Second Installment - The Inauguration

Before Anna and her friends left St. Augustine, they posted a request on the Internet for a place to sleep once they arrived in D.C. The First Presbyterian Church, four blocks from the capitol, responded and gave them a warm place to crash each night.

When Anna's friend was arrested, the officer noticed her friend wore an "I love Jesus" pin. The policeman said, "How can you be here protesting our President and wear a pin like that?"

I never knew protesting and Jesus were mutually exclusive things. Perhaps someone should have told Jesus when he protested against the moneychangers in the temple.

Anna and her group arrived late Wednesday night after an accident in the snow and ice. It took them over 24 hours to make a 13 hour trip, but they continued on their journey determined to make it in time for the inauguration.

The next day, Thursday, Jan. 20, was bitter cold. They hooked up with thousands who decided to not go to the prearranged free speech zones set up around the inauguration route. Instead they took to the streets and began advancing. There were concrete blocks to keep out vehicular traffic but they assumed since they were pedestrians they could continue. Anna lost track of where she was and moved with the crowd. Her friend told me they had no idea they had advanced as far as the actual route and it scared the police.

Anna said they continued shouting as they marched. "Not Our President," "Show Me What Democracy Looks Like. This is what Democracy Looks Like."

"I saw police with big hoses spraying something. I thought it was water which would have been enough because it was such a cold day, but it was mustard spray," Anna said. "I was pressed against a building as I watched these cops with crazy looks on their faces with sticks and batons just hitting people like crazy. They just kept repeating these motions as if they were robots with that crazed look in their eyes.

"The people who were getting hit with the spray began vomiting. They had snot and tears running down their faces. It was like someone hit them with Tabasco sauce right in the face."

Then guys with backpacks began setting up impromtu triage stations with medic signs. They offered water and milk of magnesia to the victims of the spraying. Anna watched as one of these men was arrested for helping out the victims.

Tomorrow: Anna loses track of her friends as one of them is haulted off to jail.