War protesters make it a week

In addition to her full course load, Pitt sophomore Sheila Hubbard is pulling six-hour… In addition to her full course load, Pitt sophomore Sheila Hubbard is pulling six-hour shifts on Forbes Avenue for the Pittsburgh Organizing Group.

POG is in its second week of war and recruitment protest, and according to Hubbard, things are going strong. At any given point in the day, a member is holding down the fort – and in the evenings, turnout tends to increase.

“Our biggest problem has been the drunk population on Forbes Avenue,” she said.

Last Wednesday, after POG’s permit ended, Pittsburgh city police told protesters that in order to stay, they had to remain standing and stay out of the way of sidewalk traffic.

Today, the only confrontation with police occurred when a city police car drove by and told two protestors sitting outside of Kinko’s not to lean on the building.

Kinko’s has reportedly called the police to complain about the protesters, who are concentrated mostly outside of their storefront.

Mike Butler, one of two POG members currently fasting and plan on continuing until Sept. 30, said that when a Kinko’s employee came out to yell and swear at the protestors, police made the employee apologize for his language.

Kinko’s had no comment as of Monday night.

Butler has been fasting since last Tuesday, Sept. 4.

“After a couple of days, you don’t feel hungry,” he said. Butler has started sleeping at home most nights and said he plans to start taking salt tablets.

Other POG members plan on joining Butler in his fast as the month continues – Hubbard has plans to stop eating a couple days before Sept. 30.

Pitt sophomore Noah Willumsen, who has been handing out fliers and fielding police for the past week, also plans to fast later in the month.

“It’s important for most of us to be physically healthy,” he said. Handing out fliers has been a large part of spreading the POG’s anti-war and anti-recruitment message.

Willumsen said that the most frustrating part of continuous protesting is being ignored by people on the street.

“That’s a human being, and it’s dehumanizing to walk by a person and not talk to them,” he said.

For now, the military recruiters whom POG are protesting have been quiet, too, Butler added. “We started these protests about two years ago, and it’s gotten to the point where we pretty much ignore each other,” he said.

In light of the anniversary of Sept. 11, the protesters will hold a vigil at 8 p.m. that begins at the Carnegie Science Museum and ends in front of the recruitment center where they have been stationed for the past week.

POG does have a permit for the vigil.

But regardless of their lack of a permit for protesting for the remainder of September, “we’re not leaving,” said Hubbard.