CALIFORNIA IN BRIEF : SAN FRANCISCO : AIDS Protest Jams Bridge

About 14,000 cars were backed up on the Golden Gate Bridge during rush hour on the first anniversary of last year’s AIDS sit-in on the span, the California Highway Patrol said. The traffic jam resulted from rubber-necking by motorists watching 150 demonstrators with signs and loudspeakers standing on the sidewalk from mid-span to the toll plaza, and the backup extended north to Mill Valley, officers said. The demonstration was conducted by members of SANOE, an acronym for Stop AIDS Now or Else. The CHP had a helicopter in the air and 35 officers near the scene on overtime. “A whole lot of money went for overtime that could have gone for AIDS research,” CHP Officer Bill Wylie said. Last year, a huge traffic jam occurred when 65 SANOE members sat in the roadway.