NATO Blog Day 4: After one last march through Loop, most protesters heading home

As the last crowd of demonstrators in the Loop dwindled, police on bikes pedaled off, receiving cheers from the crowd. Southbound lanes of Michigan Avenue were opened, and protesters headed to the L platform.

About 50 of the protesters went to the Blue Line stop, saying they wanted to return once more to the police station at Belmont and Western where some arrested demonstrators were detained. Many were released this morning.

Further north, protesters shouted their goodbyes and sang a last rendition of "Solidarity Forever" tonight as they climbed onto coach buses bound for Los Angeles, New York, Washington D.C. and other cities.

As with nearly everything the activists did this weekend, they made their departure under the eye of abundant police posted near the crossing of Belmont Avenue and Lake Shore Drive.

Officers watched as the marchers strummed guitars, exchanged high-fives and phone numbers and responded to calls such as "Mic check! Philadelphia is loading."

A man from New York who gave his name only as Jose said felt the loosely united coalition of diverse political interests had made its voice heard in Chicago.

"We apologize to the people of Chicago for any inconvenience, but sometimes, to change people, you need to sacrifice," he said.

"Thank you very much," he added.

Various streets have been intermittently blocked off this evening downtown, including at times all northbound access to the Michigan Avenue bridge,as police try to contain protesters who remain in the Loop.

The protesters have been running and stopping for about two hours, winding up and down Loop streets, turned away from any attempts to go north of Wacker Drive.  At about 9:30 p.m., the dwindling group of protesters, about 100 remaining, sat in the middle of Michigan and Jackson streets, conducting a human mic general assembly about their next moves.

Police remain on alert this evening beyond the Loop, north of Chicago River.  At Ohio and Michigan streets, police officers asked pedestrians for identification, and told one pedestrian that they are limiting walking and vehicle traffic in the area because of the roaming protesters.

At the Wellington Avenue United Church of Christ, a convergence center for protesters from around the country, the end of NATO meant the need to organize bus rides home for demonstrators.

On Monday evening, protest organizers called out waiting lists for buses to go to Portland, Ore. and Los Angeles, with some scheduled to leave with protesters this evening. A few dozen protesters gathered at the site, some eating volunteer-provided meals.

Laura Copeland, 26, a native Chicagoan who spent the last 12 years as an activist on the west coast, waited for a bus to Los Angeles with a contingent from Occupy Los Angeles.

Copeland said she witnessed first-hand the "Moving Day" clash between protesters and police in Oakland in January.  She said the police reaction to protesters in Chicago was worse because she believed it to be disproportionate to the protesters' actions.

"The so-called 'black bloc' here were children in pajamas" compared to violent protesters Copeland had seen at rallies in other cities, she said. "There were no people with bombs. There was no violence... and the violence and oppression by Chicago police was the worst I've ever seen."

She said Chicago police tactics, from the use of massive numbers of riot officers to corral demonstrators as they tried to march through the city, to using undercover officers to infiltrate protest groups, were particularly effective.

"Chicago police were on the (expletive) ball," she said. "They were the best chess players I've ever seen... I feel bad for the people here who are politically active."

As they have previous nights of the NATO summit weekend, some bands of protesters have remained in the Loop, hours after the protest rallies and parades have ended.

With many wearing rags and masks to cover their faces, about 200 protesters left the Congress Plaza rally spot this evening, sometimes sprinting, sometimes marching in between cars and pedestrians, stopping traffic.  They chant a now familiar refrain,  "Whose streets? Our streets?"  

As they have all weekend, police continue to form bicycle and officer blockades at some street turns in an attempt to stay ahead of  the oft-changing flow of protesters.

Several hundred protesters have stopped at Congress Plaza, and the protest has once again taken on a party atmosphere.

This may be a curtain-call of sorts, as protest organizers thanked the crowds for supporting the cause and shouted congratulations and appreciation through bull horns and human mic checks. 

Some are suggesting the crowd go to Montrose Beach, where an end of NATO party is apparently being planned.  Organizers are suggesting protesters take the Brown Line to the party, which protesters announced would start in a few hours.

