Washington - Black-clad activists
protesting US President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration
smashed store and car windows in Washington on Friday and fought
with police in riot gear who responded with pepper spray and
stun grenades.
About 500 people, some wearing masks and kerchiefs over
their faces, marched through the city's downtown, breaking the
windows of a Bank of America branch, a McDonald's outlet and a
Starbucks shop, all symbols of the American capitalist system.
The crowd, which carried at least one sign that read "Make
Racists Afraid Again, also vandalized several cars and hurled
trash cans and newspaper vending boxes into the streets before
being largely dispersed by police.
About 900 000 people were expected to pack the grassy
National Mall facing the Capitol, where Trump will be sworn in
at midday (1700 GMT), as well as the parade route along
Pennsylvania Avenue to the White House and nearby areas.
"The message I want to send is that Trump does not represent
this country. He represents the corporate interests," said
Jessica Reznicek, a 35-year-old Catholic aid worker from Des
Moines, Iowa, who participated in a peaceful march.
Not far from the White House, protesters scuffled with
police, at one point throwing aluminum chairs at an outdoor
café. A motorcyclist in town to celebrate Trump's inauguration
was struck in the face when he tried to intervene.
"I know, law and order and all that. We need more order.
This ain't right," Bob Hrifko, with a bleeding cut under his
eye, told Reuters. Hrifko said he was part of the "Bikers for
Trump" group that was holding an inauguration rally.
Earlier, liberal activists with a separate group called
Disrupt J20 intermittently blocked multiple security checkpoints
leading to the largest public viewing area for the ceremony.
Several were led away by police.
Disrupt J20 protest organizer Alli McCracken, 28, of
Washington, said the group was voicing its displeasure over
Trump's controversial comments about women, illegal immigrants
and Muslims.
"We have a lot of people of diverse backgrounds who are
against U.S. imperialism and we feel Trump will continue that
legacy," McCracken said on a gray morning with light rain.
Trump supporters flooded into the capital, many sporting
shirts and hats bearing his "Make America Great Again" campaign
slogan.
'Doing his part'
Carl Beams, 36, from Howell, New Jersey, stood in line with
thousands of other supporters of the New York
businessman-turned-politician waiting to enter the National Mall
to view the inauguration.
"This is a great moment in history. I wanted to be able to
say I was here firsthand," said Beams, who runs a martial-arts
school. He said Trump could be a unifying force for the country.
"I think he's sending the right message and doing his part to
make that happen."
While Washington was the focal point of the anti-Trump
protests, there were sympathy rallies around the nation and
world.
Activists in London hung a banner reading "Build bridges not
walls" on the city's iconic Tower Bridge, a reference to Trump's
signature campaign promise of building a wall on the
US-Mexican border.
By far the largest protest is expected to be Saturday's
Women's March on Washington, which some 200,000 people from
around the country are expected to attend.
The US Secret Service, Washington police and other law
enforcement agencies planned to have about 28,000 officers in
place to secure a roughly three-square-mile (almost
eight-square-kilometre) area of downtown Washington
Security officials aimed to keep the Trump supporters and
opponents separate, using similar tactics employed during last
year's Republican and Democratic national political conventions.
"If you come down to the event, you are going to see some
people who have views who are different than yours," said the
city's interim police chief, Peter Newsham. "But one thing we
can agree on in Washington is that we can agree to disagree."