Sources:

"The Battle in Seattle" by Richard Odenthal, published March 16, 2000.
Seattle Police Department After-Action Report, published April 4, 2000.
Seattle Times, "Countdown to Chaos in Seattle", published Dec. 5, 1999.

Acronyms:

ACLU: American Civil Liberties Union
MACC: Multi-Agency Command Center
SCCC: Seattle Central Community College
SHO: Seattle Host Organization
SPD: Seattle Police Department
SPOC: Seattle Police Operations Center
WTO: World Trade Organization

Friday, Nov. 26

Morning: Two groups of thirty to fifty protestors apiece march through downtown, targeting Specific businesses; there is no property damage or disruption of downtown activity. (After-Action Report)

Afternoon: A group of protestors begins gathering at Westlake Mall. Within half an hour, it has grown to a size that "takes up the entire block". Some of the group enter the Convention Center. The group disperses within 90 minutes. (After-Action Report)

Saturday, Nov. 27

Afternoon: Three people are arrested for rappelling down a wall and hanging an anti-WTO banner on I-5. Approximately 25 people follow police to the jail to protest the arrests, but disperse without incident. (After-Action Report)

Evening: Forty people establish a "demonstration headquarters" at 4th Ave. and East Denny. SPD commanders meet with protest leaders. (After-Action Report)

Sunday, Nov. 28

Morning: Police officials meet to discuss a request by the Ruckus group that approximately 1000 protestors be arrested on Tuesday morning. Ruckus representatives had warned that if police could not accommodate them then the protestors would do something else to get their mesage across. Those at the meeting determine taht they do not have the manpower, processing capability or jail capacity to handle that volume of arrests. (Odenthal Report, After-Action Report)

Several groups of protestors with anti-WTO posters are observed near the Convention Center and throughout downtown. (Odenthal Report)

11:30 AM: A group of protestors begins to gather on the SCCC campus. (After-Action Report)

1 PM: The SCCC group, numbering approximately 500, begins marching north on Broadway, escorted by Police. (After-Action Report)

1:45 PM: The Fred Meyer on Broadway reports that protestors have just purchased all of the store's lighter fluid. (After-Action Report)

Afternoon: The protestors move towards downtown. Intelligence indicates that they intend to march on the Gap and shut it down. Several retail stores close at their approach. After blocking downtown streets for an hour, the protestors demand an escort back SCCC. Police agree, and the protestors return to the campus and disperse. (After-Action Report)

6:30 PM: Police begin staffing the Conventionn Center. A Secret Service security sweep of the building commences. (After-Action Report)

10:20 PM: SPD receives notice from the media that protestors have taken over the abandoned Kalberer building at 914 Virginia Street. A patrol supervisor confirms this information and reports that the occupation is coordinated and that the building's doors are being nailed shut from the inside. (After-Action Report)

Monday, Nov. 29

1:30 AM: Utilities are shut off at the Kalberer building after the protesters refuse fire department requests to inspect the building for safety. (After-Action Report)

3 AM: The security sweep of the Convention Center is completed. (After-Action Report)

4 AM: Five members of the Rainforest Action Network climb a construction crane near I-5 and unfurl a huge anti-WTO banner. They later climb down and are arrested. (Seattle Times)

5 AM: An open security door is discovered at the Convention Center. The Secret Service performs another sweep of the facility, forcing delegates to wait until 10 AM to start their meetings. (Seattle Times, After-Action Report)

Morning: The Sierra Club holds a scheduled march. The several thousand participants are peaceful and there are no problems. (After-Action Report)

10 AM-Noon: The owner of the Kalberer building is contacted, confirms the protesters in the building are trespassing, and attempts to negotiate a rental agreement with them. These negotiations fail, and the owner informs the police he considers the protesters to be unlawfully trespassing and subject to immediate arrest and removal. (After-Action Report)

Noon: A group of two to three hundred protesters gather at the United Methodist Church on 5th and Marion. They begin marching and join with two other groups, bringing the number of protesters to one thousand. This group wanders through downtown for three hours, ignoring police orders to disperse. (Seattle Times)

