Pittsburgh Organizing Group Wants Anarchy in the City
A group of around 15 people stepped aside during the March 29 anti-war march in Oakland and gathered around the military recruitment center. Once assembled around the station they began chanting.
“Burn it down! Burn it down! No recruiters in our town!”
These protesters, many clad in torn black clothes and covering their faces with bandanas, carried the signature red and black flags of the Pittsburgh Organizing Group.
Formed in June 2002 with just four members, the Pittsburgh Organizing Group has held 150 events collectively attended by over 18,000 people, according to its website, organizepittsburgh.org. Full membership lists are not available to the public, but one member says that the group’s active membership is somewhere around 25. POG's mailing list includes approximately 500 people and its website claims that members range in age from 16- to 45-years-old.
On Sept. 1, 2002, three POG members met with a member of the now-defunct Washington, D.C. chapter of the Anti-Capitalist Convergence to speak about labor, the International Monetary Fund and World Bank, and the practice of universities working with corporations. According to POG, about 75 people attended the speech. Afterward, 35 people marched on the sidewalk to protest a visit to Pittsburgh by President Bush.
POG again spoke about the IMF and World Bank on September 22, this time with speakers from Sri Lanka and Morocco. This time, they drew a crowd of around 110 people. Following the speech, 60 people marched through Oakland to protest the IMF and World Bank.
The IMF and World Bank are two typical targets of POG. Both institutions are designed to monitor world finances and provide loans to countries in need. They are often criticized for distributing money unfairly and contributing to world poverty.
The most common target of POG’s actions is the Armed Forces recruiting center in Oakland. “One of POG’s immediate goals would be to shut down recruiting stations,” said Mary*, a member of POG. POG’s campaign against the recruiting station began in April 2005. Since then, the group has held numerous events protesting the war in Iraq in general and military recruitment in Pittsburgh specifically. These include marches, pickets, speeches and a month-long fast. The group has even succeeded in temporarily shutting down the station. The latest event to draw attention to military recruiting was held on March 19.
Before the event, POG announced that they planned to “evict the recruiting station and bring a moveable cage to confine military recruiters until they no longer posed a danger to our community.” This resulted in 25 counter-protesters showing up at the station to oppose them.
“I went early to the recruiting station,” said Gimeno, a freshman at Point Park University. “There was a horse, tasers, a huge amount of cops. I heard there was some kind of tank but I don’t know, I didn’t see it.” The police dispatched a ballistic engineered armored response and rescue vehicle to the scene. The BEAR was purchased using $250,000 given to Pittsburgh by the Department of Homeland Security. POG, however, made no attempt to enter the recruiting station.
“We weren’t actually dumb enough to do that,” said Gimeno. “We went to CMU.”
Recently, Carnegie Mellon University has been another common target of POG activities. In 2005, the university’s National Robotics Engineering Center received a $411 million contract from the Department of Defense to produce robots for use in the military. The program began when CMU received $103 million from the DoD in 1984.
With police and counter-protesters standing outside a recruiting station on March 19, POG members marched to CMU to protest their involvement with the DoD. Protesters shouted slogans such as “no killer robots in our town” and “organize and smash the state.” The group chained a 12-foot section of chain link fence to the entrance to Warner Hall, the university’s administration building, preventing access. According to the City Paper, no damage was done to the university, but desks and chairs were knocked over in the halls. This was not the first time that POG took action against the NREC, however. On March 2, members barricaded the entrances to its Lawrenceville facility, and on January 26 picketed the home of John Bares, the program’s director.
These events have drawn the attention of local media, as POG’s events usually do. The announcement of POG’s intention to overtake a recruiting station gained coverage by far more sources than usual, including Brit Hume of Fox News.
Some activists express dissatisfaction with the coverage that they are given, however.
“We’re slandered in the media,” said Gimeno. We’re blamed for countless acts of vandalism that we aren’t responsible for. They blame us for vandalizing small businesses and that is not a POG sponsored action.” City Councilman William Peduto told local newspapers that POG was responsible for an outbreak of vandalism in the city’s East End neighborhood last June. Between June 2 and June 6, three locally-owned businesses and five national chains were vandalized during the annual G8 summit. Anti-capitalist messages were found on each vandalized building. According to Peduto, a police report connected the vandalism to POG. POG is also known to protest G8, and the vandals wore clothing similar to what is commonly worn by POG members.
