Gay Rights Activists Disrupt Wilson Visit : Demonstration: Protesters interrupt governor’s speech at UCLA Law School. He calls the actions ‘fascist tactics.’

A raucous and angry crowd of more than 1,000 gay rights protesters, after rallying for hours in a driving rain, shouted down Gov. Pete Wilson as he spoke Saturday at a celebration of the 40th anniversary of the UCLA Law School.

“Racist, sexist, anti-gay--Gov. Wilson go away,” yelled the demonstrators in their latest protest against the governor’s Sept. 29 veto of a bill that would have banned job discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.

Wilson, clearly perturbed by the unceasing racket, was interrupted several times during his speech--even by invited guests at the ceremony--and spent much of his 15-minute speech indirectly addressing the demonstrators.

“It is an unpleasant irony that . . . this law school should be chosen as a site for such fascist tactics,” he said. “These are tactics doomed to failure in a democracy that celebrates the law.”

Police barricades kept the demonstrators about 100 yards from Wilson. Behind the barricades, protesters blared whistles, screamed and shouted for a recall of Wilson. The protest rendered Wilson’s speech barely audible to some in the audience.

Many demonstrators had waited more than two hours in the rain to register their protest as Wilson addressed several hundred invited guests, including former Gov. George Deukmejian and U.S. Supreme Court Justice Anthony M. Kennedy.

But even among the guests, the governor had to contend with protesters. In the first row, about 20 feet from Wilson, several people shouted: “Shame! Shame on you!” Throughout the audience, law school alumni and students voiced their disapproval during the speech. They hoisted protest signs and many wore buttons emblazoned with pink triangles, the symbol of the gay rights movement.

Wilson likened the protests to some unruly actions in the ‘60s: “Like in the ‘60s, justice was a casualty” at the expense of free speech, he said.

But Patrick Marette, UCLA Law School class of ‘92, who chairs the Lesbian and Gay Law Students’ Assn., said: “This is not just a protest of lesbians and gays. Gov. Wilson has ignored the will of all the people. It’s not just some fringe group he can dismiss.”

Others in the crowd were angered by the protesters. Some even shouted: “Shut up you fascists!” which prompted a minor shoving incident.

Law School Dean Susan Westerberg Prager said she thought the students have a right to engage in peaceful protest, but criticized those in the crowd who interrupted Wilson’s speech and her speech dedicating the new wing of the law school. “Obviously it would have been preferable to have a silent protest,” she said.

Police said the marchers had a permit to march and assemble. No arrests were reported.

Daniel Young, class of ‘92, said that if the gay activists “want to follow the governor like a shadow, they are going to lose goodwill.” He added: “This is a ceremony honoring the law school, not a place for protest.”

Starting shortly after noontime in the rain, the protesters staged a rally at the federal building on Wilshire Boulevard then marched through Westwood and the UCLA campus, snarling traffic.

Since Wilson vetoed the job discrimination bill, the gay activists have staged noisy and sometimes spontaneous protests that have disrupted traffic throughout Los Angeles.

One of the first demonstrations occurred when Wilson, along with President Carlos Salinas de Gortari of Mexico, was attending the opening of the expansive Mexican art exhibit at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

Violence erupted at some of the other demonstrations and police made arrests. But then the Los Angeles Police Department adopted a more relaxed stance in managing the protests. Later, however, complaints from motorists angry about the demonstrators blocking traffic resulted in police taking a harder line and threatening to arrest anyone parading through the streets without permits.

In Century City last Wednesday, police arrested nine demonstrators at a fund-raising dinner celebrating Wilson’s 25 years in public service, striking at least two with batons.