Colorado Caves To Columbus Day Protestors, Extends Permits To Allow Overnight Camping

**Update
--Glenn Spagnuolo, seen above, erstwhile defender of Ward Churchill and part of the Progressive Italians to Transform the Columbus Holiday (PITCH), has some words about Italians supporting Columbus Day(=KKK), "white identity", colonialism and anti-capitalism (the camera was in my coat pocket, no video, but the sound is great):





AIM and other anti-Columbus Day protestors associated with Transform Columbus Day had planned to camp, illegally, in Veterans Park Friday night--getting "permission" not from "illegal colonizers" and "racist occupiers"--but from the originial tribes in Colorado. On Friday, Colorado's Division of Central Services extended the groups' original permits to essentially allow overnight, illegal camping. The state claimed that the allowance was made so as not to inconvenience the camping protestors; however, the more likely reason was to avoid having to ticket or arrest those campers unwilling to vacate Veterans Park overnight. They essentially defused the situation, so now the protestors will have to earn their civil disobedience and arrest badges some other way (probably by harassing and blocking the Columbus Day parade, as they have so often in the past few years):

American Indians and their supporters peacefully came from the four corners of the state Capitol and the city and county building to camp out at Veterans Park Friday on the eve of Denver's Columbus Day Parade.

And as if to give its blessing - for logistical reasons - the state's Division of Central Services decided on Thursday to extend the permit so that the organizers opposed to the Columbus Day parade could set up their giant teepees and tents in Civic Center and stay overnight.

The permits initially granted were only from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Friday, and from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. today, and Denver and state authorities had indicated they were going to enforce the permits' hours.

"We didn't ask for (the extension)," Glenn Morris, American Indian Movement of Colorado organizer, said. "They unilaterally gave it to us."

Morris said even had the state not extended the permit for their overnight stay, his backers would have defied the authorities saying AIM received their permits to camp out from the elders of the Northern Cheyenne Nation and the Tetuwan Oglala Lakota Band.

"This document grants the endorsement and permission of the traditional headsman, and other leaders of traditional societies of the Northern Cheyenne Nation to members of the American Indian Movement of Colorado and its allies in their actions, including but not limited to, marching and establishing a spiritual, educational and cultural camp, to be held on Oct. 6 and 7, 2006, against the Doctrine of Discovery and Columbus Day, in the traditional Cheyenne territory, now illegally occupied by, and known as the city and county of Denver, Co.," said Morris as he read the permit while participants applauded in approval.

According to an e-mail sent to the organizers, the central services division decided to let the protestors camp overnight to avoid the hassles of having to pack up their tents and belongings on Friday night and return today.

Before this cave-in over permits by the state, a jury led be a lawyer essentially engaged in jury nullification and the destruction of first amendment rights when it decided that illegally blocking any speech or assembly of anyone whose views you find offensive is not only okay, but imperative:

Political correctness won a victory in Denver Thursday, but your rights under the First Amendment were defiled.

That travesty occurred when a Denver jury, in a blatant act of jury nullification, decided that the U.S. Constitution doesn't apply to anyone whose views offend Glenn Morris.

Morris was a leader of the protesters who illegally blocked the 2004 Columbus Day parade, thereby depriving parade participants in particular and Italian-Americans generally of the rights of free speech and freedom of assembly.

In all, 239 protesters were arrested for disobeying police orders to stop blocking the parade. Morris and seven of his fellow Thought Police responded by arguing in court that they had a right to block the Italian-Americans because a celebration of Columbus was "hate speech." In a staggering display of chutzpah, this PC goon squad described themselves as "human rights activists" while labeling their victims, the Italian-Americans, as practitioners of "ethnic intimidation."

Such Orwellian logic in and of itself isn't surprising. The Thought Police have never been distinguished by logic or consistency. And it isn't even too shocking to find a jury dumb enough to buy their argument. We've had juries fly in the face of evidence before, as O.J. Simpson can testify.

But what is most troubling about this particular travesty is that the foreman of the runaway jury, Eric Ruderman, was himself a lawyer. And by his own admission, lawyer Ruderman believed that the anti-Italian goon squad had a right to silence viewpoints they disagreed with.

"All we heard was that Native Americans definitely felt there was a strong element of ethnic intimidation," Ruderman said, adding that if such intimidation continues to exist, the parade should no longer be held.

If you don't like what you are hearing, just silence the speaker. . .a tried and true leftist/moonbat tactic. In this case, illegally blocking any parade you find offensive--defined by you as "hate speech" or "ethnic intimidation"--is a right. To hell with your rights, however.