Blame fell on POG for vandalism at a Shadyside recruiting station in April of last year as well. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that the station was vandalized after a protest organized by the group.
POG publicly denied involvement in any of these incidents. Members pointed out that arguments against them consist of circumstantial evidence. The group asked Peduto to retract his accusation against it, which he refused to do. In his statement, Peduto said that he received threatening calls from members of the group.
Even media messages from other activist groups in Pittsburgh sometimes disparage POG. In March, the University of Pittsburgh’s Student Antiwar Contingent sent messages about an upcoming anti-war protest via social networking site Facebook.
The messages contained disclaimers informing recipients that “this march and rally will be PEACEFUL and LEGAL, and we are not associated with POG.” According to Gimeno, such warnings are common in the group’s mailings.
“Even in their flyers they would put POG in a circle with a line through it like a non-smoking sign or something,” she said. Gimeno says that trying to keep activist groups separate is detrimental to the groups’ common cause of peace. POG’s website lists a statement of solidarity proclaiming that they will work with other activist groups and will not denounce their actions.
One group on good terms with POG is the Pittsburgh chapter of Food Not Bombs. The group is part of an organization that cooks and serves food around the world at no cost. The group is also active in the anti-war movement. Adrian Taylor is an active member of FNB and sometimes works with POG.
According to Taylor, a five-year member of Food Not Bombs, “POG’s relationship with FNB is good. We like each other, we have helped each other out in the past at events, and we have co-organized events together.” Taylor, 28, says that although the groups differ greatly, they are united by a common goal. Taylor shares Gimeno’s opinion that the media does a poor job of representing radical organizations.
The two also agree that their organizations are treated unfairly by Pittsburgh police. Gimeno points to the March 19 protest as an example of when police presence was larger than required to protect everyone involved.
“Any time we have an event they have more than enough cops with full riot gear,” she said. Gimeno also noted that they have refused to let people sit on the sidewalk during the fast and accused the police of being too indiscriminate in their use of pepper spray and stun guns. Taylor also makes note of the police being quick to act against protesters.
“I don’t know what fair treatment by police would look like, because I don’t think it is possible and I have never experienced it,” said Taylor.
Alex Bradley, 28, has been involved with POG for 5 years. He claims that he is regularly harassed and even assaulted by police at POG events. Bradley appeared in a City Paper article alleging that Pittburgh’s Sgt. Vollberg “shoved him far from the scene” for taking photographs of the officer during a protest. Bradley mentioned several other incidents in which police have been abusive.
“I’d say the majority of the 20-25 people in POG have had violence directed against them by the police,” said Bradley.
POG members themselves are the aggressors of these actions, according to Detective Julie Stoops. Stoops is one of the detectives responsible for monitoring POG’s activities in the city.
“One of their favorite things to do,” said Stoops in a telephone interview,” is to antagonize the police, push the police force to act and then stand back and scream that their rights are being violated.” According to Stoops, POG members may be willing to go further than antagonizing police. She claims that members of the group frequently harass recruiters and threaten to resort to violence.
Most of their actions are nonviolent, though, and Stoops mainly sees the group as a nuisance. She said that members of the group are “basically just acting like little children.” She accuses members of vandalizing recruitment centers and destroying CMU property. Stoops said that she doesn’t know if the group itself is responsible or if members of the group are acting alone.
As a whole, though, POG is not a threat as far as Stoops is concerned.
“They’re not that smart,” she said.
According to Stoops, POG is mainly a social group. Its protests gain a large degree of media attention, but archives on the group’s website show that the majority of their activities are speeches, dinners and other social events. In fact, five speeches are scheduled between March 29 and May 24. In this period, the group has planned for one protest. Bradley sees this as a positive development.
“I’m glad that we’ve gotten more into educational efforts,” he said.
Opinions differ on what POG stands for and even what they are responsible for. Bradley has high goals for the group.
“It’s about changing people’s minds and expanding their conception of what freedom and collective responsibility is and can be,” he said.
Others aren’t as optimistic. According to Stoops, “most of their causes are excuses to act badly.” One thing seems to be agreed on by most, though. For better or worse, POG is a vocal part of the Pittsburgh community and they don’t plan on leaving.