Those from out of town were told to be prepared for buses that would leave at 10 p.m. 

Protesters are still milling about Congress Plaza, dancing to a make-shift band.

Hundreds more protesters have joined demonstrators who were already in the Loop, swelling the protest to about a block long. 

The march resembles much of what the city has seen this weekend, with protesters taking over streets, chanting, and police officers lining sidewalks and forming impromptu blockades to keep protesters moving. 

Marchers have headed up and down various Loop streets and by government buildings, including the Immigration Customs Enforcement headquarters building.  There, some shouted, "Escucha! Estamos en la lucha," which approximately translates to, "Hey! Listen we are in battle!" They also shouted chants suggesting a plan for a detention center in Crete, Il. be shut down.

Police continue to give these marchers some room, and police and protester interaction provides occaional moments of levity.  Spotting a protester walking by with a donut on a string, hung from a stick, an officer shouted, "Give me that donut!" and grabbed half of it with a grin.  He pretended to eat it before throwing it on the sidewalk, to the laughs of protesters.

Mayor Rahm Emanuel, uncharacteristically quiet during the NATO summit, emerged this afternoon to thank Chicago.

“I want to say a special thank you to the people of this great city, to our public safety officers of this great city, and to the business community of this great city,” Emanuel said, also thanking Obama for giving the city the opportunity to play host to the summit.

The Chicago Police Department was singled out for particular praise.

“They did a tremendous job under very stressful situations over the last four days and they make everyone of us proud of the finest police department in this country,” Emanuel said. “They showed their resolve, their self discipline and professionalism. In fact, their discipline and resolve, I commented jokingly to them, I said I thought you’ve taken my recommendations and suggestions of yoga a little too seriously, given you found a new zen.”

Emanuel also reflected on the historic nature of hosting the summit.

“I think hosting the largest NATO summit in (its) 63-year history, we have reached another milestone in Chicago’s history. As the Columbian Exposition in 1893 showed the world that Chicago was a city on the move at the end of the 19th Century, the NATO summit showed Chicago is once again a city on the move at the start of the 21st Century. By hosting the NATO summit, we have reinforced, reaffirmed and revitalized Chicago’s role on the world stage.”

Emanuel said discussions with the prime ministers of the United Kingdom and the Netherlands as well as the German foreign minister could lead to more business opportunities for Chicago.

Conversations included making O’Hare International Airport the North American hub for the flower trade, which he said the Dutch have 75 percent control over, and having more German firms make Chicago home for North American operations.

Emanuel restated that he “never believed” any businesses should have closed or been shuttered over NATO. While he said he was “sorry for any inconvenience,” he believed Chicago would still benefit economically in the immediate and long-term.

After a virtual sit-in outside President Obama's campaign headquarters  for a few hours, several hundred NATO protesters are on the move again in the Loop.  

They are chanting and shouting, and police are holding up traffic for them as they march. 

Anti-NATO demonstrators who targeted the Boeing Co. earlier today are dwindling in number in the Loop, calling an end to their peaceful rally outside President Barack Obama’s re-election headquarters.

The crowd of a few hundred appeared outnumbered by a strong, uniformed police presence that monitored their every step from Union Park into downtown Chicago and finally onto their last stop at the Prudential Building on Randolph Street. Obama was not at his headquarters at the time, instead hosting world leaders who formally agreed to turn over the role of security to Afghanistan itself  next summer.

Protest organizer Micah Philbrook, of Occupy Chicago, called Monday’s five-hour rally and march a success. "We spoke out against corporate criminals," he said. "The masses of people got to approach Chase Bank, formed a blockade at Boeing and shouted out Mayor Rahm Emanuel. We made our voices heard."

The rally outside Obama’s headquarters took on an air of playfulness and was missing the tense air and police-protester confrontations in earlier marches Saturday night and Sunday afternoon.

Protestors played hopscotch on Randolph Street—a game that had a political message where players start at "police state" and end at "Liberation."

Organizers of the protest said it was officially over after speeches about 2:30 p.m., but about half the protesters remained, mingling, occasionally chanting, and relaxing.

See video by Tribune reporter Matthew Walberg HERE.

