Inaugural Protesters Vow Nonviolence

A day before what they hope will be the biggest display of inaugural dissent in almost 30 years, seven activist groups declared today a nonviolent “day of resistance” against the “illegitimate” presidency of George W. Bush.

The demonstrators said Friday that, despite their diverse agendas, they are uniting to demand an overhaul of the electoral system. This came only hours after protesters failed to persuade a federal judge to relax inauguration security arrangements.

“There are a lot of moderate-thinking Americans out there wondering how we got to this point--not only why Bush is president but why his Cabinet nominations are so far to the right,” said Bob Rogers, an organizer of Voter March, which wants a voters’ bill of rights and campaign finance reform. “The idea that Bush is illegitimate is not something manifesting itself only from the left.”

Rogers’ organization was joined by the National Organization for Women, the Rev. Al Sharpton’s National Action Network and several coalitions representing causes ranging from the saving the environment to banning the death penalty. Many of the groups plan protests on or near the inaugural parade route, while others intend to scatter throughout the crowd in groups small enough not to need demonstration permits.

Protest organizers insist the demonstrations will be peaceful and any violence will be the fault of police.

Authorities have planned tough security, including checkpoints along the parade route on Pennsylvania Avenue. Parade-goers’ bags will be searched, and they might be frisked if police suspect a weapon.

U.S. District Judge Gladys Kessler said Friday that the checkpoints don’t target protesters or violate their rights but the arrangement “sounds like a logistical nightmare.”

Government attorneys have said up to 750,000 people may attend today’s inaugural events and have to pass through the 10 parade checkpoints.

Kessler noted that checkpoints weren’t used for the 1997 inauguration two years after the Oklahoma City bombing, an incident cited by government lawyers to explain their concerns. In 1973, tens of thousands of marchers protested President Nixon’s Vietnam War policies as he was sworn in for his second term.

“We’ve come through some pretty tumultuous times in this country, but at no time have the citizens of the United States had to go through checkpoints to attend an inaugural parade,” Kessler said. “It is a presence totally inconsistent with the fundamental principle of our way of life.”