1:30 PM: Several hundred protesters converge on the McDonald's at 3rd and Pine, where they begin smashing windows and spray-painting graffiti on the walls. A police car is also spray-painted. (Seattle Times, After-Action Report) After an hour, the group begins to move towards I-5. A bicyclist is seen riding ahead of the crowd and radioing information to the protesters. Police are authorized to use chemical agents if the protesters try to enter the freeway. Many in the protest group put on gas masks. (After-Action Report)

The group moves further downtown and stops at Niketown, where they debate whether or not to take over the store. One protester urges others to "wait until tomorrow" to break windows. Officers form a perimeter around the building and order protesters to disperse, offering a police escort in return. The protesters comply and the crowd disperses. (After-Action Report)

5 PM: A group of religious leaders holds an anti-WTO prayer meeting that draws five thousand protesters. This group later marches to the Kingdome's Stadium Exhibition Center, where WTO members are attending a reception, and forms a human chain around it. (Seattle Times)

6:30 PM: A labor group of several hundred protesters joins the Kingdome group, and the combined groups begin to push against the security fencing, throw rocks at officers, and direct laser pointers towards police. At police request, AFL-CIO protest organizers try to urge non-violence, but are drowned out by the crowd. (After-Action Report)

7 PM: Several thousand protesters attend a "People's Gala" in KeyArena. Mayor Schell attends and asks protesters to "be tough on your issues…but be gentle on my town." (Seattle Times, After-Action Report)

Tuesday, Nov. 30

2 AM: Protesters begin assembling in several locations near the Convention Center. The police respond by mobilizing the 1st Watch Task Force. (After-Action Report)

5:30 AM: Police briefing for demonstration management teams held. (Odenthal Report) Officers observe a large group of protesters gathering in Victor Steinbrueck Park and carrying bipods and tripods, gas masks, and canisters resembling chemical agent dispensers. Officers are withdrawn from the park as they do not have gas masks. (After-Action Report)

6:00 AM: Second briefing for demonstration management teams. (Odenthal Report) Task force personnel reassigned to crowd management. Due to staffing problems, these personnel are not given rest or meal breaks before reassignment. (After-Action Report) Protesters begin gathering at several locations, including Victor Steinbrueck Park, the University of Washington and SCCC, and preparing to march, with the stated goal of shutting down the WTO. (Seattle Times)

6:30 AM: Several hundred demonstrators block an intersection near the Convention Center by using yellow police tape and dumpsters. (Odenthal Report)

7:30 AM: The Convention Center is completely surrounded by thousands of people marching in four groups from four different directions. No one can enter or leave. (After-Action Report, Odenthal Report)

7:30-8 AM: Seven distinct large-scale disturbances occur:

Protesters chain themselves to manholes and set items on fire at 8th and Seneca
Protesters are seen carrying bottles filled with flammable liquids near the Convention Center
Protesters push a dumpster into the street on Olive
100 protesters lie down in the street at 6th and Pike, blocking it
Protesters attack moving cars and damage property at Boren and Pike
100 protesters jump on cars at 8th and Seneca
Protesters put chains across the intersection at 9th and Olive

(After-Action Report)

8:00 AM: Several hundred protesters march from Pike Place Market to 6th and Olive, near the Westin Hotel. Twenty of them chain themselves together. (Seattle Times)

8:05 AM: Protesters begin breaking windows at Niketown. (After-Action Report)

8:07 AM: A group of one thousand protesters begins setting up objects in the street at Pine and Boren. (After-Action Report)

8:18 AM: One hundred protesters begin damaging property at 8th and Stewart. (After-Action Report)

8:23 AM: A crowd begins throwing objects at officers at 5th and Olive and on 4th Ave. (After-Action Report)

8:28 AM: Windows are broken at Nordstrom's. (After-Action Report)

8:30-9:30 AM: Thirty protesters, some wearing gas masks, lock themselves to pipes at 6th and Pike, near the Sheraton. A large crowd gathers near the hotel and begins throwing debris. The Sheraton and the Convention Center are locked down after delegates attempting to travel between the two locations are harassed by protesters. (Seattle Times, After-Action Report)