The state's cave-in on the permits, especially after promising to enforce the existing rules and permits and forcing the protestors out of Veterans Park, is particularly disconcerting in the light of the protestors who faced no legal ramifications after denying first amendment rights to the Columbus Day parade participants in 2004.

Even accepting the argument that by extending permits potential confrontation could be avoided reveals that threatening violence, or at least the necessity for a greater police presence in order to enforce the law created by the potential for conflict, reveals how soft some government officials are in enforcing the U.S. Constitution and existing state law, and how fragile our whole system is when terrorists/hooligans/protestors of any stripe earn concessions simply by creating the perception of potential violence. No wonder the Muslims' rage du jour has proven so effective. The PC mentality was designed to lead to self-censorship, and a loss of our constitutionally guaranteed freedoms.

technorati: columbus day american indian movement ward churchill colorado denver italians christopher columbus glenn morris transform columbus day islam muslim political correctness

Columbuspalooza 2007: Violence At Columbus Day Parade In Denver?--Update: Dozens Arrested, Parade Delayed More Than An Hour

**Update--videos of protestors and arrests, Russell Means speaks; more photos


Blood and babies (both fake) in the streets

**Update--Columbus Day 2007: dozens arrested including Glenn Morris and Russell Means; parade delayed over an hour; photos and video have been loaded on their own separate pages--Columbus Day photos part I; Columbus Day videos part I

Media--Glenn Morris and Russell Means interviewed by Caplis and Silverman, later joined by parade organizer George Vendegnia for a contentious exchange--Means: "You're worse than a German!"

9NEWS reports 83 arrested, "most, if not all, of the people arrested will be charged with interference with a parade route and interference with a lawful assembly . . . 10 of the 83 people arrested may face additional charges of resisting arrest."

Denver Post:

Police arrested American Indian Movement leader Russell Means and 83 protesters at today's Columbus Day parade for blocking the route.

But there were no major incidents or violent behavior, police said.
. . .
Glenn Morris, a member of the American Indian Movement of Colorado's leadership council, urged those willing to face jail to block the parade route. Other demonstrators were told to remain on the sidewalk and out of the way of police.

"We can either watch history or we can make history and today we intend to make history," Morris said.
. . .
Protesters sat down in the street to face off with police after Morris poured a bucket of red liquid bearing pieces of dismembered toy dolls.

Rocky Mountain News:

George Vendegnia, one of the organizers of the parade, said the protest and delay was planned for and caused minimal disruption.

"With this protest, it's just motivating people more to be back next year and exercise their right to participate in an American holiday," Vendegnia said.

---

Russell Means--"This is only the beginning, the frustration has reached critical mass"




Organizer Glenn Morris arrested


Protest leader and Ward Churchill lackey Glenn Spagnuolo, also arrested




The inevitable Che t-shirt


Che gets quoted

---

"This year, we will end it"--Transform Columbus Day/RAIMD

"This holiday is going to die here. The time for talk is over"--Glenn Spagnuolo

". . . an end to the Colum-Bush legacy . . ."--TCM



Slapstick Politics covered the protests in 2006, and Drunkablog was there in 2005. Slapstick's operatives will be at the parade today, check back later for photos/video after the parade. The parade begins at 10 a.m., starts at 15th Street and Court Place, and ends at 14th Avenue and Broadway.

Organizer and CU Denver professor Glenn Morris claims that groups opposing the Columbus Day parade will use "nonviolent, constitutionally protected" methods to oppose the 100th anniversary of the holiday, but a new report indicates that there may be something more than just another "peaceful" protest:

Despite their persistence, the protestors haven't accomplished much in those seventeen years. Morris, a high-ranking member of the American Indian Movement of Colorado, points out that some of the children who attended those early actions with their parents are now adults with kids of their own.

But this protest could be different, and the September 24 meeting was buzzing with anticipation. Heads of various protest "departments" stood to report on everything from the street-medic team (first-aid training was going well) to the squad of legal observers (just look for the bright-green hats). Pamphlets were passed around detailing the legal procedures involved in being arrested, from booking to bonding to trial. It was announced that a private security crew would be provided by Colorado AIM.

One important change this year is that TCD organizers have chosen not to meet with police beforehand to work out the ground rules for peaceful "orchestrated arrests," as they did in 2004. About 240 demonstrators were arrested that year for blocking the parade route by sitting in the streets.