Susann Doveikis-West came to the Loop with a sign, "I love Chicago Police and Firemen" to offer support to the law enforcement in the city this Nato summit weekend.  One police officer monitoring the protesters saw her sign and embraced her.  She kissed him on the cheek and cried.

"Don't cry. We want you to be happy," the officer said, and held up her sign to the cheers of protestors.

Other police officers began walking up to her and taking photographs with her, and cheered for Doveikis-West.

"She's our biggest fan," one officer said.

Doveikis-West said she agreed with much of what the protesters were saying, but didn't appreciate the scuffles with police.

She was alone and came with her sign to cheer police.

"I'm proud of my city," Doveikis-West said. "I'm proud of my police.

Without them, (the protesters) wouldn't be out here. They are protecting (the protesters) and keeping them safe. You couldn't pay me to put on a police uniform and get stabbed in the leg."

At 7:35 a.m. today, a vehicle assigned to the delegation of the prime minister of Tajikistan was involved in a minor traffic accident striking a bicyclist at the corner of Ohio and State streets, a spokeswoman for the U.S. State Department said.

The cyclist was not seriously injured but was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital as a precaution, the State Department official said.

There were no members of Tajikistan’s delegation in the car at the time of the accident. No tickets were issued.

After rallying outside Boeing Co.’s headquarters in the west Loop, protesters meandered around downtown streets, chanting slogans against the aerospace company, banks, NATO and Mayor Rahm Emanuel.

The protesters criticized Emanuel, saying he was a pro-war and had spent millions to host the NATO summit instead of investing in social programs to help people. Using a common theme of the Occupy Wall Street movement, the protesters said Emanuel, a millionaire, was a “1 percenter.”

They also chanted against banks, who they said finance NATO’s war machine. They then gather outside President Barack Obama’s re-election headquarters in the Prudential Building.

"We started today out at Boeing’s international headquarters. They've been making millions and millions of dollars off taxpayers,” protest leader Matthew McLouglin told the crowd, which had thinned since leaving Boeing. “They've been making money harming people all over the world.”

Two NATO protesters have been charged with assaulting officers during skirmishes between police and demonstrators Sunday.

Raziel Azuara, 24 was part of a group of protesters involved in a confrontation with police about 6:45 p.m. Sunday at 22nd Street and Michigan Avenue, prosecutors said. While the protesters tried to push east through police lines, Azuaro threw a light bulb filled with red paint at the police, striking an officer in the helmet, they said.

The bulb broke and bounced off the helmet, striking another officer in the shoulder, prosecutors said. Azuaro was captured in a photograph holding up the lightbulb just before he threw it, according to prosecutors.

Azuaro has three misdemeanor convictions in his background, including a 2007 criminal damage to property charge for spray-painting "We kill cops" on a CTA window, according to Assistant State's Attorney Lorraine Scaduto.

Azuaro appeared at a bond hearing today clad in a black T-shirt and camoflage cargo shorts. His attorney, Stuart Smith, said Azuaro works for a paint company. He was ordered held on $150,000 bail by Judge Israel Desierto.

Yonte Harris, 19, was protesting at 301 S. Wabash on Sunday night when he tried to pass a line of police on bicycles, prosecutors said.

Harris "grabbed the officer's bike and threw his leg over it," Scaduto said. When the officer tried to gain control, a struggle ensued and Harris pushed the bicycle into the officer's chest, she said.

The officer suffered a scratch on the arm and felt pain in his knee, Scaduto said.

Harris is a community college student and has no criminal background, according to Smith.  He was ordered held on $200,000 bail.

Both men are charged with aggravated battery to a police officer.

Monday's march and rally had theatrical elements that drew the attention of bystanders and onlookers.  Some filmed the protesters, and others took photographs with their phones.

The activists handed out party hats and sounded whistles and noisemakers, and they threw paper airplanes with anti-corporate messages written on them.

"The media calls us dirty hippies... but we know better!" one protester shouted. "Boeing laughs at you. People of Chicago, we are here for you!"

Some security guards stood outside the Boeing building, taping the rally.