8:45 AM: Twenty protesters dressed in black begin throwing newspaper boxes into the street at 6th and Pike, in front of the Sheraton Hotel. They are chased away by other protesters and run towards the Washington Athletic Club, where they join fifty more "anarchists". (Seattle Times)

8:46 AM: Police receive a report of a crowd of protesters taking over a Starbuck's. (After-Action Report)

9 AM: Scheduled Sierra Club march from Denny Park to the Seattle Center takes place peacefully. (After-Action Report) Delegates attempting to get to the Convention Center are harassed and assaulted by protesters at 7th and Pine. (Seattle Times)

9:09 AM: The SPD Field Incident Commander authorizes the use of chemical agents. (After-Action Report)

9:10 AM: SPD calls for mutual aid. (After-Action Report)

9:15-10 AM: Police attempt to clear a path on Union and University, from 2nd Ave. to the Convention Center, for delegates to use. They give repeated verbal warnings, but the crowds refuse to disperse. (After-Action Report)

9:20 AM: A protester sprays thirteen officers with pepper spray. (After-Action Report)

9:22 AM: Twenty delegates at 6th and Union are surrounded and harassed by protesters, and must be rescued by officers. (After-Action Report)

9:30 AM: SHO advises all delegates to remain in their hotels until order is restored. A scheduled march from the University of Washington to the Seattle Center takes place peacefully. (After-Action Report)

10 AM: Police begin to use chemical agents on protesters who have refused to clear Union and University. These streets are opened shortly afterward. Police observe protesters using cell phones and walkie-talkies to coordinate their activities. A scheduled march from SCCC to the Seattle Center takes place peacefully. (After-Action Report) The WTO opening ceremonies are postponed. AFL-CIO rally begins at Memorial Stadium. (Seattle Times)

10:13 AM: Protesters break windows at 5th and Pike and 3rd and Pine. (After-Action Report)

10:17 AM: Crowds throw debris at officers and delegates near the Sheraton. (After-Action Report)

10:23-10:30 AM: Officers use chemical agents and 6th and Union. Some officers report running out of chemical agents. (After-Action Report)

10:26 AM: Protesters with sledgehammers are seen near Union. (After-Action Report)

10:30 AM: Police disperse a crowd at 6th and Union with tear gas. (Seattle Times)

11:20 AM: It becomes clear that police cannot hold both Union and University streets. Officers abandon University and hold Union. (After-Action Report)

11:30 AM: Police attempt to clear the street in front of the Sheraton with chemical agents. Protesters throw cans, bottles and barricades at officers and provide medical aid to gassed protesters. "Black-garbed anarchists" begin smashing windows, throwing newspaper boxes and looting downtown stores. (Seattle Times) A group of eight thousand protesters begins moving towards 6th and Union. (After-Action Report)

Noon: A scheduled Tibetan Rights march from Denny Park to 4th and Denny takes place peacefully. (After-Action Report) A news conference with Charlene Barshefsky is cancelled. Two hundred "anarchists" begin using hammers to smash windows downtown at Nordstrom, Niketown, and Planet Hollywood, among other stores. Other protesters unsuccessfully attempt to stop them. WTO officials insist the conference is continuing. (Seattle Times)

12:15 PM: Scheduled AFL-CIO march begins, following an alternate route as several streets on the planned route are blocked by protesters. Most of the twenty thousand members of this march follow the route and disperse, but several thousand join the other protesters surrounding the Convention Center. (Seattle Times, After-Action Report)

12:45 PM: The WTO opening ceremonies are canceled. (Seattle Times)

1:23 PM: Looters are seen in a downtown Starbuck's. (After-Action Report)

1:58 PM: Seven patrol cars at 5th and Union are vandalized and their tires flattened. (After-Action Report)

2 PM: Police leaders meet with Mayor Schell and request a civil emergency declaration, a curfew order and National Guard deployment. (Odenthal Report)

2:04 PM: Delegates at Seneca and Hubbell Place are assaulted by protesters. (After-Action Report)

