercrombie & Fitch where the girl was hit in the face with a brick. You can see the bloodstain by the door. I asked a cop if they knew who did it and he said they had no idea because it was thrown from the crowd.
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