Authorities, Wary of Violent Protests, Beef Up Security in Pittsburgh Ahead of G-20 Summit
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
By Joshua Rhett Miller
As local, state and federal authorities beef up security ahead of the G-20 summit in downtown Pittsburgh, several protest groups are claiming that they’ve been targeted in an attempt to silence demonstrators.
Law enforcement officials are erecting a security perimeter around the David Lawrence Convention Center, where the leaders of the world’s major economies will meet on Thursday and Friday to discuss ways to combat the global recession.
The officials are wary of a protest like one that occurred in 1999, when as many as 50,000 dissidents shut down the World Trade Organization sessions in Seattle, leading to approximately 600 arrests and $3 million in property damage.
In April, during the last G-20 meeting, in London, thousands of people were arrested and one man died after a confrontation with police.
Beginning at 6 a.m. Thursday, the Allegheny, Ohio and Monongahela rivers will be closed to traffic in Pittsburgh and patrolled by 11 boats from the U.S. Coast Guard. Pennsylvania state police will deploy 1,200 troopers in the surrounding area, including some on helicopters and airplanes. Another 2,500 troops from the Pennsylvania National Guard will provide support as part of “Operation Steel Kickoff.”