*last name withheld
“Burn it down! Burn it down! No recruiters in our town!”
These protesters, many clad in torn black clothes and covering their faces with bandanas, carried the signature red and black flags of the Pittsburgh Organizing Group.
Formed in June 2002 with just four members, the Pittsburgh Organizing Group has held 150 events collectively attended by over 18,000 people, according to its website, organizepittsburgh.org. Full membership lists are not available to the public, but one member says that the group’s active membership is somewhere around 25. POG's mailing list includes approximately 500 people and its website claims that members range in age from 16- to 45-years-old.
On Sept. 1, 2002, three POG members met with a member of the now-defunct Washington, D.C. chapter of the Anti-Capitalist Convergence to speak about labor, the International Monetary Fund and World Bank, and the practice of universities working with corporations. According to POG, about 75 people attended the speech. Afterward, 35 people marched on the sidewalk to protest a visit to Pittsburgh by President Bush.
POG again spoke about the IMF and World Bank on September 22, this time with speakers from Sri Lanka and Morocco. This time, they drew a crowd of around 110 people. Following the speech, 60 people marched through Oakland to protest the IMF and World Bank.
The IMF and World Bank are two typical targets of POG. Both institutions are designed to monitor world finances and provide loans to countries in need. They are often criticized for distributing money unfairly and contributing to world poverty.
The most common target of POG’s actions is the Armed Forces recruiting center in Oakland. “One of POG’s immediate goals would be to shut down recruiting stations,” said Mary*, a member of POG. POG’s campaign against the recruiting station began in April 2005. Since then, the group has held numerous events protesting the war in Iraq in general and military recruitment in Pittsburgh specifically. These include marches, pickets, speeches and a month-long fast. The group has even succeeded in temporarily shutting down the station. The latest event to draw attention to military recruiting was held on March 19.
Before the event, POG announced that they planned to “evict the recruiting station and bring a moveable cage to confine military recruiters until they no longer posed a danger to our community.” This resulted in 25 counter-protesters showing up at the station to oppose them.
“I went early to the recruiting station,” said Gimeno, a freshman at Point Park University. “There was a horse, tasers, a huge amount of cops. I heard there was some kind of tank but I don’t know, I didn’t see it.” The police dispatched a ballistic engineered armored response and rescue vehicle to the scene. The BEAR was purchased using $250,000 given to Pittsburgh by the Department of Homeland Security. POG, however, made no attempt to enter the recruiting station.
“We weren’t actually dumb enough to do that,” said Gimeno. “We went to CMU.”
Recently, Carnegie Mellon University has been another common target of POG activities. In 2005, the university’s National Robotics Engineering Center received a $411 million contract from the Department of Defense to produce robots for use in the military. The program began when CMU received $103 million from the DoD in 1984.
With police and counter-protesters standing outside a recruiting station on March 19, POG members marched to CMU to protest their involvement with the DoD. Protesters shouted slogans such as “no killer robots in our town” and “organize and smash the state.” The group chained a 12-foot section of chain link fence to the entrance to Warner Hall, the university’s administration building, preventing access. According to the City Paper, no damage was done to the university, but desks and chairs were knocked over in the halls. This was not the first time that POG took action against the NREC, however. On March 2, members barricaded the entrances to its Lawrenceville facility, and on January 26 picketed the home of John Bares, the program’s director.
These events have drawn the attention of local media, as POG’s events usually do. The announcement of POG’s intention to overtake a recruiting station gained coverage by far more sources than usual, including Brit Hume of Fox News.
Some activists express dissatisfaction with the coverage that they are given, however.
“We’re slandered in the media,” said Gimeno. We’re blamed for countless acts of vandalism that we aren’t responsible for. They blame us for vandalizing small businesses and that is not a POG sponsored action.” City Councilman William Peduto told local newspapers that POG was responsible for an outbreak of vandalism in the city’s East End neighborhood last June. Between June 2 and June 6, three locally-owned businesses and five national chains were vandalized during the annual G8 summit. Anti-capitalist messages were found on each vandalized building. According to Peduto, a police report connected the vandalism to POG. POG is also known to protest G8, and the vandals wore clothing similar to what is commonly worn by POG members.