Boeing, which employs more than 170,000 people around the globe, is the world’s largest aerospace company. Besides making commercial airplanes, the company also manufactures military aircrafts, weapons and defense systems.

On a normal day, 450 to 500 employees work from Boeing’s headquarters, but only about two dozen were in the building Monday, according to the company. Boeing spokesman Todd Blecher said the demonstrators were peaceful and that police “appeared to have an excellent hand on the situation.”

“We obviously have a difference of opinion with them, but as long as they remain peaceful and respectful of our property, we have no problem with them exercising their free speech rights,” Blecher said.

After about 40 minutes of speeches, the protesters stood and cheered.  They then marched away from the Boeing headquarters and into the Loop, chanting about class warfare.

"We are the 99 percent! Who are you?"

A few hundred protesters have arrived at the Boeing headquarters, where they are chanting and performing demonstrations.

"Shame on Boeing! Shame on Boeing!" the demonstrators shouted. 

The activists are making paper planes and writing anti-war messages on them.

Others are sitting, giving short speeches about why they are here.

"Boeing is closed today, but it will be open tomorrow. We will stand and we will fight!" one activist said.

Chicago police Supt. Garry McCarthy complimented the work of police officers this weekend, saying they're doing a great job in trying conditions.

"It's very difficult...I'm asking people to go into harm's way, to stand there and be assaulted," McCarthy said Monday morning as he and other officers walked alongside protesters on Lake Street.
 

One Chicago police officer who was stabbed in the leg while trying to disperse marchers was released from the hospital and back on the line Sunday night, he said. In fact, all the officers who were injured are in good shape, he said.

McCarthy estimated that 50 people were arrested after Sunday's early march. He didn't have the totals from Sunday night he said. An additional 18 people were arrested at protests prior to Sunday’s march.
 

On Monday, McCarthy's presence overshadowed the marcher's mission as news cameras left the protesters and gathered around him to ask questions.
 

"I expect peaceful assembly today," he said. "I think those that wanted to be arrested have been and they have sent their message. Really this event has been no big deal. We handle this kind of thing on a typical Sunday."

Chanting, "We're gonna beat back the Boeing attack," and "Hey Rahm Emanuel, take your cuts and go to hell," protesters are heading east on Lake Street.

Chicago Police Supt. Garry McCarthy is walking alongside the route, chatting with other officers.  Police officers on bicycle are lining the groups of about 150 marchers, as police ahead keep the street cleared.

As the crowd passed a waste management garbage truck, the driver blew his horn in unison with the chants, drawing cheers and raised fists from the crowd.

Organizers and activists who have spent the weekend marching and protesting to oppose the NATO summit consider the closure of Boeing corporate headquarters a victory, said Andy Thayer, a leader with the Coalition Against NATO/G8.

Still protesters planned to march from the Near West Side to downtown to get attention for their message.

"Boeing represents the worst of the worst of the one percent," Thayer said, as protesters gathered behind him in Union Park. "These institutions, Boeing and G8 are so loathed...they decided to shut down for the day."

Thayer said he expected today's protest to be peaceful and faulted Chicago police for the scuffles that occurred on Sunday.

"Things went well during the march," he said. "The actions of Garry McCarthy and the CPD was totally irresponsible. There was no need for police to wade in."

At the park, the protesters got off to a slow start. Many of them lingered, waiting for more to join the crowd.  About 150 people were there bundled in their hoodies and fleece sweaters.

About 100 protesters prepared to march toward Boeing Headquarters, but not before practicing some street theater to symbolize what they view as the company’s role in supporting wars.

An organizer asked for volunteers to act as “bombers” and “drones” soaring in and around the crowd and for others to “die off” as they acted.  They’re in groups in the Union Park, practicing their moves.
 

The group was given talking points by Sam Spitz, 21, of Lincoln Square who said his research of  Boeing shows that the company has taken in millions in tax rebates and government contracts while also dodging tax payments. He said the company posted millions in profits, while laying off employees.
 

Matthew McLoughlin, 26, of Uptown said that despite the police presence Boeing’s decision to keep its employees home today, they would still march to show their opposition.
 

"They were scared of the power of the people, because we told them we are sick and tired of them spending our money to kill people," he said. "So we’re going to...let people know that non-violent direct action works."
 

