The back of a commemorative DNC T-shirt sold by the Denver Police Protective Association bears the slogan 'We Get Up Early to Beat the Crowds - 2008 DNC.' (Photo/Ernest Luning)

The group called for an investigation into the T-shirt and asked officials to “discipline” those involved. In addition, the group demanded that “police training regarding civil liberties be reevaluated, because it clearly has not achieved its intended effect.”

The front of a commemorative DNC T-shirt sold by the Denver Police Protective Association bears the logo '68 with a slash through it, representing opposition to demonstrators' interest in reviving the spirit of the 1968 Democratic National Convention. (Photo/Ernest Luning)

Nearly 2,000 of the shirts have been distributed, a DPPA employee said Thursday afternoon, and 100 more are on order. The shirt was given away to Denver Police Department officers and has been sold to officers from other departments for $10.

Denver Det. Nick Rogers, vice president of the police union, told the Rocky Mountain News on Thursday he hadn’t received any complaints about the shirts and said it’s common for Denver police to produce commemorative T-shirts after big events.

During the DNC, police arrested 154 protesters. On Tuesday, the Denver District Attorney declined to prosecute a Denver officer caught on videotape shoving a Code Pink demonstrator to the ground with his riot baton during the DNC.

From the Recreate 68 statement:

The people of Denver were assured by the city that it would respect First Amendment rights during the DNC, and that that police officers were being trained to do so. The actions of police during the DNC, which involved numerous violations of people’s right to freedom of speech and assembly, put the lie to those promises. And now this appalling, tasteless t-shirt shows why. The members of Denver’s police union clearly have no respect for the rights guaranteed by the United States Constitution.

Here’s the video shot by the Rocky Mountain News of a Denver officer slamming a Code Pink demonstrator to the ground:

According to the Rocky Mountain News, “Sunday events initially pegged for an attendance of 20,000 were estimated by the groups and police as having drawn no more than 1,000 people. About half of the 26 scheduled parades actually happened.” And as for that plan to levitate the mint? “A few dozen protesters were outnumbered — again — by the watching media and police.”

Why such a low turnout? The Rocky asked Mike McDevitt of the University of Colorado, who credits the Bush administration’s strategy of straining our military to its breaking point by forgoing a draft. Gem Bordages, a self-proclaimed “60s hippie” who just couldn’t hide her disappointment while observing the failed Denver Mint demonstration from a bench across the street said, “It’s a different generation (today). Maybe it’s a lack of passion.”

A lack of passion??? Is that why young people across the country spent hours at churches and schools to caucus this year? Is that why my former classmates at Kenyon College waited in the rain for seven hours, becoming the last people in the country to vote in the 2004 election? Is that why my generation volunteers at rates higher than those before us? Because we have a lack of passion?!

Clearly Ms. Bordages hasn’t heard John Mayor’s song “Waiting on the world to change:”

Now we see everything that’s going wrong

With the world and those who lead it

We just feel like we don’t have the means

To rise above and beat it

…

It’s not that we don’t care,

We just know that the fight ain’t fair

So we keep on waiting

Waiting on the world to change

It’s not that we have a lack of passion, it’s that we know protesting doesn’t make much of a difference. Volunteering in our communities or participating in the political process actually does. We don’t want to damn the man, we want to be the man so we can run things better. Oh sure, protesting can be a fun way to pass some time on a Saturday afternoon, but it’s not what changes the world. Not in America, not when we have a democracy that actually works. We don’t have to throw the bums out when we can vote them out.

And what about Recreate ’68, who the Rocky said had the most events that completely fell flat? From their co-founder, Glenn Spagnuolo: “It’s not a numbers game for me, so I don’t keep count on that.” Yeah, OK, Glenn, whatever helps you sleep at night.

Read Jeff’s latest commentaries.

Colorado Independent’s blog-i-nist (blogger-columnist) Jeff Bridges has worked in Democratic politics for the last 10 years, serving as communications director for two congressional races in Colorado and two governor’s races in the Deep South. Bridges also worked for Sen. Ken Salazar as a legislative assistant in D.C., and currently serves on the board of directors for New Era Colorado and the Colorado Conservation Voters.

Mark Cohen of Recreate 68 told The Colorado Independent: “We’re not negotiating with the police anymore. The truce is broken. All bets are off.”

Here is the video:

The News reports that Richard Rosenthal, head of Denver’s Office of the Independent Monitor, will review what happened:

The video shows an officer quickly shoving Forrest with the length of his baton, forcing her to the ground with a smack. Later, as she was speaking with reporters, the video shows police coming behind her and dragging her away.

Lt. Ron Saunier, a police spokesman, said the 30-second video is “kind of jumpy” on his computer and doesn’t give the full context of the situation.

“Just shown in that context, you don’t get what the whole dynamics or the full situation is,” he said.

Richard Rosenthal, Denver’s independent monitor, who saw the video online at the request of the Rocky, said the incident warrants additional review.

“Obviously, looking at that, I’d want to look at the use of force report. I’d want the department to look and evaluate,” he said.

Rosenthal declined to share his initial thoughts on the officer’s actions.