Additionally, because this is the 100-year anniversary of the holiday, hundreds of activists are expected to travel to Denver from San Francisco, New York and severals out-of-state Indian reservations. A few are also flying in from other countries to take part.

Some of those groups may be planning "direct action" confrontations — a clear escalation in the type of engagement TCD has employed in the past. The group's leadership acknowledges that they are undertaking a shift in strategy. Toward what, exactly, no one is willing to say.

Of course what all this means will only be revealed Saturday at the parade.

Denver Post columnist Al Knight notes Denver's mixed response to AIM's strident demands and the rights that the Italian parade organizers are in danger of losing:

It is clear that when it comes to AIM's hatred of the Columbus Day Parade, the law doesn't much matter. The parade protesters are planning to converge on downtown Denver in a show of force before the parade on Oct. 6. However, when asked if they had applied for parade permits, they grandly announced that no permits were necessary because "we are on native land."

This is not just nonsense, it amounts to the purist form of ethnic intimidation, the type that is punishable under state and federal hate-crime laws.
. . .
Columbus may have been less than perfect as a human being, but that is no excuse for denying Italians hundreds of years later the rights of assembly guaranteed under the U.S. and Colorado constitutions.

When and if the Columbus holiday is ended, it will be because the people of Colorado, through their elected representatives, decide to end it, not because CU-Denver professor Glenn Morris and other members of AIM think otherwise.

The Post also cited the new ordinances in its earlier editorial supporting the parade:

Italian-Americans, and anyone who supports the Columbus Day holiday — a federal holiday for more than a generation — have the right to parade, peacefully, through our city streets.

The parade must go forward, but without violence.

American Indians and their supporters have every right to protest the parade, but they should do so without interfering in the activities that so many Coloradans want to enjoy. They should not be able to block the parade from taking place without some consequence.

The City Council in 2005 passed two ordinances that make it illegal for protesters to physically or vocally disrupt lawful assemblies, while prohibiting obstruction of public passageways, such as streets.

AIM and TCD failed in their bid to have the Columbus Day parade renamed, watered down, or abolished.

---

Even the Colorado Historical Society feels the pressure, as the Colorado History Museum which it runs has pulled the decidedly inflammatory "Homeland Security" t-shirt (including a well-armed Geronimo) so popular with Ward Churchill-types until after Columbus Day because of the stir caused when patrons visiting the popular Italians of Denver exhibit noticed the shirt.

Denver Headed For A "Very Disastrous And Catastrophic Situation" At DNC Warns ACLU

"We think there is a strong possibility that Denver is headed for a very disastrous and catastrophic situation"--Mark Silverstein, director of the Colorado American Civil Liberties Union

More preemptive hysteria from the moonbats and their enablers at the Democratic National Convention--a "disastrous and catastrophic situation" if police arrest protestors in August:

Civil-rights activists say a Denver police policy could result in mass arrests and a clogged jail during the 2008 Democratic National Convention, and they have filed a claim seeking monetary damages over its use last Columbus Day parade.

"We think there is a strong possibility that Denver is headed for a very disastrous and catastrophic situation," said Mark Silverstein, who directs the Colorado American Civil Liberties Union.

The policy regards police handling of misdemeanor offenses committed by protesters.

Previous police/protestor encounters at the annual Columbus Day Parade/Columbuspalooza prompted the change in policy:

Until last year, Denver's policy for minor offenses was to give the accused a summons to appear in court. But before October's Columbus Day parade, the police changed the policy to arrest and detain protesters, even for minor offenses. More than 80 protesters were arrested for trying to block the parade route, leading to the ACLU complaint early last month. The claim marks the precursor to a formal lawsuit, although Silverstein said the intent of the filing is to "nudge" the city into rethinking the policy change.

Silverstein says he first learned of the change during a meeting with city officials in July. During that meeting, he says, he brought up the example of New York City's much-criticized — and litigated — policy of arresting and holding protesters during the 2004 Republican convention. More than 1,800 were arrested, and many were held longer than 24 hours, though charges were largely dropped later.

According to notes that Silverstein kept of the meeting, Denver Deputy Police Chief Michael Battista said that for arrests made during protests, Denver "doesn't cite and release."

Battista said the change followed the mass citations in 2004 during the city's Columbus Day parade, in which 230 people were given a summons after they linked arms and stopped the parade. Protesters claimed the event celebrated the genocide of American Indians.

The 230 were cleared, and Battista said a review of the matter found that had they been taken in for a formal booking and bonding out, the city's case against them in court would have been stronger.