2:28 PM: Protesters throw barricades through windows at 3rd and Pike. (After-Action Report)

3:10 PM: "Anarchists" set a dumpster on fire in the middle of the street at 4th and Pike. A large crowd engages in a standoff with officers and is dispersed by tear gas, but immediately re-forms. (Seattle Times)

4:32 PM: Mayor Schell declares a civil emergency. The emergency order establishes a 7 PM to 7:30 AM curfew area bounded by Denny, Yesler, I-5, and Elliot Bay. Governor Locke authorizes deployment of the National Guard. (Seattle Times, After-Action Report)

Late afternoon: Mayor Schell is told by a senior Clinton administration official to clear the streets or the conference will be canceled. (Seattle Times)

4:45 PM-6 PM: Crowds on 4th and Pike and 6th and Pike turn violent, throwing debris, using chemical agents against officers, breaking windows, and setting fires. Protest organizers are unsuccessful in attempts to calm the crowds. Protesters form a line in front of Niketown at 6th and Pike to prevent looters from gaining access, but cannot hold this line for long. Officers ask the peaceful protesters to leave, as the police will soon be retaking Niketown, and they comply. Over the next hour, officers deploy chemical agents to disperse the remaining protesters. This succeeds, and the group splits in half, one half dispersing and the other moving east towards I-5. Officers confront the I-5 group and are pelted with rocks, ball bearings, and bottles. Before they can disperse the group, they are recalled to the East Precinct to aid in handling an aggressive mob there. (After-Action Report)

5 PM-9 PM: Police form a line from 1st to 5th on Cherry and move north, clearing the downtown area by using chemical agents and non-lethal weapons. Protesters are driven up Capitol Hill. Police follow them, still using chemical agents, and a standoff begins. The protesters throw rocks, sticks, bottles and fireworks at officers. (Seattle Times) "Anarchists" who had hidden in empty buildings during the police sweep emerge and begin damaging property, but are quickly arrested by Washington State Patrol officers. (Odenthal Report)

Evening: Mayor Schell and Chief Stamper hold a news conference and admit that they were caught off guard by the number of protesters. (Seattle Times)

6:40 PM: Protesters at 6th and Stewart pull the driver of a garbage truck from his vehicle and assault him. He is rescued by officers. (After-Action Report)

9 PM: Officers at the MACC at Summit and Howell streets are endangered by large groups of aggressive rioters. They attempt to retreat several times, but are followed and assaulted by golf balls, rocks, bottles and incendiary devices. Similar confrontations occur at several other locations, including Bellevue and Pike and Melrose and Pine. (After-Action Report)

9 PM-11 PM: Protesters on Capitol Hill set fire to trash bins near the Egyptian Theatre and blocks the street with dumpsters, also on fire, at Broadway and Pine. Police disperse the crowd, but it re-forms farther north. This continues for two hours until police depart and the crowd disperses permanently. (Seattle Times)

Wednesday, Dec. 1

1:30 AM: President Clinton arrives. (Seattle Times, After-Action Report)

5 AM: Officers observe protesters carrying crowbars, bipods and tripods, masonry hammers, and rocks. They confiscate some of these items. (After-Action Report)

8 AM: Mayor Schell issues another civil emergency order, which bans protests in an area around the Convention Center bordered by Boren Ave., Seneca, 4th Ave, and Lenora. Debate begins over whether the ban is constitutional. "Much of downtown" is cordoned off by National Guard troops, who stand at the intersections along Lenora, and the restricted area is patrolled by armored trucks. (Seattle Times)

8:30 AM: Two groups of one to two hundred protesters apiece begin moving westward through downtown. (After-Action Report)

9 AM-10 AM: Hundreds of protesters enter the restricted zone and gather at Westlake Center. Many are arrested and offer passive resistance. (Seattle Times) 200 people are taken into custody. (After-Action Report)

A group of about one thousand protesters moves up Pine Street to 6th, where they are confronted by about 100 police officers. The protesters are ordered to disperse or chemical agents will be deployed. Many of them leave as the police move forward and begin to push the crowd back. SPD Captain Jim Pugel tells the media that the protesters are being arrested for "pedestrian interference and refusal to disperse". (Seattle Times, After-Action Report) Chemical agents are used. (After-Action Report)

