"On Sunday August 24, the peace rally and peace march went off okay on the eve of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) here in Denver. Government officials estimated there were about 2,000 protest participants, far below the high numbers predicted. Praising attendees for being "bold" in showing up, one rally speaker noted that pre-DNC police public warnings of “trouble” (including a warning about mysterious cardboard boxes found on the outdoor 16th Street Mall the night before) succeeded in scaring people from attending. With my ongoing neurological illness preventing me from making firm plans to do anything, my attendance at Sunday's event was spontaneous."
Read the rest of longtime activist Donaciano Martinez's observations after the jump.
(1) Several rally speakers noted that Senator Obama is contradictory by claiming he is a peace candidate, yet U.S. Senate voting records show that he and his running mate Joe Biden both have voted to appropriate the necessary money to fund U.S. wars.
(2) The speech by 1960s Black Panther Kathleen Cleaver was difficult to hear due to a disturbance near the stage at which some protesters were loudly confronting Fox News reporters for being a “pawn of the Bush regime.” Throughout her speech Ms. Cleaver was subdued, not as fiery as she was in the 1960s.
(3) Ms. Cleaver’s lack of fire was clearly made up by the lively and inspirational speech given by young African American activist Larry Hales, the only speaker who did not use any notes during his presentation.
(4) Very moving speeches were presented by Green Party presidential candidate Cynthia McKinney (an African American) and Green Party vice presidential candidate Rosa Cameron (a Puerto Rican).
(5) A very moving speech was given by Fred Hampton Jr., a son of the 1960s Black Panther Fred Hampton who was killed by police officers in Chicago as part of a nationwide crackdown on Black Panther Party leaders. As a modern-day activist in a prisoner rights group, Fred Hampton Jr. is following in his father’s footsteps as a dynamic speaker.
(6) Among the variety of speakers, noticeably absent were speakers from the Chicano community in a city where Chicanos make up almost half of the population. Event publicity listed longtime Chicano activist Ricardo Romero as one of the speakers, but he was not there. Perhaps Chicano/a activists were too busy planning the upcoming immigration reform march to take place this Thursday on the last day of the DNC. As conveyed to organizer Ramon del Castillo, my attendance at Thursday's march depends on how I feel that morning with my ongoing neurological illness for which there is no cure.
(7) Upon leaving home Sunday morning to attend the peace rally and march, I purposely did not take any sign, identification, money or house keys “just in case” something happened that would result in authorities confiscating those items from me. Fortunately, there were no incidents of police overreaction during my participation. Officers were very polite and courteous to me personally.
(8) As the march began, organizers had a pile of signs from which to choose. The messages on most signs were too routine for my mood, so I chose one with the message, “Another Granny for Peace.” You can imagine that such a sign proved confusing and a source of humor to reporters and spectators along the protest route all the way to the Pepsi Center, headquarters of this week’s DNC. Several reporters snapped photos of me carrying the sign and then asked, “Are you Grandpa or Grandma?” To that ridiculous question, my silly reply was, “I am Grandma.” While most walked away with confused looks on their faces, one young reporter stuck around and asked me one more question: “If you are Grandma, why do you have hairy legs?” To that even more ridiculous question, my silly reply was “I couldn’t find the tube of Nair to shave my legs this morning.” At another point along the route, two photographers giggled when one said to the other, “Granny must be a Tranny.” I had so much fun with the sign that it has been adopted by me to use in future peace marches.
(9) Marching next to me was a man wearing a floor-length fluorescent red cape along with a mask of Bush’s face. His costume attracted numerous media photographers. When he removed the mask and cape at the end of the peace march, he was drenched in sweat because of the rubber texture of the mask and the cape's nylon material. It was amazing to me that he made the entire route while wearing such materials in the blazing hot sun on Sunday.
