On the advice of their medical team, they will bring bandannas soaked in vinegar for tear gas, shatterproof goggles for rubber bullets, and a change of clothes in case the first set is contaminated with gas or pepper spray. Trapped chemicals may cause eye damage. Last year, as every year, a demonstration was called during the IMF and World Bank spring meetings in Washington. Twenty-five people showed up. We may fancy ourselves good organizers, but I don't think we could have planned for this.
Global justice is now fashionable.
At universities, classes on globalization are oversubscribed. Having served in the battle for Seattle can be a mark of status. One activist in Washington shows off a souvenir rubber bullet. At meetings, everyone hushes while those who were there tell war stories. But it's not a passing fad, organizers insist.