And yes, protestors are concerned about the "chilling effect" of the policy due to the charges stemming from the Columbus Day protest--including suspended sentences that will trigger automatic jail time if they are re-arrested at the DNC:

Instead of issuing a summons to the 83 charged with blocking the parade route, the protesters were taken to jail. At least 40 of them were held several hours before they were allowed to post bond, and then they were held several more hours before being released. The claim was made on their behalf.

Paul Bame said he was arrested about 10:30 a.m. on the day of the Columbus Day parade, kept in a cell and not allowed to post bond until midnight. He wasn't released until 3:30 a.m. the next day.

"Some of the marshals in the jail were harassing us, saying, 'Well, you feel pretty smart about what you did now, huh?' That kind of thing," Bame said. "They were communicating to us: 'You've been punished.' "

Bame, who faces three minor charges, worries there will be a chilling effect on his ability to protest during the Democratic convention since some of his peers have received year-long suspended sentences for their Columbus Day activities.

"You can pretty much count on going to jail if there is another instance," Bame said.

Poor, poor thing.

It's hard out there for a moonbat.

Post poll on protests and violence at the DNC--at least 53% believe that there will be major protests and worse:


**Update--more changing headlines:

Original story headline


Updated headline

A little Post "editing."

---

Drunkablog offers his usual humorous take on the protestors' situation and the ACLU's veiled threats.

AIM Protestors Plan Anti-Columbus Day Camp Without Permits From "Illegal Colonizer"

Apparently AIM--with the likes of Ward Churchill--plans to nullify or sidestep state and local law by seeking the "permission" of the "original tribes" in order to camp in Veterans Park, rejecting permits from "an occupying power" and "illegal colonizer":

The American Indian Movement and other activist groups plan to camp at Denver's Civic Center without permits this weekend to protest Saturday's Columbus Day parade.

They say they don't need a permit from "an occupying power" to use their own land.

State and Denver police said Monday they see things otherwise.

If the protesters choose to occupy Veterans Park next to the Capitol as planned, State Patrol officers will remove them, said Department of Public Safety spokesman Lance Clem.
. . .
But the group will not ask permission to set up camp, Spagnuolo said.

"Asking an illegal colonizer for permission to be on land that doesn't belong to them doesn't work for us," he said.
. . .
Still, he said, "We made a decision that we are no longer respecting the authority of the city of Denver. And we have requested permits from the original tribes."

Three tribes have given the protesters the right to camp in central Denver, he said.

AIM's tack this year claims to avoid direct confrontation with the parade itself, but it remains to be seen to what extent protestors interrupt, delay, or block the Italian-Americans' Columbus Day parade. Last year's large Friday anti-Columbus Day rally drew hundreds, and a similar number is likely to camp or congregate in Veterans Park this year. Challenging police to take action will make the focus of the news the protestors and their interaction with police, negating any publicity for the parade itself. Silencing opposition by diverting attention, a tried and true scheme from the moonbats on the left.

David Yeagley, a Comanche, challenged the protestor's logic and motivation:

"Columbus never made it to the mainland (the United States) and never met an American Indian," said David Yeagley, who said he holds a Ph.D. from the University of Arizona in music composition, as well as a master's degree from Yale University's School of Divinity.

"The dominant image of this parade is that American Indians are opposed to anything white or European. I don't consider Columbus to be a threat to American Indians. I consider (CU professor) Ward Churchill to be more threatening to American Indians," Yeagley said.

The Columbus Day parade in Denver has become the proxy for attacks on all "dead white men", colonialism, and any perceived "oppression" from racism and sexism to claims of "genocide" and even Iraq protests. Led by Glenn Morris and Ward Churchill, the local AIM chapter has decided to make an annual spectacle of an otherwise innocuous celebration of cultural history and a celebration of discovery. Blaming Columbus for subsequent wrongs, and their were undoubtedly many that should not be overlooked, represents an oversimplification of a rather complex history between Europeans and Native Americans. Year after year, instead of engaging in "dialogue", a term so endeared by the left, protestors devolve into name-calling and ridiculous "civil disobedience" actions that waste taxpayer money by the need for heavy police protection.

Don't like the parade? Hold your own separate rally, and allow others to hold theirs. It's called free speech.

technorati: columbus day american indian movement ward churchill colorado denver civic center italians christopher columbus

Columbuspalooza Countdown Begins!

". . . an end to the Colum-Bush legacy . . ."