Arrested protesters are taken to Sand Point. Some have minor injuries. (Seattle Times)

Mid-Morning: The ACLU files a petition for a temporary injunction against the civil emergency order establishing the police perimeter. The SPD files a response summarizing the department's need for such a perimeter. The U.S. District Court denies the ACLU's petition. (After-Action Report)

Noon: Some of the protesters who took part in earlier peaceful marches return to downtown and begin aiding in the effort to clean up the damage and remove graffiti. They express dismay that the peaceful protests were overshadowed by the violent ones. The Downtown Seattle Association estimates that downtown business have lost over seven million dollars to WTO unrest, and will lose $2.5 million per day as long as unrest continues. It places the toll for damage from the Nov. 30 riots at over $1.5 million. (Seattle Times)

The Torrefazione Italia coffee shop in Rainier Square begins offering free coffee to police. State Patrol officers say that they have "had only two hours' sleep on cots in a drafty warehouse". (Seattle Times)

1:30 PM: Downtown protests begin to dwindle. A group of approximately 1500 demonstrators take part in a United Steelworkers march. They march to the waterfront, where they dump steel into Elliot Bay. (Seattle Times)

1:45 PM: At a WTO lunch, President Clinton tells WTO delegates that "we must deal with the legitimate concerns of legitimate protesters…[but] we need to make a clear distinction between that which we condemn and that which we welcome." (Seattle Times)

Mid-Afternoon: Protesters on 2nd and 3rd Avenues become violent, damaging property, blocking the streets, and trapping citizens in their cars. After repeated verbal warnings are ignored, chemical agents are deployed and a police line formed on Pike from 1st to 3rd. The crowd disperses, but a splinter group of four to five hundred people moves north to 1st and Clay and continues to cause property damage, and another splinter group sits down in the intersection at 3rd and Pine. Approximately 250 of these protesters are arrested. (After-Action Report)

4 PM: A crowd of approximately 800 protesters assembles near Pike Place Market and is broken up by police using chemical agents. The group returns, is driven away, and returns again several times throughout the afternoon. By late afternoon, the crowd has dwindled to 400 people and the activity is taking place at Westlake Center. (Seattle Times)

6 PM: Police sweep through downtown to enforce curfew. Most protesters move up Capitol Hill. Several hundred gather at Broadway and Denny and march along Broadway to Pine; police lines assemble at one end of Broadway. (Seattle Times) The protesters begin breaking windows; police request reinforcements. (After-Action Report)

7 PM: Seattle City Councilmember Richard McIver is stopped twice by police. During the second stop, McIver shows a business card as identification but is taken from his car, his hands placed behind his back, his cell phone removed, and the business card thrown to the ground. He is released minutes later. (Seattle Times)

Evening: A police car trying to move through Broadway and Pine is attacked. Protesters swarm the vehicle and attempt to overturn it with the officers inside. In response, police fire concussion grenades and tear gas; protesters begin throwing bottles, soup cans, bricks and rocks at officers, both on the ground and from rooftops. A riot starts and continues for five hours. (Seattle Times; After-Action Report)

Many protesters express excitement and pleasure at having started the confrontation. (Seattle Times)

9:45 PM: An officer reports sighting a person dressed in black and carrying a molotov cocktail at Broadway and Thomas. (After-Action Report)

10 PM: A crowd of 400 protesters begins to move towards the East Precinct, possibly in response to a request made on police radio channels for reinforcements at that location, indicating it is insufficiently protected. Radio dispatchers receive reports that a group of protesters has taken over the Broadway Chevron station and are attempting to fill bottles with gasoline. A unit responds and the protesters at the gas station are dispersed. (After-Action Report)

11:15 PM: A crowd of approximately 1500 people descends on the East Precinct and surrounds the building. The group attempts to breach the perimeter several times, and officers guarding the precinct are the targets of rocks, bottles, and other debris thrown by the crowd. (After-Action Report)