The group plans to protest at Boeing, and at the Obama’s campaign headquarters.
 

Seven NATO officials were struck with flu-like symptoms this morning, according to the Secret Service and other officials.
 

Two were hospitalized, one at Rush University Medical Center, and five others were treated and did not require hospitalization, sources said. All seven were staying at the Hyatt Regency McCormick Place hotel, near the site of this weekend’s NATO summit.

Sources said officials were looking into whether the illness could be food poisoning, but that had not been confirmed.  All seven had eaten at places in common, sources said. 

The Hyatt released this statement this morning:

"We were alerted this morning that several hotel guests reported feeling ill.  We have provided them with access to medical attention and are taking appropriate steps to ensure their comfort and safety.  The cause of their illness is not yet determined and is being investigated.”

After a long weekend of marches and rallies, it appears that many protesters are trying to catch up on their sleep this morning.

Police and TV crews outnumbered protesters in Union Park just before 9 a.m., the time that Occupy Chicago had called for protesters to gather in the park before beginning a 10 a.m. march to Boeing's building just west of the Loop.

Once there, protesters plan to stage a day-long rally against the company, which Occupy-affiliated protesters have repeatedly called a "war machine."

Boeing directed most of its employees to work from home today.

The first dozen protesters to arrive at the park this morning relaxed on bleachers near a softball field, swapping stories about Sunday's protests and marches.

Meanwhile, small groups of police officers wearing regular street uniforms wandered through the park. A handful of officers sat on a CTA bus idling nearby.

Grace Lloyd, one of the first protesters to arrive in the park, said she's motivated primarily by her dissatisfaction with U.S. economic policies.

She also said she's concerned that her cause has been lost amid the myriad issues that protesters have focused on this weekend.

"The whole thing needs to grow, and it needs to grow outside of my group and into the mainstream," said Lloyd, 55, of Rogers Park, who said she's loosely affiliated with Occupy Chicago.

"I think Occupy had real potential to grow into something huge, and I think it still has that potential," she said. We'll see where we go from here."

By 9:20 a.m., about 20 protesters gathered in the park, including a few pulling a cart with coffee and food.

Commuter traffic appears to be down in Chicago this morning as the NATO summit enters its second and final day.

Traffic is lighter than normal on area expressways, where intermittent closures are still in effect on the Stevenson, Kennedy and Dan Ryan as well as Lake Shore Drive.

Metra riders are reporting nearly empty trains on some routes, but some are complaining about having to leave their luggage and coffee and food behind before of severe restrictions that remain in effect today.

Many Chicago companies have allowed employees to work from home Monday, including Boeing and Aon. Some bank branches are also closed, along with Illinois Secretary of State offices downtown.

Motorcades for heads of state attending the summit will be headed to the airport later Monday, possibly also causing traffic headaches.

At least 20 people arrested or detained by Chicago police during Sunday's NATO protests were released from custody overnight, according to other protesters and representatives of a lawyers' organization offering them free legal advice.

A total of 45 people were arrested during Sunday's protests, police said, citing unofficial numbers.

Most were taken to Area North police headquarters at West Belmont and North Western avenues, where about 30 protesters camped outside the station just before dawn while waiting for others to be released.

About 80 people -- including some who walked to the station from the Loop -- had been outside the station at about midnight, but the crowd dwindled through the morning.

One of those arrested is a freelance photographer who was covering the protests for Getty Images, said Mickey Osterreicher, general counsel for the National Press Photographers Association, who waited outside the station until the photographer was released just before 4 a.m.

Some of the protesters camping on the sidewalk outside the station dozed under blankets or sleeping bags, while others shared food and chatted in small groups.

Several police officers kept an eye on the crowd from behind portable metal barricades.

Although the protesters were generally quiet, they erupted into cheers each time another person walked out of the station, welcoming them with hugs, high-fives, cigarettes and food.

As one man who was released walked past a group of police officers, he said, "See you guys tomorrow" and uttered an expletive at them. The officers didn't react.

Most of those who have been released were cited with violating city ordinances, but some have been released without charges.

