Speakers decry G-20 protest rules

The potential "militarization of Downtown" got poor reviews today at a Pittsburgh City Council public hearing on proposed new protest rules driven by the G-20 Summit. Eileen Olmstead, of Code Pink, one of the organizations seeking to protest the Sept. 24-25 summit, was one of dozens who said they were "very concerned by the siege mentality reflected in the planned militarization of Point State Park and Downtown." City officials haven't declared what some speakers called "martial law," but they have budgeted $19.5 million for expenses including the import of 3,100 out-of-town police. Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's administration has also asked city council for new ordinances allowing police to cite people wearing masks or carrying anything from rotten eggs to powerful guns if they show intent to thwart a dispersal order. Vic Walczak, legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania, called the no-mask ordinance "unnecessary, and an invitation to problems.