200 Protesters Shut Down Armed Forces Recruiting Office in Santa Rosa

This afternoon, over 200 activists with Not In Our Name Sonoma County commemorated International Human Rights Day by converging on the combined Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine recuiting offices on Mendocino Ave. in Santa Rosa, California, and enforcing a popular closure of the offices by means of non-violent demonstration and blockade.

Starting just after 3 PM PST, a crowd of over 200 protesters marched from Courthouse Square to the recruiting offices, carrying signs, playing drums, and chanting slogans. Upon arriving at the offices, up to a dozen demonstrators risked arrest by blockading the combined entrance to the four recruiting offices, while other activists climbed up to the roof of the building and hung a 25 foot banner over the entrance, reading "Hey, Recruiters, Leave Our Kids Alone!"

The demonstration, intended in part to protest provisions of the so-called "Leave No Child Behind Act" that mandate that public schools hand over their enrollment rosters to armed forces recruiters, was, of course, met by scorn from the recruiters, who promptly locked the doors to their individual offices. Only two or three young people attempted to force their way through the blockade during the afternoon, including one that we suspect may have been an undercover policeman. Other people claiming business at the offices were persuaded to turn back at the blockade. Meanwhile, other activists picketed the front of the building, engaged passers-by, and participated in a spectacular "die-in" in the middle of Mendocino Ave in rush hour traffic that caught a great deal of attention.

No one was arrested during the demonstration. To their credit, the Santa Rosa city police were quite professional, and ended up striking a bargain with the demonstrators that resulted in the recruiting offices being closed for the day at 5:30 PM, rather than the usual 8 PM, in exchange for the demonstration being moved back to Courthouse Square. One by one, lights were shutdown in each office, and the staff apparently vacated the premised. Subsequent verification that the offices indeed remained closed indicated that, in fact, business as usual more or less ceased from about 3 PM for the rest of the day.

Declaring the action a success, the assembled protesters together recited the Not in Our Name Pledge of Resistance, and closed the front doors to the office foyer. Local media covered the event in detail, including one local radio reporter who informed us that he showed up at the event because he'd heard about it on another station's traffic report! :-) All in all, a fine day for local participatory democracy!