Noah Brooks, 27, of New Jersey, said he was arrested around 11:30 p.m. while taking photos of fellow protesters as they marched out of the Loop.

Police "kept rushing up and grabbing people, so I kept going back to take pictures of it," Noah said moments after walking out of the station shirtless. "They just swarmed up and jumped on me."

He said the officers who arrested him told him he had disobeyed an order to disperse, and after he arrived at the station he was told he was suspected of trying to steal a jacket and sunglasses from a police car.

Despite the allegations, he was released without being cited or charged.

"They were pretty much just like, 'Did you learn your lesson?'" Brooks said as he dug his shirt and belt out of his backpack. "I was like, 'I guess.' Then they turned me loose."

Brooks said he didn't realize other protesters were camped outside the station until he walked out and saw them cheering.

"Walking out to that was really cool," he said.

Chelsey Sprengeler, 19, was released a short time later. She said she was arrested Sunday evening after she sat on the ground and refused to move while police tried to clear protesters from the area along Cermak Road near McCormick Place where an anti-war march culminated in a rally.

Sprengeler, a student at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, said she didn't regret getting arrested.

"We wanted to continue our protest, and we didn't want to be told when to leave," she said after she was released around 3 a.m. She said she is due in court next month but isn't sure of the charge that was filed against her.

She also said she tried to be as cordial as possible with police after she was arrested because she wanted them to realize that her protest was directed against NATO and other world organizations and leaders, not them.

"There are a lot of issues -- person against person, us against the police -- and it shouldn't be that way," she said. 

After an exhausting weekend of marches, meetings and mayhem, Chicagoans prepared for the final day of the NATO summit.

Commuter traffic was lighter than normal on Metra trains and area expressways after numerous companies allowed employees to work from home, including the Boeing Corp., which demonstrators have targeted for a protest today, calling it a “war machine.” They planned to march from Union Park on the West Side to Boeing’s downtown headquarters.

This morning, it appeared that many protesters are trying to catch up on their sleep. Police and TV crews outnumbered protesters in Union Park just before 9 a.m., the time Occupy Chicago had called for people to gather before a 10 a.m. march to Boeing.

The first dozen protesters to arrive at the park this morning relaxed on bleachers near a softball field, swapping stories about Sunday's protests and marches.

Small groups of police officers wearing regular street uniforms wandered through the park. A handful of officers sat on a CTA bus idling nearby.

Grace Lloyd, one of the first protesters to arrive in the park, said she's motivated primarily by her dissatisfaction with U.S. economic policies.

She also said she's concerned that her cause has been lost amid the myriad issues that protesters have focused on this weekend. "The whole thing needs to grow, and it needs to grow outside of my group and into the mainstream," said Lloyd, 55, of Rogers Park, who said she's loosely affiliated with Occupy Chicago. "I think Occupy had real potential to grow into something huge, and I think it still has that potential," she said. We'll see where we go from here."

The weekend's protests drew thousands demonstrators called attention to everything from foreign policy to the economy.

A standoff between police and anti-war demonstrators near the NATO summit at McCormick Place Sunday left several protesters bloodied and led to dozens of arrests.

The confrontation, which flared up late this afternoon near the corner of Michigan Avenue and Cermak Road, lasted for almost two hours, as officers in full riot gear went nose to nose with demonstrators, with police determined to keep the crowd away from the convention center where NATO delegates were meeting.

At the summit, President Barack Obama promised Monday to end the Afghan war “responsibly” as he and 50 other leaders began prepared to give formal approval to a plan to shift international forces from a combat to a support role next year.

Obama told world leaders that stabilizing Afghanistan was a “vital” mission, but he reiterated that the goal of the two-day meeting was to put the U.S. and its allies on a path to terminate their direct involvement in the unpopular conflict even though years of fighting by the Afghans still remains.

“Our nations and the world have a vital interest in the success of this mission and I’m confident…that we can advance that goal and responsibly bring this war to an end,” Obama said.

As Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari looked around the circular table, Obama thanked countries to Afghanistan’s north that have permitted expanded shipments of war supplies since Pakistan closed off its ground routes six months ago.