Thursday, Dec. 2

3 AM: Tear gas and rubber bullets are used on the rioters outside the East Precinct. The crowd is successfully dispersed. (After-Action Report)

8 AM: Some downtown businesses open, but many, especially those inside the restricted zone, stay closed and most of the others close early. Owners begin discussing the possibility of lawsuits to recover lost sales revenue. (Seattle Times)

8:30 AM: Demonstrators begin gathering for a march from SCCC to Victor Steinbrueck Park. (After-Action Report)

10 AM: President Clinton leaves town. The police reevaluate the size and necessity of the perimeter, and the northern perimeter boundary is moved south without incident. (After-Action Report)

A group of protesters gathers on Capitol Hill and marches to Victor Steinbruck Park. Nearby businesses close to avoid being caught in any confrontations between protesters and police. (Seattle Times)

Noon: Police maintain a low profile, avoiding conflicts with protesters. Protest leader Rice Baker-Yeboah reminds a large crowd that "This is nonviolent… anyone who does anything to endanger anyone else is betraying this whole movement." (Seattle Times)

1 PM: The group at SCCC, now numbering approximately 1000, marches south on 4th toward Victor Steinbrueck Park. When they reach the perimeter at 4th and University, they negotiate with police, who agree to let them walk to the King County Jail, encircle it and remain for an hour, then disband. The group encircles the jail and remains, forcing the jail to go into a lockdown. (After-Action Report)

3 PM: Restrictions on movement within the area around the Convention Center are eased. A demonstration in front of the Paramount begins, ending peacefully later in the evening. (Seattle Times)

4:45 PM: A group of approximately 150 protesters gathers at SCCC and begins a march. (After-Action Report)

7 PM: Hundreds of protesters continue to surround the King County Jail. Police, in consultation with Ruckus Society director John Sellers, allow defense attorney Katya Komisaruk and protest leader Devon Hayes into the jail, where they examine the conditions in which arrested protesters are being kept. They then leave the jail and urge the protesters outside to leave peacefully. The protesters comply. (Seattle Times)

7:35 PM: The group at the King County Jail splits, half of them remaining and half moving up Broadway with a police escort. (After-Action Report)

Friday, Dec. 3

Morning: Police continue to negotiate with the protesters occupying the Kalberer building. The property owner threatens to take action if the police do not evict the protesters. After being advised that alternative shelter is available, all of the protesters leave the building by noon. (After-Action Report)

8 AM: Downtown retailers begin reopening their stores. Criticism of the city's preparedness begins, most of it aimed at Mayor Schell. Senator Slade Gorton praises the police but criticizes city officials. (Seattle Times)

1 PM: A scheduled organized labor march begins. Protest organizers negotiate with police, who agree to move the perimeter boundaries to allow the protesters access to their planned route. The perimeter is moved and the new perimeter reinforced. The marchers move from the Labor Temple on Clay Street to 5th and Pike. (After-Action Report)

3 PM: 500 people break off from the labor march and move to the Westin Hotel, where many chain themselves to the doors. They later join another group protesting at the King County Jail. (After-Action Report)

500 people break off from the labor march and move to the Westin Hotel, where many chain themselves to the doors. They later join another group protesting at the King County Jail. (After-Action Report)

10 PM: The WTO "announces it is unable to overcomes differences…and will leave Seattle without [starting] a new round". (Seattle Times) Protest leader Mike Dolan "says the demonstrations were successful". (Seattle Times)

10:30 PM: WTO meetings conclude. (After-Action Report)

Saturday, Dec. 4

2 AM: Washington State Patrol forces relieved. (After-Action Report)

6 AM: National Guard troops relieved. (After-Action Report)

Noon: SPOC and MACC cease operations. (After-Action Report)

4 PM: Demonstration management teams disband. (After-Action Report)

All Day: Mayor Schell holds a press conference at Westlake Plaza and calls for a "time of healing". The Seattle branch of the ACLU, along with a coalition of local civil rights groups, demands an independent investigation of the police and city officials' handling of protest activities. Many of the arrested protesters refuse to be arraigned or to leave jail even after charges are dismissed and they are released. (Seattle Times)