By
Shana Heiser
Arizona Daily Wildcat
After eight hours of being locked to the Admin building, 8 SAS members go to jail.
With arms trapped in tubes connected to each other, three Students Against Sweatshop members blocked the entrance to the Administration building doors.
Supporters spoon-fed the protesters and wiped their noses. Depends diapers ensured bathroom breaks would not be needed, even though protester Rachel Wilson ate only a piece of toast for breakfast and drank nothing.
Tucson Police Department officers converged on the scene about eight hours later. They removed the front, side and rear door handles to disconnect and arrest the six protesters chained to the building.
The "jaws of life" were required to break through the pipe, roofing material and steel rods in the PVC pipes surrounding three of the demonstrators' arms after the students were arrested. Less than three hours later, all six went free.
Protesters vowed to remain locked to the building until Likins withdrew from the Fair Labor Association or until they were forcibly removed.
Withdrawal was never considered.
"We've tried all the official ways (to get Likins to withdraw), all that is left are unofficial ones," Wilson said. "This time we decided to barricade the building."
An obscure downstairs door remained open, so that administrators and faculty were able to enter after showing their identification to security officers.
UAPD officer Marsha Grave said SAS members must have overlooked the hidden door when they chained themselves to every other entrance to the Administration building around 6:30 a.m. yesterday.
The protesters began the demonstration early in the morning in hopes of barricading the building while it was empty. However, cleaning services were in the building when they locked themselves to the doors.
Wilson said SAS protesters did not want to trap the night workers inside the building, because they may have been charged for kidnapping.
When employees first attempted to enter the building around 7:15 a.m., they were forced to wait outside. Soon after, the UAPD officers started allowing university employees in the emergency exit, but some faculty were upset, yelling comments like, "How dare you keep me from my job?"
Others, like Jerry Delpriore, an administrative assistant, were shocked.
"I really don't know if that's the right way to go about doing this," she said. "It's interrupting work for us, but what can you say?"
Interruption of work was only one of the reasons members of the university community were unhappy with the demonstrators. Many students complained because their accounts were flagged and they could not register, Graves said.
"It's important for me to get in here and take care of my school stuff," said Eric Wedell, a political science junior. "You can't pay to go here and then protest. If they don't want to support sweatshops, the best way to do it is not pay the school."
The SAS-supporting "radical cheerleaders" performed agitated cheer routines throughout the morning, with messages far from the usual promotion of school spirit.
"Brr, it's cold in here, nine year olds keep our sports in gear," the nine cheerleaders yelled right before they flipped everyone off and continued with, "Revolution, enough is enough, the workers must rise up, so kiss the back of my butt. We've got to kiss the Nike asses to keep their logos on our rear."
Some spectators found the cheerleaders' demonstration entertaining, but others did not find them inspiring.
"I don't think they (cheerleaders) realize how stupid they really are," said Jerry Bullis, an aerospace engineering sophomore.
T.J. Shushereba, a business freshman, was confused by the mixed messages he observed from one cheerleader wearing a fur coat.
"The protest is against sweatshops, yet she's wearing a fur coat," Shushereba said. "I don't get it."
Many members of the crowd enthusiastically supported the protesters as they chanted, "The FLA is absurd, Peter Likins, keep your word," and, "Power to the people, the people's power."
With the support of many UA students and his fellow SAS members, Kent Walker, a political science junior, found it easier to remain positive and focused. However, he did not want to think about a possible need for a bathroom break.
"We're trying to stay pretty focused on the task at hand," Walker said. "We have different ways of dealing with these things. We don't want to get distracted."
UAPD Chief Anthony Daykin gave Walker an ultimatum.
"If you don't clear out, you will be arrested," Daykin said. "If you fail to obey the dispersement, then we will have you removed. I declare this an unlawful gathering and order you to disperse immediately."
Walker's response to this threat was calm and collected, but he said he was not excited to be arrested and go to jail.
"I'm going to do what all other members have decided to do," Walker said. "Without a doubt (it's worth it)."
As police removed the east door's handle and led Walker away, many spectators chanted "Kent" repeatedly.
The TPD and UAPD prepared for anything, with about 50 police officers on the scene. Twenty motorcycle officers circled the Administration building to ensure nothing would turn dangerous and to keep students away from the demonstrators. TPD Sgt. Tim Beam said the officers wanted to avoid another World Trade Organization scene, where the Seattle Police Department underestimated the riots.
"It's easier to overestimate and then down-size than underestimate," Beam said. "They were warned at 9:30 or 10 (a.m.), and they're going to be arrested. Some way or another, they'll get them all apart. That's got to be painful."
The restrained position of the protesters' arms and necks was uncomfortable and very painful by the end of the demonstration, Wilson said. However, the moment the group locked itself to the building is what she will remember most.
"That had the most adrenaline for me," Wilson said. "It was 6:45 and nobody was around."
The protesters' plan was in the making for almost two months, since an unproductive meeting between President Peter Likins and SAS members on Sept. 22, Wilson said. Continuous strategizing occurred within the group until Wednesday.
"We practiced at home last night," Wilson said. "We just had to slip in; it took one minute. We thought the cops would be here to interrupt, but there was no one here."
Andrew Silverman, a law professor and a member of the UA Human and Labor Rights Task Force, was on hand to make sure no one was mistreated and no problems arose, he said. Numerous other supporters, from emergency medical technicians to nurses and people filming the demonstration, were also present, Wilson said.
Silverman was involved in the anti-war movement in the 1960s, and he said it was quite common for students to shut down buildings on college campuses then and put themselves in harm's way.
"This is the ultimate in putting your body on the line for a cause you believe in," Silverman said. "You can't ask anyone to do anymore than that."
As police moved in to remove the protesters from the building, hundreds of students walking between classes gathered to gawk and figure out what was taking place.
Some said they supported SAS's cause.
"I think it's very appropriate, because the president promised to disassociate all ties with the FLA if there was no reform, and he's not keeping his word," said Gabriel Baez, a Spanish junior. "He's a coward for not trying to get in himself instead of sending the cops."
Others thought the protest was too extreme.
"Holding students hostage is not the right way (to protest)," said Cory Peterson, a psychology junior who disagreed with the protest, and added he shopped at the Gap. "I don't think everyone should be held at American standards, because we live way above our means."
SAS members who were not chained to the Administration building made their demands loud and clear to the campus community with the use of a bullhorn: Likins must withdraw from the FLA. Although Likins was away from his office for parts of the day, many other UA students, staff and faculty heard the protesters' voices.
"Hopefully, it will make them think about the issue more seriously, if they haven't already," said Sonny Suchder, a sociology and Latin American studies senior. "Sweatshop labor is a very big issue, and we feel like getting out of the FLA is the biggest step."
Even with employees entering the building through the emergency door, Shamini Jain, psychology graduate student, said she thought the demonstration was a success.
"We're chained to this building to symbolize how we're chained to sweatshop labor," Jain said.
Some UA students said they were annoyed by the SAS members' activism and only wanted to continue their daily routine.
"All this is is an inconvenience for students trying to get to classes," said Andrew Sanchez, a psychology freshman.
Ice cream vendor Kevin Brandt wheeled his cart on campus just as the police were blocking off the Administration building, so Brandt stayed to sell ice cream and watch.
"Boo sweatshops, yay for ice cream," he said.
