Protesters, who were surrounded by police, stopped in a busy intersection in front of the Xcel Center. They refused to leave the intersection until the police backed off.

“The permit issued by the city is politically and logistically unacceptable,” says Coalition member Katrina Plotz. “The First Amendment guarantees the right to demonstrate within sight and sound of convention delegates. Police have no right to clear us from the streets by 2:00 when the RNC won’t have started yet. It’s also logistically impossible for tens of thousands to march down a narrow street, turn around in a small area and return to the Capitol along the same street. Even Saint Paul Police Federation president Dave Titus called the city's route ‘a recipe for disaster.’”

“The Saint Paul police department, the city council and the mayor have consistently tried to stall, deny and reroute our efforts to ensure that demonstrators can voice their opposition to the war in Iraq,” explains Coalition member Kim DeFranco. “On July 1, we marched along the route we originally applied for. Afterwards, we delivered a petition to Saint Paul Mayor Chris Coleman urging him to issue a permit for our planned route. So far, Coleman’s silence can only indicate his support for the war in Iraq and the Republican agenda.”

After the protest Coalition organizers took a 30-foot long petition that had been signed by activists from around the country to Mayor Coleman’s office.

A hearing in federal court regarding the Sept. 1 march route is scheduled for July 9. Coalition members and Saint Paul officials will enter into mediation on July 7 to discuss the dispute.

#StPaulMN #AntiwarMovement #News #RepublicanNationalConvention2008 #marchPermits #CoalitionToMarchOnTheRNCAndStopTheWar #SaintPaulMayorChrisColeman

Sisters and Brothers,

On May 16 the Coalition to March on the RNC and Stop the War will be in Federal Court. We are seeking an injunction that forces the City of Saint Paul to issue permits for our anti-war march on Republican National Convention September 1. We need your help. Contact Saint Paul's mayor and send letters to the Twin Cities press.

Starting May 12, we need our supporters and fellow protesters to contact Saint Paul Mayor Chris Coleman. Urge him to deliver a final permit to the Coalition to March on the RNC and Stop the War, for us to march from the State Capitol to the Xcel Center on September 1, 2008. Email Mayor Coleman at mayor@ci.stpaul.mn.us or call him at 651-266-8510. Feel free to use the talking points mentioned below.

We began seeking permits for this demonstration days after the Republicans announced they would hold their national convention in Minnesota. While we have a permit to assemble and rally at the State Capitol, the City of Saint Paul continues to withhold a permit for a march on the Xcel Center, where the convention will be held. Saint Paul city government is now saying “wait and see what we give you on May 31.” This is unacceptable.

No important social question is ever settled in the courtroom. Issues that matter are settled in the streets and in the court of public opinion. We need folks across the U.S to demand that we get a permit to go to the Xcel Center – the site of the RNC. The eyes of the world will be focused there September 1.

In addition to calling and emailing the Saint Paul mayor's office with the demand to issue the permits, writing letters to the local newspapers would really help. We want to make it known that people from all around the country are coming here and insist that Saint Paul city officials give permits for our anti-war protest.

The two main local 'mainstream' newspapers are the Star Tribune (Minneapolis) and the Pioneer Press St Paul). Here is the information on sending letters.:

Star Tribune(250 word maximum)

Submit from their website [http://mpls.startribune.com/dynamic/feedback/form.php?opinion=1]

OR... Fax to 612-673-4359

OR... Mail to Editorial Department, Star Tribune, 425 Portland Av., Minneapolis, MN 55488.

Pioneer Press(150 word maximum)

Please send your letters in the body of an e-mail, not as an attachment, to letters@pioneerpress.com. Include your full name and your city of residence for publication. For verification purposes only, and not for publication, include your street address and daytime telephone number.

Please keep you letters short and concise. If you only send a letter to one paper, the Star Tribune is the more important of the two. If you send the same letter to both, send separate emails.

We recommend a few talking points for your letters:

1) Denounce the war. The Coalition to March on the RNC and Stop the War is planning a major anti-war demonstration and the city of Saint Paul is refusing to grant a permit to go to the site of the RNC – the Xcel Center.

2) We are planning to march on the RNC. We expect / demand to be at the Xcel Center September 1.

3) The Coalition to March on the RNC and Stop the War is getting the runaround from the city of Saint Paul. Permit applications have been in since days after the convention was announced. We have a right to protest the war. We need the permits now.

You efforts will help to create the political climate where we get the permits we need.

Sincerely,

The Coalition to March on the RNC and Stop the War

#UnitedStates #AntiwarMovement #ImmigrantRights #PoorPeoplesMovements #StudentMovement #Labor #OppressedNationalities #RepublicanNationalConvention2008 #marchPermits #Statement #SaintPaulMayorChrisColeman #XcelCenter