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Album:2009:04-20 Europe:05-01 Labor Day Riots
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There are anti-capitalist protests every Labor Day in Zurich, and I heard
rumors that they were often followed by 'riots'.
The thought of a riot in clean-cut and polite Zurich cracked me up, it
seemed like an impossibility, so I went to check it out.
Oh boy.
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The police get ready..
( comments)
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And the protests get warmed up..
( comments)
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This is where the 'riots'
are going to start? This looks like a festival more than a political hotbed. ( comments)
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And the police, while in great numbers,
are sitting around chatting. ( comments)
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And the protests are on...
( comments)
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..with singing.
I don't feel in any danger, except from bad music. ( comments)
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That's kind of funny.
( comments)
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I can see why the cops are getting ready.
This is a dangerous crowd. I figure a joke has been played on me and that there aren't actually any riots in Zurich, so I go home. ( comments)
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I decide to come back a few hours later.
Holy cow. ( comments)
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The streets have gone insane,
and the cops slowly advance and the mobs. ( comments)
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And out comes the tear gas.
( comments)
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I never expected to see
tear gas cannisters shot through the air, right in front of me. ( comments)
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..and certainly not in Zurich.
( comments)
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Here comes the police,
spraying down the protesters [Video, 5.9M] ( comments)
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The police clear the streets
[Video, 3.3M] ( comments)
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Rioters gather stones
to attack police/buildings/whatever. ( comments)
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On the other side of..l, the rioters wait.
( comments)
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..and yet families walk by,
completely used to the Labor Day violence. ( comments)
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The mobs send trash bins,
often on fire, down towards the cop side. ( comments)
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Someone from a nearby building
flicks off the protesters. Mistake. The building comes under heavy attack. [Video, 10.4M] ( comments)
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Collecting rocks to continue the assault.
[Video, 6.7M] ( comments)
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The building's initial damage,
windows and tiles smashed. ( comments)
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..but, in perfect swiss fashion,
they all stop to let a family pass. [Video, 9M] ( comments)
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Rioters cheer on the attack.
[Video, 7.8M] ( comments)
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The next day,
mostly shuttered, the building's wounds and broken glass. ( comments)
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The streets are filled with trash,
which the cars avoid. ( comments)
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And everywhere is toilet paper
(for burning), tear gas cannisters and rubber bullets ( comments)
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