The 22-year-old woman who was shoved to the ground and subsequently arrested is Alicia Forrest from Courtside, Ariz. She is still in jail, according to police reports, and is being charged with interference with a police authority.

Food Not Bombs uses a school bus equipped with a kitchen to prepare meals

The group used a large orange bus equipped with a full kitchen inside to prepare meals. According to one Food Not Bombs organizer, the police questioned the group about the bus, which was parked near the Capitol steps. Members of the group showed the police a permit they had to be there. Food Not Bombs says it has been approached plenty of times by the police about its activities. Most recently, the group was asked to stop providing meals to the homeless in parks.

Thanks for turning my city into a fortress with your overinflated turnout projections. I love to see cops with three-and-a-half foot nightsticks, riot helmets, and tear-gas launchers surrounding every building in sight. It’s fantastic.

From today’s Denver Post:

Maybe it was too hot Sunday afternoon, or maybe they hadn’t gotten warmed up yet, but the tens of thousands of demonstrators that protest organizers promised would march through Denver turned out to be tens of hundreds.

Demonstrations began early Sunday and kept up a steady beat of marching, sign waving — and tying up downtown traffic. But through most of it, protesters were vastly outnumbered by police and, occasionally, even by those who came downtown just to watch the spectacle.

Lt. Ron Saunier, a Denver Police Department spokesman, said the number of protesters that actually showed up was nowhere near what groups had told city officials to expect.

Recreate 68 had projected that 25,000 or even 50,000 people would participate in activities this week. Instead, a group estimated by police at 1,000 to 1,200 participated in an anti-war march Sunday morning, with a much smaller group parading up Colfax Avenue later in the day.

(Photo/Jeff Bridges)

(Photo/Jeff Bridges)

Great, thanks Glenn. Good to know. Now about that Nintendo II…

Read Jeff’s latest commentaries.

Colorado Independent’s blog-i-nist (blogger-columnist) Jeff Bridges has worked in Democratic politics for the last 10 years, serving as communications director for two congressional races in Colorado and two governors races in the Deep South. Bridges also worked for Sen. Ken Salazar as a legislative assistant in DC, and currently serves on the board of directors for New Era Colorado and the Colorado Conservation Voters.

Organizers from the group Recreate 68 held a protester training in Civic Center Park Aug. 23 on the fine art of drum circles, legal observer skills and self-defense techniques.

View and share a YouTube video of this slideshow.

The ACLU is seeking information pertaining to where parade routes will be located, the number of times parades will be permitted and procedures connected to demonstration zones adjacent to the Pepsi Center, where the convention will be held.

The ACLU filed its lawsuit Friday morning on behalf of 12 groups who are planning to hold parades and demonstrations during the convention. That afternoon, District Judge Marcia S. Krieger gave the city and federal officials 10 business days to respond. Judge Krieger has not yet set a court date, which would be the next step in the process.

“It’s not clear how the judge is going to proceed,” said Mark Silverstein, legal director of the ACLU of Colorado. “But the fact that the judge wanted a response right away indicates that the judge agrees that the case needs to be moved on a fast-track and that the concerns being articulated in our papers should get attention.”

Silverstein said his group filed the suit over concerns regarding First Amendment violations that happened at the Democratic convention in Boston in 2004, where so-called protester “free-speech zones” — which consisted of concrete barricades and fencing — were set up outside the security perimeter of the convention site.

A Boston judge ruled that the zones were unconstitutional less than a month before the 2004 convention, but said that there was not enough time to change the plans. As a result, thousands of protesters were prevented from getting close enough to the official proceedings for conventioneers to hear their message.

This year Denver officials have said a parade route will be designated during the Aug. 25-28 convention. But they have not identified any of those routes or areas where demonstrators or other activists will be allowed – and parade permits that have been submitted for the event have yet to be approved.

Activists have been meeting with city officials to discuss such issues since last summer.

After the ACLU announced its lawsuit on Friday, Denver City Attorney David Fine released a statement indicating that no group has been denied a parade permit and that there will be a “vigorous exercise of free speech” during the convention in “many ways and in many places.”

However, Silverstein noted that the ACLU’s lawsuit is designed to force the city and Secret Service to disclose the specifics of the parade routes – including exactly where and where demonstrators and others will be allowed to gather.

“The people who are not delegates, the people who want to participate in demonstrations and protests to communicate their views shouldn’t be treated like they’re some kind of irritating meddling interlopers,” Silverstein said. “Their participation is equally a part of our democratic life and the government actors–the city and the Secret Service–have to treat their right to peaceful expression with the same respect that the delegate’s rights receive.”

The city and federal officials have until May 16 to respond.

The Plaintiffs

The following organizations filed the suit in federal court on Friday against the city of Denver and the U.S. Secret Service.

American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado

A statewide nonprofit organization that works to defend civil liberties in Colorado.

American Friends Service Committee

A Quaker-founded group headquarter in Philadelphia, Penn. that works on a variety of social justice issues relating to militarism and poverty. The organization also has a local office in Denver.

American Indian Movement of Colorado

A group dedicated to promoting the rights and opportunities for American Indians in Colorado.

