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Guantanamo
On the Hudson: Detained RNC Protesters Describe Prison Conditions
Zell Miller: "It is the Soldier, Not the Poet, Who Has
Given Us Freedom of Speech"
Dick Cheney Was "At The Core Of Some Of The Darkest
Activities In This Country Over The Last Four Years"
Crashing the Party: Famed Indian Writer Arundhati Roy Goes
Inside the RNC
RNC Protesters Stage "March on the Media"
Tens of Thousands Rally Against Bush Labor Policies
Making Protest Painful: Detained RNC Protesters Held in Crowded,
Oil-Contaminated Conditions
Guantanamo On the Hudson: Detained RNC Protesters
Describe Prison Conditions
We speak with detained protesters being held at New York's
temporary holding facility, Pier 57. They describe the conditions
of the holding facility saying it is crowded, dirty and contaminated
with oil, causing rashes. And we speak with the lead organizer
of the National Lawyers Guild's campaign to protect the rights
of protesters. [includes rush
transcript]
Protests against the Republican convention continued yesterday
throughout New York as Democratic Sen. Zell Miller delivered
the convention's keynote address and Vice President Dick Cheney
accepted his nomination to run for a second term.
Early in the day, AIDS activists from the ACT UP group breached
the Madison Square Garden convention hall and briefly interrupted
a speech by White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card to young
Republicans, including Bush's twin daughters.
Outside, five thousand people protesting high job losses
formed a silent, single-file unemployment line that stretched
for three miles from Wall Street to 31st Street, just shy
of the convention center. Tens of thousands other protesters
gathered for two hours in a designated demonstration area
two blocks from Madison Square Garden in support of more union
jobs in the United States.
Later in the day, some 2,000 people staged a "March
on the Media" to protest what they say is uncritical
coverage of the Bush administration by the mainstream press.
Other major protests yesterday included a women's rights demonstration
and a protest against Coca-Cola.
The police arrested 19 people, bringing the total of those
detained so far during seven days of relentless convention-related
protests to more than 1,760, a record for a political convention.
Hundreds of people yesterday protested the conditions under
which those arrested are being held before going to court
saying the site was contaminated with oil and asbestos. Pier
57 is a three-story, block-long pier that has been converted
to a holding pen.
Yesterday morning we received a call from one of the protesters
being held at Pier 57 who had smuggled a phone inside. Detainees
passed the phone to each other and described the conditions
of the holding facility. Democracy Now! producer Mike Burke
took the call and spoke with the detained protesters.
- Detained protesters call from prison
The voices of protesters detained inside Pier 57. New York
City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has denied the city was operating
what some called "Guantanamo-on-the-Hudson." And
defended the use of the of the pier garage saying "It's
not supposed to be Club Med."
Last night, a judge ordered protesters who had been held
for 24-hours released with desk appearance tickets if they
were not charged with serious crimes. Before midnight, some
protesters started emerging from 100 Centre St. around the
block from our firehouse studio. Some 200 supporters greeted
them with cheers and offered food and medical treatment. Despite
the judge's orders, a large number of protesters remain imprisoned.
- Simone Levine, lead organizer of the National Lawyers
Guild's campaign to protect the rights of protesters during
the Republican National Convention.
Zell Miller: "It is the Soldier, Not the Poet,
Who Has Given Us Freedom of Speech"
Democratic Senator Zell Miller delivers the keynote address
at the Republican convention, we take a look at who the Georgia
senator is and why he broke ranks with his party to endorse
George Bush. [includes rush
transcript]
President Bush arrived in New York last night where he joined
firefighters in Queens in a scene that was briefly beamed
into the convention hall and to accept the endorsement of
leaders of the city's main firefighters union, the Uniformed
Firefighters Association.
Across the river, Vice President Dick Cheney accepted his
party's nomination and Democratic Senator Zell Miller delivered
the keynote address on the third day of the Republican convention.
The theme for the convention's penultimate night was "Land
of Opportunity," but both headline speakers yesterday
used their time to blast Democratic opponent John Kerry, depicting
him as a weak and indecisive leader.
Democrat Zell Miller of Georgia abandoned his party earlier
this year to give the Republican keynote address. Twelve years
ago he delivered the Democratic keynote address in the same
hall at the 1992 convention that nominated Bill Clinton.
Other speakers of the night included Labor Secretary Elaine
Chao, and Michael Reagan, the son of the late president, Ronald
Reagan. The president"s other son, Ron Reagan spoke at
the Democratic convention in Boston in July.
