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On Friday, March 17 at 1PM, Michael Chertoff
gave a talk to an audience of 50 at the prestigious San Francisco
“Commonwealth Club Public Affairs Forum” which is broadcast on hundreds
NPR and mainstream radio affiliates nationally.
There was a vigorous demonstration outside
the hotel held by 12 World Can’t Wait organizers (including a new
recruit displaced from New Orleans) at a bustling intersection with a
20′ banner readingHOMELAND/FATHERLAND SECURITY = AMERICAN GESTAPO.
There was a bull-horn speak-out on Homeland Security and the government
response to the Katrina disaster. The protest was joined by people who
work with different groups including Hurricane Evacuees Council of the
Bay Area, Poor magazine, and the radical Bay View Newspaper – one of
America’s most important black newspapers from the embattled Bay View
Hunter’s Point district of San Francisco.
When Chertoff came on stage and was
introduced, applause was muted. He began his talk on California
catastrophes discussing New Orleans being one of the worst American
disasters in the top three with the Galveston Hurricane and the San
Francisco earthquake/fire. About 5 minutes in, a World Can’t Wait
organizer just back from 3 months in DC stood and pointing at Chertoff
yelled;
“This is a sham covering up Crimes Against
Humanity. Michael Chertoff and the Bush Regime are guilty of
mass-murder in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast. They are carrying out
ethnic cleansing. That is a crime against humanity.”
The Secret Service moved in quickly to rush
him out. There was some vigorous applause. As the protestor was dragged
out, he chanted loudly: “THE WORLD CAN’T WAIT – DRIVE OUT THE BUSH
REGIME!” into the hallway. Even after the doors were closed, the crowd
could hear this guy who just kept going loudly causing Chertoff to have
trouble getting started again.
Chertoff’s response was to laugh it off;
“Well I guess some people started celebrating St. Patrick’s Day early.”
Getting back on track, he talked about how he flew over the weakening
Sacramento levees this morning with Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. He
explained how California was at great risk and started talking about
planning for the next big disaster. Then another World Can’t Wait
protester sprang to her feet — someone in the audience was heard to
say “oh no!” Chertoff halted and she said;
“You knew the levees in New Orleans were
going to break. You lied on television about it. You let people die.
Why should we believe you care about the people of California any more
than you care about the people of New Orleans?”
The security started moving in so the woman
started walking out, stopped, turned and yelled; “THE WORLD CAN’T WAIT
– DRIVE OUT THE BUSH REGIME!”
That evening, at least two Local TV network
affiliates reported on the Chertoff appearance being interrupted by the
protesters interruption and mentioned the protest out front.