Blame fell on POG for vandalism at a Shadyside recruiting station in April of last year as well. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that the station was vandalized after a protest organized by the group.
POG publicly denied involvement in any of these incidents. Members pointed out that arguments against them consist of circumstantial evidence. The group asked Peduto to retract his accusation against it, which he refused to do. In his statement, Peduto said that he received threatening calls from members of the group.
Even media messages from other activist groups in Pittsburgh sometimes disparage POG. In March, the University of Pittsburgh’s Student Antiwar Contingent sent messages about an upcoming anti-war protest via social networking site Facebook.
The messages contained disclaimers informing recipients that “this march and rally will be PEACEFUL and LEGAL, and we are not associated with POG.” According to Gimeno, such warnings are common in the group’s mailings.
“Even in their flyers they would put POG in a circle with a line through it like a non-smoking sign or something,” she said. Gimeno says that trying to keep activist groups separate is detrimental to the groups’ common cause of peace. POG’s website lists a statement of solidarity proclaiming that they will work with other activist groups and will not denounce their actions.
One group on good terms with POG is the Pittsburgh chapter of Food Not Bombs. The group is part of an organization that cooks and serves food around the world at no cost. The group is also active in the anti-war movement. Adrian Taylor is an active member of FNB and sometimes works with POG.
According to Taylor, a five-year member of Food Not Bombs, “POG’s relationship with FNB is good. We like each other, we have helped each other out in the past at events, and we have co-organized events together.” Taylor, 28, says that although the groups differ greatly, they are united by a common goal. Taylor shares Gimeno’s opinion that the media does a poor job of representing radical organizations.
The two also agree that their organizations are treated unfairly by Pittsburgh police. Gimeno points to the March 19 protest as an example of when police presence was larger than required to protect everyone involved.
“Any time we have an event they have more than enough cops with full riot gear,” she said. Gimeno also noted that they have refused to let people sit on the sidewalk during the fast and accused the police of being too indiscriminate in their use of pepper spray and stun guns. Taylor also makes note of the police being quick to act against protesters.
“I don’t know what fair treatment by police would look like, because I don’t think it is possible and I have never experienced it,” said Taylor.
Alex Bradley, 28, has been involved with POG for 5 years. He claims that he is regularly harassed and even assaulted by police at POG events. Bradley appeared in a City Paper article alleging that Pittburgh’s Sgt. Vollberg “shoved him far from the scene” for taking photographs of the officer during a protest. Bradley mentioned several other incidents in which police have been abusive.
“I’d say the majority of the 20-25 people in POG have had violence directed against them by the police,” said Bradley.
POG members themselves are the aggressors of these actions, according to Detective Julie Stoops. Stoops is one of the detectives responsible for monitoring POG’s activities in the city.
“One of their favorite things to do,” said Stoops in a telephone interview,” is to antagonize the police, push the police force to act and then stand back and scream that their rights are being violated.” According to Stoops, POG members may be willing to go further than antagonizing police. She claims that members of the group frequently harass recruiters and threaten to resort to violence.
Most of their actions are nonviolent, though, and Stoops mainly sees the group as a nuisance. She said that members of the group are “basically just acting like little children.” She accuses members of vandalizing recruitment centers and destroying CMU property. Stoops said that she doesn’t know if the group itself is responsible or if members of the group are acting alone.
As a whole, though, POG is not a threat as far as Stoops is concerned.
“They’re not that smart,” she said.
According to Stoops, POG is mainly a social group. Its protests gain a large degree of media attention, but archives on the group’s website show that the majority of their activities are speeches, dinners and other social events. In fact, five speeches are scheduled between March 29 and May 24. In this period, the group has planned for one protest. Bradley sees this as a positive development.
“I’m glad that we’ve gotten more into educational efforts,” he said.
Opinions differ on what POG stands for and even what they are responsible for. Bradley has high goals for the group.
“It’s about changing people’s minds and expanding their conception of what freedom and collective responsibility is and can be,” he said.
Others aren’t as optimistic. According to Stoops, “most of their causes are excuses to act badly.” One thing seems to be agreed on by most, though. For better or worse, POG is a vocal part of the Pittsburgh community and they don’t plan on leaving.
*last name withheld