But it was Miller and Cheney who were the stars of the night.
We begin with Zell Miller.
- Zell Miller, speaking on at the Republican National Convention,
September 2, 2004.
- John Sugg, senior editor for Creative Loafing, an Atlanta-based
alternative weekly newspaper.
Dick Cheney Was "At The Core Of Some Of The
Darkest Activities In This Country Over The Last Four Years"
Vice President Dick Cheney accepted his party's nomination
to run for a second term yesterday. We take a look at the
Vice President's history with journalists Pratap Chatterjee
of Corpwatch and John Nichols of The Nation, author of Dick
the Man Who is President. [includes rush
transcript]
Vice President Dick Cheney accepted his party's nomination
to run for a second term yesterday at the Republican convention
in New York.
In his speech, Cheney led the convention's most stinging
assault against Democrat John Kerry, depicting him as a weak
and indecisive leader who was unfit to be commander in chief.
President Bush will give his acceptance speech today, kicking
off a two-month race to the Nov. 2 election that polls show
is essentially a dead heat.
Cheney's speech, which was broadcast in prime-time, gave
Americans their closest look in years at a key figure in the
Bush administration who normally shuns the limelight.
Cheney took to the podium yesterday to give the final the
address of the night.
- Vice President Dick Cheney, speaking on at the Republican
National Convention, September 2, 2004.
- John Nichols, The Nation Magazine and the Madison Capital
Times. His new book is called "Dick the Man Who is
President."
- Pratap Chatterjee, managing director of CorpWatch.org.
Crashing the Party: Famed Indian Writer Arundhati
Roy Goes Inside the RNC
Democracy Now! invites famed Indian writer Arundhati Roy,
the author of "The God of Small Things" and Ashwin
Desai, a community activist from Durban South Africa and author
of "We Are the Poors: Community Struggles in Post-Apartheid
South Africa" into the Republican National Convention
to get their view on the spectacle. [includes rush
transcript]
RNC Protesters Stage "March on the Media"
2,000 people stage a "March on the Media" in New
York to protest what they say is uncritical coverage of the
Bush administration by the mainstream press. We hear an excerpt
of a speech by Jeff Cohen of Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting.
[includes rush
transcript]
Tens of Thousands Rally Against Bush Labor Policies
Tens of thousands of protesters gather two blocks from Madison
Square Garden in support of more union jobs. We hear an excerpt
of a speech by Roger Toussaint, President of the Transit Workers
Union. [includes rush
transcript]
Making Protest Painful: Detained RNC Protesters Held
in Crowded, Oil-Contaminated Conditions
Hundreds of detained protesters remain in a holding facility
in New York despite a judge's order to release them. We speak
with one of those freed: Matt Daloisio, a member of the New
York Catholic Worker who was arrested at a protest at Ground
Zero. [includes rush
transcript]
Protests against the Republican convention continued yesterday
throughout New York City. The police arrested 19 people in
separate incidents, bringing the total of those detained so
far during seven days of relentless convention-related protests
to more than 1,760 - a record for a political convention.
Hundreds of people protested the conditions under which those
arrested are being held before going to court saying the site
was contaminated with oil and asbestos. Pier 57 is a three-story,
block-long pier that has been converted to a holding pen.
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has denied the city
was operating what some called "Guantanamo-on-the-Hudson."
And defended the use of the of the pier garage saying "It's
not supposed to be Club Med."
Last night, a judge ordered protesters who had been held
for 24-hours released with desk appearance tickets if they
were not charged with serious crimes. Before midnight, some
protesters started emerging from 100 Centre St. around the
block from our firehouse studio. Some 200 supporters greeted
them with cheers and offered food and medical treatment. Despite
the judge's orders, a large number of protesters remain imprisoned.
- Matt Daloisio, a member of the New York Catholic Worker.
He was arrested on Tuesday afternoon at a protest at Ground
Zero.
For a copy of today’s program, call 1 (800) 881 2359.
Our website is www.democracynow.org.
Our email address is mail@democracynow.org.
Democracy Now! is produced by Mike Burke, Sharif Abdel Kouddous,
Ana Nogueira, Elizabeth Press, Jeremy Scahill and Parvez Sharma.
Mike Di Filippo is our engineer.
Thanks also to Uri Galed, Angela Alston, Orlando Richards,
Simba Russeau, Johnny Sender, Rich Kim, Joe Murgio, John Randolph,
Chris Zucker, Karen Ranucci, Denis Moynihan, Eric Rweyemamu,
Jenny Filipazzo and Isis Phillips.
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