On January 20, 2005, George W. Bush was inaugurated for a second term as President of the United States. While many were in Washington to cheer Bush on, others were in Washington to demonstrate against the Bush administration. I was with the latter group. We did not agree with the Bush Administration's policies, and were out there voicing it.
I actually got up for this event at midnight. It turned January 20, and I was up and running. I left the house at 1 AM, and, after having to turn around a few miles out because I forgot some stuff, I was off again for real. I made it to the Sheetz in Mt. Jackson for breakfast at 2 AM, and, realizing that I was WAY further ahead than I anticipated, I decided to eat in rather than eating on the go, which I usually do. Not bad. And then we were off!
Next stop: Wal-Mart in Woodstock for some "protest supplies". Specifically, bottled water. So I bought a 12-pack of Aquafina for possible later use. And we continue, on to Vienna.
This leg of the trip is usually when I have the pre-protest mishap. This time, nothing happened, and it went without a hitch. I did, however, encounter the remains of recently-fallen snow once I got to Prince William County. This was from a snowstorm that hit the area the day before, which didn't affect where I lived, but did get Northern Virginia and Washington DC. It didn't make I-66 that treacherous, but going from I-66 to Saintsbury Drive at Vienna, I met my winter weather. Saintsbury Drive, as well as Vaden Drive, which goes over the Interstate, were both a bit snowy. Navigate with care. The driveway into the North Garage from Vaden Drive was also quite snowy.
I arrived at Vienna at 5 AM sharp. It was a bit weird for me, since I usually arrive at Vienna at 9:30. Still dark outside. And Vienna's North Garage was practically empty, too. I got my favorite parking space, which is on the top deck, right next to the elevator. So all was well, aside from the fact that the top deck on the North Garage was a little questionable due to snow. But we made it. Time to hit the Metro, and get my first Breda of the day. I'd estimate that I rode what was probably the fourth or fifth train to leave Vienna that day.
I was truly amazed to find myself arriving right when Metro opened for the day. This is also the first time I'd ever arrived in the Washington DC area while it was still dark. And as you can see, it was quite snowy on the roof of the North Garage.
From there, I went to Rosslyn, my usual warm-up spot. I got a copy of the Express, and read it in the first floor lobby of Rosslyn Metro Mall. Rosslyn is great - it's a place for me to gather all of my thoughts, and set a direction for my day. I used the time not only to read the Express, but also to review all the literature I'd printed out regarding the various events I was considering attending. And then, we were off.
This building at Rosslyn was in the process of being demolished at the time of my visit. What will replace it? Who knows. Let's admit, though - it was quite ugly and I won't particularly miss it.
Upon leaving Rosslyn, I noticed fire trucks outside the Boeing building! No idea what was going on there.
I caught a Blue Line train from Rosslyn to go to Metro Center, transferred to a Red Line train to go to Gallery Pl-Chinatown, and then again to a Yellow Line train to Mt. Vernon Square. At Mt. Vernon Square, where Yellow Line trains go out of service as planned, I transferred to a Green Line train, and rode up to U Street-Cardozo. Why did I take four trains, when I could easily accomplish it in two? Because I was doing well on time, and wanted to ride all five lines right in the morning (remember I rode Orange from Vienna to Rosslyn). It's a railfan thing. Just go with it.
At U Street-Cardozo, I got my bearings, and got directions from a person walking by on how to get to Malcolm X Park, known officially as Meridian Hill Park. I was headed to the upper section of the park. This is where the DAWN (DC Anti-War Network) counter-inaugural rally and march would be held.
On the way to Malcolm X Park, I encountered this sign, indicating that this was a "Quiet Zone". I have no idea what to make of this sign, since I'm not quite sure what it's referring to.
Now let me clarify for a moment. There were two major counter-inaugural demonstrations being held. The one by DAWN, which I attended, was a march through the city from Malcolm X Park straight down 16th Street NW until reaching Eye Street, where we turned left to head to McPherson Square (the square, not the Metro station). There was another demonstration by ANSWER Coalition, which met between 3rd and 4th Streets NW at Pennsylvania Avenue. My perception was that the mainstream media gave the impression that it was all one big demonstration. In fact, in my local newspapers, The News-Virginian in Waynesboro covered our DAWN march, while The News Leader in Staunton covered the ANSWER demonstration. But these were two demonstrations, essentially competing for the same participants.
So I arrived at Malcolm X Park around 8:30. The rally started at 9:00. At that early hour, attendance was light, and people were assembling cardboard coffins, which would be carried by participants from Malcolm X Park to McPherson Square. Additionally, Fox 5 was on scene. I met a group from Washington State who came up for this. Then I went and mingled around for a bit, to check out what was going on. I was once again dressed in the style of the Black Bloc, which has become my preferred style for demonstrations. It makes me feel more comfortable doing my protest thing. Don't ask me why - I don't know. But I hadn't quite completed it at this point.
The cardboard coffins were being assembled on the side of the rally site. Some of the coffins were covered with black cloth, and others were covered by American flags.
At this early hour, some people were already out carrying their signs.
Off to the side of the park, near the street, a vendor was selling politically-themed bumper stickers.
So I mingled around a bit, while the rally's speakers were on the stage, giving impassioned speeches about the war in Iraq and the Bush Administration. Now usually, once I find someone else in full Black Bloc, I go ahead and finish the outfit. I ran into "Becca" from Oakland, California, fully masked up. I joined her in that, and fixed myself up. We talked for a bit. Talked about what we did, where we were from, etc. Nice girl.
This is Becca from Oakland. She was a friendly person, and also carried two film cameras to cover the action.
Meanwhile, people were making speeches from on stage.
"...that the Iraqi oil belongs to the Iraqi people..."
"...we need to spend money on schools, not bombs!"
After a while, though, I continued mingling around. It was neat what kinds of signs were being carried by demonstrators. The DAWN organizers also distributed small orange flags and Sharpies to carry one's own personal message.
A full Black Bloc had gathered towards the back of the rally. Black and red-and-black flags could be found, as well as lots of masked individuals. I stayed clear for now, since I was still checking things out. I would stop in and say hello a few times, but ultimately would not march with them.
Now in mingling around, I, and likely most other people, realized pretty quickly that snow getting walked over and stood on would compress. By walking around and standing on the snow that had recently fallen over Malcolm X Park, we had packed it into some slick ice. Always be mindful of your step.
Still walking around, I had one of those small-world experiences and an unlikely meet-up. I met another former Potomac resident!
So I was all masked up and walking around, and I spotted a familiar face, and I knew it was JMU that I recognized her from. So I said to her, "Do you go to JMU?" In a voice that said, it couldn't be!, she replied, "Schumin?" I pulled my bandanna down to show that yes, it really was me under all that black. It was just like, "Oh, my gawd!" since we hadn't seen each other in like two years. Turns out that she was doing the Critical Mass bicycle events, having been at the meet-up at Union Station (which I didn't go to), and she was going to Dupont Circle for the 4 PM Critical Mass meet-up as well, and invited me to come to Dupont Circle. I said we'll see, as I wasn't sure what I would do after the march at that time.
A fellow Potomac-er, Jen Jackson! What a small world!
The rally was interesting. So many interesting people from so many places, and also so many masked individuals. It being winter and well below freezing for most of the day, it was hard to tell how many people were masked because of the demonstration, and how many were masked because it was cold. Usually a bandanna meant masked because of the demonstration, but you never know sometimes. Even though a bandanna is thin, it really does keep your face warm, though.
As you can see, the crowd was enthusiastic, and took various approaches from statistical to graphic, voicing dissatisfaction with the Bush Administration in so many different ways.