(10) Pre-DNC media stories noted that the federal government appropriated $50 million for security during the DNC in Denver. The media also noted that $1 million of that money was used to buy the most updated technology regarding surveillance cameras. Along the entire route of Sunday’s peace march, police openly used some of those fancy new cameras to photograph those of us walking in the march.
(11) The funniest part of the march took place during a few minutes when the march was brought to a standstill while police redirected some traffic. Standing a few feet from me was a news reporter interviewing an official DNC delegate, who was nicely dressed and had DNC credentials around his neck as he commented on the protest by saying: “I am very confused by why they are protesting against our political party. They should be protesting against the Republicans.” His demeanor and frustrated look on his face were so comical that my wish was to have a camera in order to capture the image.
(12) My pre-DNC memo noted that some protesters distributed leaflets calling for disruption in Denver streets on Sunday afternoon. Carrying out their threat to disrupt, several hours after yesterday’s peace march a few dozen protesters formed a blockade in Civic Center where DNC delegates were having a picnic. Protesters also disrupted traffic at Denver’s busiest intersection at Colfax and Broadway. Right in front of where I was sitting on the bench in front of the public library, numerous police officers in riot gear ran by in pursuit of protesters. Police blocked all traffic on Broadway and Lincoln Streets while trying to clear the area of protesters. The media reported that only one protester was arrested that afternoon.
(13) Over the entire weekend, several SWAT team officers were positioned outside the main public library. With so many law enforcement officers near the library entrance, it was uncomfortable and intimidating to other people and me upon entering the library. A library employee told me that the library’s basement was being used by an agency that was preparing meals (breakfast, lunch, dinner) to feed hundreds of law enforcement officers while the DNC is in town. Officers in front of the library will be permanent fixtures throughout the DNC.
Last night (Monday August 25), there was a street confrontation between police and about 500 protesters and near Civic Center Park. Media sources reported the official police version that protesters attempted to march last night without an official permit (marches are allowed only between 11:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. while the DNC is in town). Protesters countered that police began randomly harassing protesters gathered inside the park for which protest organizers have an official permit. Media sources reported that police in riot gear began using pepper spray upon charging at protesters running from the park into the street. Protest organizers noted that about 100 people were arrested last night and were taken to the City government warehouse that was reported in my pre-DNC memo as being a temporary detention center for people arrested during the DNC.
Numerous DNC delegates were at the library today (Tuesday August 26) before they departed on special buses en route to the DNC at the Pepsi Center. While sitting on the bench outside and feeding crushed Fritos to the pigeons, I had a nice conversation with a strikingly pretty young African American DNC delegate named Latosha. Never before in Denver, she picked my brain about historical racism in this city and state. She was fascinated to hear my story about the “No Mexicans or Dogs Allowed” public signs that greeted my family and other Mexican American families in the 1940s and 1950s upon moving to Colorado from New Mexico. Upon leaving to catch the special bus to head to the DNC at which Senator Hillary Clinton will be speaking tonight, Latosha shook my hand and told me that several pigeons were staring at me as they were waiting for me to continue feeding them.
'BEYOND NORMAL: THE BIRTH of GAY PRIDE' is the title of a new book by pioneer gay liberation activist Gale Chester Whittington (pictured right). His memoir chronicles his teenage suicide attempt while living in Denver and then moves on to his pivotal role in the real beginning of the gay liberation movement in the San Francisco in the late 1960s before returning to Denver where he owned Colorado Seed & Pet for nearly 30 years. 
"On Sunday August 24, the peace rally and peace march went off okay on the eve of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) here in Denver. Government officials estimated there were about 2,000 protest participants, far below the high numbers predicted. Praising attendees for being "bold" in showing up, one rally speaker noted that pre-DNC police public warnings of “trouble” (including a warning about mysterious cardboard boxes found on the outdoor 16th Street Mall the night before) succeeded in scaring people from attending. With my ongoing neurological illness preventing me from making firm plans to do anything, my attendance at Sunday's event was spontaneous."