Election Demonstration, San Francisco

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I just got home from San Francisco where I and about 500 other people marched on the Federal Building, demanding "Revote Now!" and "Every vote counts, count every vote!". Similar protests, calling for fairness in the national election in general and Florida in particular, were held simultaneously in EIGHTY-TWO other cities nationwide! When I first arrived in San Francisco at the Powell Street BART station I was thrilled to emerge from the subterranean transit corridor into a throng of demonstrators surrounded by thousands of spectators. One man had a bullhorn and was speaking to the crowd. The horn passed person to person; every one who wanted to speak had their turn. It was awesome! (Mario Savio would be proud!) The posters and signs were great: "Hail to the Thief!", "Every vote counts!", "Votergate!", "Revote now!", "Gore got more!", "Abolish the Electoral College!". The rally was predominantly pro-Gore but there was at least one sign that simply stated "WINNER" under a big "W". And also, "Heck, let's just re-elect Clinton!". Then we took to the streets. Some ad-hoc leaders were careful to restrict the march to a single traffic lane so as to not block traffic completely. "It's growing!" observed the guy in front of me, and indeed: more and more people were joining the rally! Cars honked and people yelled in support; even the bus drivers! Flyers were handed out to passersby. Soon we saw flashing lights and cops ahead of us. I, for one, thought we might have some trouble of some kind, but no, the truth was much different: The police were clearing the way for us! Arrival at the Federal Building was a bit anticlimactic; unlike Powell and Market, the government district was devoid of people, it being a Saturday and Veterans Day weekend no less. The Federal Building may have been a symbolic rallying point, but I think that next time it would be better to stay in the areas bustling with people. All in all, I think it was an unqualified success. More rallies and demonstrations will be held next Saturday as well. Please see http://countercoup.org/ for more information!