U. activists descend on the capital

Bathed in yellow from the streetlight above, the abandoned protest sign in front of the Starbucks on Walnut Street read "35 Million Americans Live in Poverty." For the twenty-three Penn students who gathered in front of the campus coffee shop at 6 a.m., the poster was a fitting reminder of why they were sacrificing hard-earned sleep on a cold Saturday morning. The students were on their way to Washington to protest the inauguration of President George W. Bush, who the students believe will not do enough to alleviate poverty. Claiming the protest sign as their mascot, this crew of student activists boarded the Blue Line subway to the North Philadelphia home of the Kensington Welfare Rights Union, which organized the trip. Walking to meet the busses at the KWRU office, on streets whose days of glory had long since passed, a solitary figure pumping gas saw the "mascot" and called out, "Go get them!" Although some of the Penn students and KWRU backers had protested before, many, like College freshman Andrew Pike, had not. "I was talking to someone less than a week ago about how our generation has nothing to define us -- no key cause to protest," he said. But Pike was mobilized by an e-mail from College junior Matt Grove, who was responsible for organizing Penn students for the KWRU-sponsored trip. "I've had some personal contact with the KWRU in the past," Grove said, who was arrested during a KWRU protest against City Council's decision to finance stadiums with money some groups wanted set aside to build affordable housing. "I knew that a lot of people would be interested in going down there," Grove said. "People had legitimate concerns -- it wasn't just going to be an anti-Bush festival." At a highway rest stop in Maryland, where Penn protesters intermingled with those from New York and Columbia universities, Civic House Associate Director Heather Kilmer agreed with Grove. "I feel bad about the disenfranchised voters -- it predates Bush," Kilmer said. But she had concerns about the means to bring about change. "People will tend to march under their own banner -- not a unified vision, not a concrete vision," Kilmer said. However, the KWRU, which describes itself on its Web site as a "multi-racial organization of, by, and for poor and homeless people," that seeks to unite people in a common cause. "It's like the keys on a piano all being played at the same time," said Galen Tyler, chairman of KWRU's organizing committee. "We don't think that change will come from Gore or Bush -- it'll come from the hearts and minds of people." Tyler said that they were planning to protest Bush and his nominee for secretary of Health and Human Services, Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson. "People are dying in the country by welfare reform brought on by these 'compassionate conservatives,'" Tyler said. Thompson is an ardent advocate of slashing the welfare rolls, but many, including the KWRU, worry about the fate of those whose lifeline is cut. Near the Old Executive Office Building in Washington, KWRU director Cheri Honkala took the lead in organizing the hodge-podge of people and banners as police sirens pierced the eerily empty streets. The group proceeded to march south towards the National Mall, chanting "Hey, hey, ho, ho, poverty has got to go." One of those trudging through the cold and rain was Sigfredo Lugo, who lives in a park in North Philadelphia with his five children and his pregnant wife. "If somebody really cared in the White House, they could be walking down here with us," said Lugo. The group gathered at the office of the Department of Health and Human Services, continuing to march and shout. Bystander Laraine Meely called the protest "embarrassing to the U.S." "I'm just sickened by it," the New Mexico resident said. "I think that, instead of this, it would be more effective if they tried to build a relationship with Bush." Undeterred by criticism, Honkala was grateful for the students' support. "If you just have poor folks out here, you can come and take them away and do things to them, but generally college students are connected to parents, lawyers and people that have jobs," she said. "It provides safety to us." The group tried to enter the HHS buildings, but were forced out by police while staffers inside watched the spectacle. "We just need a little bit ," said Lugo. "It's not easy to change the way things are now, but if at least one person could have come out and talked to us, I'd be a little bit more relieved." "Nobody came out, like we were monsters," he added.