Anti-War Protesters Fail To Get Arrested in Raleigh

RALEIGH -- Protesters settled in front of Democratic U.S. Sen. John Edwards' Raleigh office Tuesday awaiting arrest for their efforts to make a statement that the senator has not gone far enough to oppose war with Iraq.

But despite the fact that protesters were breaking the law by blocking an entrance into a government building, the police on site chose not to intervene.

Three participating UNC students, Anna Carson-Dewitt and Sascha Bollag, both freshmen, and senior Scott O'Day, said they were disappointed when the police refused to arrest them. All three have prior arrests for civil disobedience.

O'Day said the police response undermined the protest.

"I am disappointed that the police de-escalated the situation to the point that we were not able to continue with the protest," he said. "We were more or less sure that we would be arrested, but the police weren't cooperating."

But Bollag said that despite intentionally breaking the law, he and other participants tried not to cause many problems.

"We linked arms across the entrance (to Edwards' office) but didn't block entry," he said. "Nine people lay in front of the steps (of Edward's office) as an act of civil disobedience."

Bollag said protest organizers also arranged for music and marches to attract attention.

About 300 people participated in a die-in, playing the parts of victims and mourners of a bombing, on Fayetteville Street Mall -- which faces Edwards' office -- to send a firm message to Edwards. "There were loud noises, cacophony, just like a bombing would be," Bollag said.

Chris Kromm, the event's media liaison, said he thought the protesters got the message through to Edwards. "Our primary goal wasn't to be arrested."

But Andrew Perrin, a UNC professor of sociology, said protesters likely viewed Tuesday's action as unsuccessful because they were not arrested.

"Failure to arrest is not an event. Edwards probably wants to avoid allowing (the protest) to become a symbol," he said. "The protesters have to be pretty disappointed that the police did not feel the issue was as important as it is to them."

Perrin said people choose civil disobedience because it harks back to the successful civil rights movement.

He added that breaking the law raises the stakes and can be effective. "The courses of wars have been altered by civil disobedience."

O'Day said he consistently chooses civil disobedience because of the powerful message it sends. "It is one of the most personally involving forms of protest," he said. "We were showing that we were willing to sacrifice our time and ultimately ourselves."

Another demonstration is planned for Feb. 15, and although the nature of the action is undecided, Bollag, Carson-Dewitt and O'Day said it is likely to be more dramatic to guarantee arrests.

"We were expecting to be arrested," Bollag said. "We thought our actions today would provoke people.

"If one action does not provoke arrest, we will step it up and step it up until we provoke arrest."

The State & National Editor can be reached at stntdesk@unc.edu.