Americans for Safe Access

A member-based organization of patients and medical professionals that promotes safe and legal access to cannabis. The group is based in Oakland, Calif., but also has a chapter in Colorado.

Citizens for Obama

An effort by Barack Obama supporter Damian Sedney, a Vermont resident who plans to organize a large parade supporting the presidential nomination of Obama.

CODEPINK

A national women-initiated organization that is working to end the war in Iraq and redirect resources into healthcare and education. The group also has a chapter in Denver.

Escuela Tlatelolco Centro De Estudios

A private school in Denver founded to provide an alternative education to Chicano and Mexicano youth and to support issues affecting the indigenous and immigrant communities.

Recreate 68

A coalition of national and local activist groups who plan to protest the war and support other social justice issues during the convention. The organization is based in Colorado.

Rocky Mountain Peace and Justice Center

A group based in Boulder, Colo. dedicated to supporting human rights and the environment to create a culture of justice and peace.

Tent State University

A organization focusing on higher education  policies that encourages students and community members to set up tents and build an alternative university setting. The group was founded in New Jersey.

Troops Out Now Coalition

A national coalition of anti-war activists and community organizers based in New York City that supports the immediate military withdraw from Iraq and Afghanistan.

United for Peace and Justice

A national nonprofit organization based in New York City that works to end the Iraq war though state and local member groups.

“Our purpose is to vindicate the rights not only of the [plaintiffs], but everyone who wants some opportunity to communicate their views in conjunction with the Denver convention,” said Mark Silverstein, legal director for the ACLU’s Colorado chapter.

The ACLU has said that it is filing the suit over First Amendment violations that happened at the Democratic convention in Boston in 2004, where so-called “free-speech zones,” which consisted of concrete barricades under a rail line, were set up outside the security perimeter of the convention site.

A Boston judge ruled that the zones were unconstitutional shortly before the 2004 convention but said that there was not enough time to change the plans. ACLU officials says they are trying to make sure the same thing doesn’t happen this time around, which is why the organization is filing the suit at this time.

“No one will tell us what these restrictions are,” Silverstein said. “We’ve been trying to find out for a year what these restrictions are.”

Plaintiffs say they also want to know more information regarding parade routes and the parade permitting process during the convention, which has not yet been disclosed.

Chicano activist Nita Gonzales, with the Escuela Tlatelolco Centro De Estudios, said that she has been planning a “Somos Americanos” parade during the convention and submitted permit papers in March.

“We have yet to know if that’s going to happen,” Gonzales said.

City officials have said that a parade route will be made available to demonstrators during the event, but it is not known where it will be located or how permits will be applied to the plan.

Representatives with Recreate 68 and the ACLU say they have been meeting with the city to discuss issues like zones and parade routes since last summer, but they say the talks have not succeeded in their obtaining any information.

Silverstein also said that the suit was somewhat unprecedented in that his organization is filing legal papers regarding First Amendment rights when security plans for such rights have not been disclosed.

Stay tuned to Colorado Confidential for more coverage.

The office, which is coordinating security for the convention with national and local law enforcement officials, says that revealing the equipment — including possible crowd control devices — would put the safety of the community at risk.In March, Colorado Confidential filed an open records request in an effort to obtain more information about new equipment that the Denver Police Department said it was purchasing in preparation for the event. The request was seeking procurement papers for the equipment, and not information on how such materials would be used.

The department later declined to disclose exactly what the purchases were, saying that revealing the information would be “contrary to the public interest.”

Now the mayor’s office is speaking on the issue, agreeing with the police that such information could be dangerous.

“It is a valid concern when you’re procuring equipment for security needs,” says Lindy Eichenbaum Lent, spokeswoman for Mayor John Hickenlooper. “To describe the details of that in advance poses an obvious risk that we’re not going subject our community to, nor are we required to do so.”

In St. Paul, Minn., where the Republican National Convention will be held in September, police have openly requested 230 Tasers for all department officers. The Tasers should arrive before the convention, creating speculation that they are being purchased for the event.

Information on the equipment will be made available after the convention, according to Eichenbaum Lent, who says that “we are required by the feds to provide a full accounting of how the [federal funds allocated for convention security] are spent.”

Demonstrators planning to protest the convention have voiced concern that the police could be purchasing Tasers or other “non-lethal” weapons to use as a method of crowd control:

Mark Cohen, a member of the organizing committee for the Recreate 68 Alliance, a coalition of groups that plan to demonstrate at the Democratic convention, released a statement saying that the group is very concerned about so-called “crowd control” and “less than lethal” weapons and equipment the police department may be purchasing in anticipation of protests, including Tasers and other sonic weapons that can be used to disperse crowds.

“Contrary to [the police department's] statement, it is very much in the public interest for the people of Denver to know whether the Denver Police Department — which should be subject to civilian oversight in such matters — is planning to purchase such equipment with public funds for use on peaceful protesters,” said Cohen, who contended that Recreate 68 is planning to engage in peaceful and nonviolent protests during the convention.

Also see:

Denver Police Stocking Up For Convention, But Won’t Disclose Equipment