Demonstration and Actions Against the U.S. Death Penalty
- Edinburgh, Scotland - 4th July 1997.
Around fifty people met at the city's east end this afternoon at
1.00pm and marched to the U.S. Consulate Building in Regent Terrace.
Anti Death Penalty slogans were chanted and a number of people played
noisy musical instruments including several different whistles and a
large pair of cymbals.
Once at the consulate, the entrance door was "redecorated" with
various anti death penalty posters, leaflets and other literature.
Several members of the press were present including a cameraman from
Scottish Television and reporters and photographers from the Herald
and Scotsman Newspapers.
The demonstrators stood on the steps and listened to a moving
speech about the injustices of the death penalty and about a number
of specific cases such as Mumia Abu Jamal and Kenny Ritchey, a man
from Edinburgh who is currently on death row in Ohio.
An American flag was burned by one of the protestors as the others
shouted and cheered.
The demonstration then moved back towards the centre of town,
where we paused to demonstrate outside the Disney shop, a well known
U.S. run business. Some of the protestors entered the Disney shop and
wnadered around handing out leaflets to shoppers.
The demonstration continued to march along Princes Street, still
chanting, making a noise, handing out several hundred leaflets and
collecting signatures on a petition. When we reached Castle Street,
several demonstrators were stopped by the police and asked to give
their names. One demonstrator who refused (legally) to give her name,
was seized violently by the police and detained before being released
without charge.
A number of the protestors who avoided the police, continued to
the American Express shop on Princes Street, and continued to hand
out leaflets and obtain signatures for the petition.
Saturday 5th July - The Herald (national Scottish newspaper)
carried a report of the demonstration featuring a large colour
photograph of the flag burning.
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