The anti-"Colum-Bush" (hey, he is to blame for everything, after all!) march will be featured the morning of the actual parade, not the usual night before:

This begins the ramp-up for our opposition to the Columbus Day Hate Speech Spectacle.

The Four Directions March, followed by massive rally at the Colorado StateCapitol on Saturday October 6, 2007. March begins at 7:30 am/rally at 8:30. Come prepared to make history.

Protest of Columbus Day Parade 9:30-Noon. Rally to call for justice for Native peoples everywhere, for an end to the Colum-Bush legacy, repeal the Columbus holiday, call for an end to another Columbush imperial invasion in Iraq.

Rock Out Columbus Day Concert, Thursday, October 4, 2007, OrientalTheater, 44th Ave at Tennyson. 7-midnight. Featuring Debajo del Agua and Savage Family, with other indigenous acts.

"Columbuscide - Denver, 2007 •
515 Years of Invasion, Indigenous Resistance and Renewal."
Art Festival, Opening Friday, October 5th,
7pm Laughing Bean Café, 1025 N. Santa Fe Drive, Denver.

On Friday, October 5th, during the Friday night artwalk in the
Santa Fe Drive District, "Columbuscide - Denver, 2007 • 515 years of
invasion, indigenous resistance and renewal," sponsored by the
American Indian Movement of Colorado and Transform Columbus Day
Alliance. The show will expose the deception, death and destruction
embodied in the celebration of Columbus Day, which was born 100 years
ago this year in Colorado.

The show will also reflect the spirit of resistance of indigenous
peoples to over 500 years of oppression and genocide in our homeland.
It will express the spirit of resilience and dedication to freedom for
future generations of indigenous peoples here in on Turtle Island.
Featuring work by American Indian artists, Russell Means, Lawrence
Paul and other native and non-native artists who have provided their
interpretation of the effects of imperialism, genocide, and oppression
which began with Columbus' arrival and that continue today. The show
is being hosted by The Laughing Bean, 1025 Santa Fe Drive, Denver.
This art show is part of a comprehensive series of events to oppose
Columbus Day, and to express a constructive alternative to hateful
Columbus legacy. For more information on other events, visit:
www.transformcolumbusday.org

On a sadder note, the esteemed ex-perfessor, we must relate with heavy heart, will be out of town for Columbuspalooza. You can, should the mood strike you--suffering withdrawal symptoms from Churchill's long absence from the limelight--catch his free and open-to-the-public class next Tuesday at CU.

Midweek Columbus Day Parade Catchup

So let's see, on the Columbus Day front--lawsuits against the city of Denver from arrested protestors at the Columbus Day parade (h/t PirateBallerina); did Glenn and Glenn (Morris and Spagnuolo) lie to the police about their address?; Drunkablog notes the mysterious disappearance of post alleging Columbus Day police brutality; more allegations of excessive force; the protestors' lawyer is citing international law in defense of his clients:

An attorney for protesters who were arrested after blocking the Columbus Day parade last weekend said he will defend his clients on the basis of international law.

"We will file motions before the trial saying that international law and free speech are above any . . . (city) ordinance," Denver attorney Walter Gerash, a longtime defender of protest groups, said Wednesday.

But an organizer of the parade said the protesters violated the rights of those trying to celebrate Columbus Day.

"We have a right to be on that street. We went through the legal process of getting the permit," said Anna Vann, of Denver.

Denver police arrested 81 to 83 protesters - the count varies - during an annual ritual in which opponents try to block the parade.

Most of the protesters were charged with disrupting a public assembly, a misdemeanor. Some also received additional charges, such as resisting arrest.

The maximum penalty on the disruption charge is 90 days, Gerash said.

Columbuspalooza: AIM/TCD Plan Columbus Day "Truth Commission"

"Truth Commission" details, from the AIM-Colorado site:

The American Indian Movemement of Colorado and The Transform Columbus Day Alliance present:

The Official Colorado Truth Commission On Columbus, Columbus Day and the Columbian Legacy

Saturday, September 8 and Sunday, September 9
9:30 am – 6:00 pm
The Great Hall, the Iliff School of Theology, 2201 S. University Blvd., Denver

The rationalization:

2007 marks the 100th anniversary of the creation by the state of Colorado of a holiday to “celebrate” Christopher Columbus. This holiday, and what is taught about it in our schools, has perpetuated a story of Columbus as a heroic figure, a great explorer who brought the gifts of civilization to the New World. But this “official story” is only one perspective; there are others that needs to be told. For nearly 20 years, the American Indian Movement of Colorado (AIM) and its allies in the Transform Columbus Day Alliance (TCD) have invited Denver and Colorado political leaders to co-sponsor a community dialogue about how that celebration represents the history of this country, and the consequences of that representation. Those invitations have met with no response. AIM/TCD is now moving forward with its own Truth Commission.
. . .
After hearing testimony, the Truth Commission will issue findings of fact, and recommendations about how Colorado and the U.S. might move forward from the division and acrimony of the past to a future of mutual respect and historical integrity. A report, along with audio and video documentation from the hearings, will be available for educators, students, and political, religious and community leaders.

