Activists Return to Seattle to Mark WTO

The World Trade Organization meeting that collapsed in clouds of tear gas a year ago is being marked by activists this week in a city that’s now known as much for civic haplessness as it is for its good coffee and charm.

The violent anti-WTO street protests that overwhelmed police on Nov. 30, 1999, left Seattle with permanent scars, some say, even as it galvanized a growing movement against corporate globalization.

“One of the biggest things we learned with WTO is that Seattle is not Mayberry with high-rises,” City Councilwoman Judy Nicastro said. “People don’t play nice anymore.”

To mark the one-year anniversary, an estimated 5,000 activists are expected to gather Thursday for “N30,” the International Solidarity Day Against Corporate Globalization.

That number is a fraction of the 50,000 protesters who showed up last year, bent on blocking streets and shutting down the WTO meeting. By the time the tear gas cleared, about 600 people had been arrested, property damage totaled approximately $3 million and Seattle had become a global symbol of popular defiance.

Seattle officials, who’d banked on a civic boost as hosts to the talks, were instead targeted by critics for failing to prepare and for overreacting to protesters with tear gas, rubber bullets and arrests.

Soon after, Police Chief Norm Stamper announced his early retirement. Mayor Paul Schell, another target of frequent and harsh criticism, has yet to announce whether he’ll seek another term.

Carlos Lavin, 49, who has lived in Seattle for 23 years, said last year’s demonstrations gave outsiders the wrong impression.

“It wasn’t good for the city’s image. It was very un-Seattle-like,” Lavin said. “My view of Seattle is what it’s always been. It’s a great town. But the rest of the country probably thinks we’re a bunch of radicals, which is good because it might keep them away from here.”

The effect of the demonstrations extended well beyond Seattle as officials in other cities hosting trade and banking conferences sought to avoid repeating the mistakes of Seattle.

In Washington, more than 1,300 activists, many of them veterans of Seattle WTO, were arrested at the April meeting of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund. Last month in British Columbia, organizers citing the Seattle protest scrapped a planned NATO conference over cost and security concerns.

Thousands of anti-globalization protesters also descended on the Democratic convention in Los Angeles; a meeting of the Organization of American States in Windsor, Ontario; and the “G-20” meeting of industrialized and developing nations in Montreal.

The WTO, meanwhile, has been struggling to get itself back on track since last year’s meeting, and has only recently begun to discuss launching the next round of global trade talks. The World Bank has addressed a central protester demand by speeding debt relief to several countries.

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Mike Dolan of Global Trade Watch, a charter organizer of Seattle protests, said the movement already has achieved a key goal in changing the public conversation about globalization. “Seattle was a very effective wake-up call for these political leaders. When Congress reconvenes, the debate has fundamentally changed,” he said.

Some, however, express doubt that Seattle marked the beginning of a sustainable movement.

“One of the things that could prevent the anti-globalization movement from really growing would be knowing exactly what the end goal would be,” said Alan Wolfe, a Boston College political science professor.

In preparing for this week’s anniversary, Seattle officials say there will be no repeat of last year.

Police Chief Gil Kerlikowske said demonstrators in the streets without a rally or march permit will be arrested. So far, no groups have applied for permits, including the bands of black-clad anarchists who smashed windows and ransacked stores last year.