May Day Marchers, Police Clash in Several U.S. Cities

Firing beanbag rounds from shotguns, police in riot gear tried Monday to break up a downtown May Day protest involving hundreds of people. More than a dozen demonstrators were arrested.

In Olympia, Wash., several hundred May Day protesters blocked one of the capital city’s busiest intersections to protest global corporations. In New York City, more than 1,000 immigrants protested outside City Hall. And about 400 Minneapolis marchers clashed with police, beating drums and waving flags and signs as officers surrounded them.

Portland police officers used clubs to shove protesters, whose demonstration was organized by a loose coalition of workers’ rights groups. The chaos tied up rush-hour traffic.

Protesters held signs reading, “Farm Workers Yes, Slavery No!” and “Globalize Freedom.”

Sgt. Mike Hefley, city police spokesman, said 16 protesters had been arrested for disorderly conduct and criminal mischief. Hefley said the protest was illegal because it was held without a permit.

A protester broke a Nike window and several threw fiery objects at officers on horseback, authorities said.

The protesters were demanding amnesty for undocumented workers, the end of clear-cutting in national forests and affordable housing.

“I believe ultimately we are in it together,” said Jamey Billig, a Portland UPS worker. “Globalization affects not just 14-year-olds in Indonesia. It affects people in Portland.”

In Olympia, people set up barricades of old televisions, furniture, vines and refrigerators. Police and the Washington State Patrol redirected traffic but did not interfere with protesters.

Twenty-four protesters were arrested in Minneapolis, most for disorderly conduct.

The New York rally was generally peaceful, although police made 22 arrests.