Distinguished commissioners who will hear testimony and issue a report include Dr. Vincent Harding, Iliff School of Theology; Professor Nancy Ehrenreich, University of Denver Sturm College of Law; Professor Salvatore Salerno, University of Minnesota; Carrie Dann, Western Shoshone Nation.

Hmmm, not quite sure what conclusion this kangaroo court "Truth Commission" will derive from the testimony presented . . . oh wait, lemme guess--guilty?

And what, Ward Churchill didn't make the final cut for the "Commission"? He's the "expert"--and should have plenty of time on his hands these days given his recent dismissal from CU-Boulder.

This is all, of course, a prelude to the big shindig that will transpire October 6, the 100th anniversary of the Columbus Day holiday:

More Columbus Day Whining

"Being led by a cavalry unit in a uniform from the Indian Wars exemplifies perfectly what this is about: It is about conquest, genocide and hatred”


From last year's "festivities"

Columbus Day represents "conquest, genocide and hatred", charges AIM organizer and CU Denver professor Glenn Morris (even the commenters in Boulder don't buy these arguments):

Denver’s Columbus Day Parade will mark its 100th anniversary this weekend and like previous parades this one is expected to be contentious, with hundreds of American Indians and supporters turning out to condemn Columbus as a genocidal oppressor.

Organizers of a protest march called the All Nations/Four Directions March stepped up their rhetoric by likening last year’s use of reenactors of a 19th century U.S. Army Cavalry unit to carry the flag before the start of the parade to nooses used to intimidate black students in the central Louisiana town of Jena.

“Being led by a cavalry unit in a uniform from the Indian Wars exemplifies perfectly what this is about: It is about conquest, genocide and hatred,” said Glenn Morris, a member of the American Indian Movement leadership council and an organizer of the protest.

Parade organizer George Vendegnia of the Sons of Italy New Generation said the cavalry unit has always been a part of the parade, though they haven’t before been noted by the protest groups.

“It’s only three guys on horses,” Vendegnia said. “All this time (they’re saying) it was genocide by Columbus because he reigned through Spain and now they’re saying the cavalry did it. That’s their next attack group.

“If the U.S. cavalry committed genocide, why don’t they protest President’s Day?”

But Columbus Day is just a "celebration of hate":

“A hundred years is enough of a celebration that is nothing more than hate speech,” said Mark Cohen, a member of the alliance. “This vile and racist celebration that started here must end here.”

The "threats" continue . . .

More from Ward Churchill (he'll be "away" this weekend) lapdog Glenn Spagnuolo and friends:

Mike Graham, of Oklahoma, said the holiday is a celebration of racism and genocide, and called Columbus the Americas' first terrorist.

Glenn Spagnuolo, representing PITCH - Progressive Italians Transforming the Columbus Holiday, said Italians from Italy would be flying in to join the protest. "The parade you are going to see has nothing to do with Italian culture," he said.

When asked if he and others had obtained permits for their demonstration, Spagnuolo said, "We don't need a permit, because we are on native land."

Meanwhile, last year's parade and protests were captured here (photos) and in this video:

Columbuspalooza: Columbus Day Truth Commission Renders Verdict

The "truthers" of the Columbus Day Truth Commission have a reached a verdict--a real shocker:

Colorado AIM and the Transform Columbus Day Alliance held a two-day Truth Commission in Denver on Sept. 8-9 as Colorado gears up for the 100th year since it began celebrating Columbus Day and as activists mobilized to oppose to the iconization of the slave trader and mass murderer.
. . .
Even the most conservative estimates of the population of Indigenous people say that the Caribbean islands were inhabited by 8 million people before 1492, this according to Shelburne Cook and Woodrow Borah’s “Essays in Population History” Vol. I, Chapter VI. By the time Columbus left the Caribbean in 1500, due to his policies, which included setting up a slave system (encomienda), and to practices such as cutting off the hands of Taíno people who did not meet a quota of gold, the population had been decimated. (Transformcolumbusday.com)
. . .
Glenn Morris testified about the legacy of Columbus on Indigenous people and what it means today, as U.S. imperialism aggressively targets poor workers around the world for highly exploitable labor and to steal the resources underneath their feet.

