Sunday, May 01, 2011

May Day Protesters Lash Out at Obama: 'Obama You Are Not Better Than Bush'

It appears the pitiful gathering in Los Angeles today wasn't an anomaly. Across the country the May Day protests largely lacked crowds, not to mention originality. Yet a common theme seems to have emerged. They don't much care for Barack Obama.
Demonstrators rallied at May Day events across the nation on Sunday, calling for reform on a host of issues and voicing frustration with President Barack Obama.

May Day events in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Boston, Milwaukee and Madison, Wisconsin were considerably smaller than in past years, as some of the hope for reform among Democrats that helped put Obama in the White House has faded.

Marchers in Chicago, where Obama cut his political teeth, expressed disappointment with aspects of his presidency, including his failure to close the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay.

"Obviously campaign promises and realities are completely different things," said Ricardo Ortiz, a student from DePaul University. "But do I think things could have been done better? Yes."

In New York, demonstrators called for immigration reform as well as support for environmental causes, tax reform and changes in U.S. defense policy.

Demonstrators carried signs reading "Legalization now, stop the deportations" and chanted "We are people, we are not illegal" as they marched down Broadway.

"Schools and hospitals are closing, jobs are being cut everywhere, and Wall Street guys are making money hand over fist," said Ronny Williams of New York City.

"And then Washington's spending billions on wars in places like Libya. Half the people I know are out of work," he said.

Some carried signs pairing Obama with former President George Bush. "Obama you are not better than Bush," read one sign.

Immigration reform was front and center in Chicago, where about 300 demonstrators gathered on the city's west side before marching downtown.
Three hundred people in Chicago? Pathetic.

Meanwhile, in Milwaukee, Obama economic adviser Richard Trumka was the main attraction. They also had a paltry gathering.
Hundreds, if not thousands, of demonstrators marched through downtown Milwaukee, calling for immigration reform and respect for workers' rights.

The march Sunday was part of a coordinated of May Day rallies across the nation.
They're looking very uncoordinated these days.

For his part, Obama showed solidarity with "the workers" by enjoying a round of golf today.

1 comment:

Toejam said...

What a better way to celebrate May-day than to blow Osama bin Laden away!

Good work Navy S.E.A.L.S.......................OHH RAH!