Solidarity with Greek Uprising at Westfield San Francisco Centre
Around 50 to 75 people were allegedly involved in a spree of vandalism, masquerading as a protest, at Westfield San Francisco Centre on Saturday. The mall rally, which started at about 4:30 at 24th and Mission and moved to New College, happened at 6:30 p.m. According to reports, some protesters threw food, one protester "tried to toss a large planter onto the food court below," trash cans were overturned, and lots of yelling was heard.
Apparently this was all part of something called "Solidarity with Greek Uprising," a protest over the "death of a young man in Greece in early December."
However, one of the protesters at the scene, Alex Crumbsnatcher, contacted SFist. Crumbsnatcher tells us a slightly different account of what went down.
We chanted for a while and some people talked and we decided to sit in the streets and decide where to go next. It felt like it was too late to go back and take over New College, and alot of people were losing steam and hope ... We literally ran to Wells Fargo and screamed and chanted and talked outside. We had recruited a few more people along the way and decided to take over market. We kept marching and running and filled up the whole street and stopped oncoming traffic. It was about that time that we decided to go to Westfield Mall.
Then, things got ugly. Or not.
We got there and stormed in, all screaming, and one person jumped up on a directory. He sat there for about 5 seconds and then jumped down. The cops ran at him, and the rest was a huge blur. People started screaming, and the cops took the guy down, and started throwing down and hitting everyone within arm's reach with their nightclubs. It was horrifying. Shoppers who were just there shopping and not involved started screaming at the police as well that we didn't do anything wrong and to stop. We had a cart with soup in it that was to feed the people marching, and in the violence, people got thrown into it, and it got knocked over. This was later said by the police to be us "throwing food." We were literally pushed and thrown out of the mall with nightsticks and police were assaulting anyone who came near them or the paddywagon they had the few arrests that they made locked in.Then, things got even more police-y.
They took off, and we marched down Market a little ways, and then ran down an alley where we thought the police wouldn't be as likely to follow and harrass us. The police came speeding through on bikes, and almost hit several innocent people who were not even involved. I heard several people talk about being in terror of the cops, but not of us. One person tried to block an officer who almost hit him with his bike out of reflex, and was thrown on the pavement, and arrested violently.
The rally ended at the Christmas tree at Union Square. Few arrests were made.