Ultimately, Morris said, the Doctrine of Discovery is a thin veil for white supremacy. As European nations were competing with one another for riches, they were able to share in an ideology that exerted their superiority over darker people around the world. This doctrine was used to validate the mass murder of people for profit and the enslavement of them. It continues to do so today, said Morris, as there has never been a dialogue around the colonization of the Americas and slavery and how the U.S. was born into the world dripping with blood from head to toe.

The Truth Commission, just like the International Tribunal on Hurricanes Katrina/Rita, provided the true history of people. As the struggle to stop imperialist wars abroad and the war against the oppressed and workers in the U.S. intensifies, this truth becomes increasingly more important and provides the history that will inundate the lies of the oppressors.

Articles copyright 1995-2007 Workers World. Verbatim copying and distribution of this entire article is permitted in any medium without royalty provided this notice is preserved.

There has "never been a dialogue"? What about all the multi-culti, diversity, PC-mongering for the past 30 years, along with mea culpas, legitimate academic inquiries and the recognition of past injustices on nearly a daily basis? Is Glenn literally saying that nothing has changed?

You betcha.

Columbus Day Protestors Allege Excessive Force By Police

Moonbat Columbus Day protestors, after resisting arrest, now allege that Denver police are guilty of using "excessive force" to remove them from the street as they blocked the parade route:

A police watchdog group released video Friday they said shows Denver police using excessive force.

CopWatch said they had six cameras at the Columbus Day Parade protests, where demonstrators who staged a mid-street sit-in were hauled off by Denver police.

Cameras from 7NEWS were there as well and showed some protesters apparently resisting arrest.

However, Stephen Nash, a CopWatch spokesman, said after the protesters were removed from the sit-in, officers used pain-compliance holds on people who were already in police custody and on some who weren’t resisting.

He said non-violent protestors did not deserve that level of force and that officers could have used other non-violent techniques or handcuffs to make the arrests.

"Police have been using pain holds more and more in demonstrations across the country to kind of expand what they're allowed to do," said Nash.

CopWatch said it plans to show the video to the ACLU and other legal groups to determine if they have a human rights case against the police department.

These allegations were probably prefabricated before the parade even took place--any arrest or attempt to engage the "peaceful" protestors would be met with just such allegations.

Take a look at the photos and videos from the Columbus Day parade, and make the call. Lots of resistance, not much force.

Columbus Day Parade

Video roundup of today's Columbus Day parade/Transform Columbus Day festivities:



Background on yesterday's Transform Columbus Day campout, with the state of Colorado caving in to the threats of protestors to illegally remain in Veterans Park without a permit. So much for the rule of law; when threatened with violence or disruption, simply concede to the protestors' demands.


Ward Churchill exchanged "pleasantries" with some of the parade marchers.


Protestor "security" (in black, wearing "Troops Out Now") flanked by protestors with "dead babies" symbolizing the destruction of Indians--so they claim.


Obligatory WTF? poster.

More photos:

Columbus Day Protestors' Defense Plans To Put Columbus On Trial

Looks like Ward Churchill's old buddy David Lane is trotting out the "we can do anything we want because our opinions matter more than any law" defense:

Defense lawyers argued Wednesday that Columbus Day protesters had a right to block a Denver parade because it celebrated a man whom American Indians view as a slave trader, murderer and rapist.

"Are you aware that to some [?--ed.] Native Americans, celebrating Columbus is the same as celebrating Hitler to Jews?" attorney David Lane asked prospective jurors during the first in a series of trials for more than 80 people arrested in the Oct. 6 protest.

Denver police made the arrests in an annual ritual in which opponents try to block the parade.

Lane argued that the parade is a form of "ethnic intimidation," similar to burning a cross on a black family's lawn.

City attorneys countered that the parade was legal because it had a permit. The only issue for the jury is whether the protesters violated city ordinances, such as blocking the street, they said.

"They want to use this to put Columbus on trial. That's not what this is all about," said assistant city attorney Melissa Drazen-Smith.

Surprising that Lane added the caveat "some". Giving offense, apparently, legitimizes the actions of the protestors.

Those on trial include:

The defendants are University of Colorado political science professor Glenn Morris, who has been in several of the annual Columbus Day protests; the Rev. Julie Todd, a Methodist minister who is a doctoral candidate at the Iliff School of Theology, and Koreena Montoya of Denver.

More on the defense's tactics in court (hoping something will stick):

The lawyers for the defendants made various opposing arguments, saying their clients may not have known they were breaking the law, that the police may not have sufficiently warned them and that Columbus was a murderer and a slave trader.

The first argument is clearly a load of BS--what with all the green-hatted "legal observers" there (and surely Lane was consulted beforehand).

The second argument is also ridiculous on its face. One only need watch the videos from the parade posted on this blog to hear the repeated, clear warnings issued by the Denver Police. Either the defense expects the jury to be stupid, or the protestors temporarily went deaf (could be those bandannas and the repetitive drum banging as well).

As for the third reason, it is clear that the arrested protestors and their defense wish to lecture the jury with their version of a "history lesson"/academic colloquium on Columbus.

What doesn't appear to be happening is a challenge of the city's ordinances prohibiting anyone from blocking a lawful parade with legitimate permits for any reason. The protestors would simply offer that their free speech rights and alleged "moral superiority" would trump any such trifling legal restriction. Beyond that, city/state/federal laws are ALL inherently illegitimate, based as they are upon white colonial power:

"Asking an illegal colonizer for permission to be on land that doesn't belong to them doesn't work for us"--Glenn Spagnuolo

Around The Drunkablog/PirateBallerina Axis; Columbus Day Update

The jackbooted thugs are wading through Ward's waste so you don't have to--Drunka takes on the (Stanley Fish) Fishman's analysis of Indoctrinate U and the politicization of academic "fields" like ethnic or gender studies, and strongly advises against listening to Ward's most recent bloviations "interview" (you know you want to!).

And in the second-half of the Wardo-related double feature, Drunka analyzes the still impending charges against CU instructor Benjamin Whitmer, in what PB appropriately dubs the "genocide of Benjie Whitmer's hand". PB also updates on Ward's Canadian adventures.

Thankfully the Revolutionary Anti-Imperialist Movement-Denver finally saw fit to update their own site and provide the "correct" version of events at Denver's Columbus Day Parade. They did manage to make use of the video provided by "some idiot white trash racist blogger", and though they failed to provide a link, I'm sure the crushing blow of traffic from their site would have overwhelmed the tiny servers at Google.

They did manage to post this photo:



The revolutionary moonbats touted their aggressive efforts on behalf of the imperially oppressed:

After the parade, the marchers went to the City and County building to await word on their comrades arrested earlier. While gathered there, a number of people took down the Amerikan flag flying above and turned it upside down and secured it in its new position with a lock. It was flying that way for hours.

This flagrant abuse of our nation's flag lasted less than a day. So much for the revolution . . .

But this really wasn't about KKKolumbus Day:

The celebration of Kolumbus Day is one symptom of Amerikan imperialism, and the only way to end Kolumbus Day is to end Amerika.

Based on RAIM-D's stellar efforts so far, the United States will certainly be around long after your moonbat kkkorpses (see, we can use K's too!) have been carbon-neutrally recycled into earth-saving and population decreasing KKKompost.

Columbus Day Photos

More photos to follow, but here is the first batch:


Leftovers from Ward Churchill's private goon squad


A common theme among protest signs


A mainstay of recent Columbus Day protests in Denver


There were at least 40 "legal observers" milling around, easily identified by their green hats


Ad hoc "street medics" reminded arrested protesters to "breathe deeply"


A moonbat staff photographer--what, no kaffiyeh?


Many moonbats . . .


A sea of signs


Protesting the legality of the permits issued to the Columbus Day Parade


To deal with the protestors, police in riot gear prepared for confrontation


There was no violence, but plenty of fake blood and street theater


Arrested moonbats celebrated their "stand"


Anarchists' heroes


A few brave Italians looked on as protestors were arrested


"When tyranny is law, revolution is order"


The first round of arrests concluded, Russell Means moves up to confront the stalled parade a few hundred feet away


Trying to keep the moonbats on the sidewalk was no easy task


Che/Chican@ Power


The bird was everywhere


The Statue of Liberty gazes at hecklers


What would a moonbat protest be without Workers World?


Moonbat unmasks after a difficult hour of protesting and takes a break to study Workers World


Hey, that rhymes!


The protestors delayed the parade and got themselves arrested but to little effect