Students Shut Down 280

One of the SF State students was illegally arrested while acting as a legal observer. The other SF state student had just returned from Iraq where she had been acting as a human shield and a witness to the United State's imperialist invasion of a sovereign nation.

Around 8:30 am a few of the students dropped a large banner off of the Ocean Avenue overpass with a peace sign on it that simply read "No War." Six students with lockboxes then moved out on to the freeway and successfully shut down all northbound lanes of traffic, with the exception of the fast lane/shoulder where cars continued to move around them. Other students wandered amongst the stuck motorists handing out orange juice, doughnuts, and this morning's chronicle, which had a headline about the United State's invasion of Baghdad, explaining to motorists that the U.S.'s invasion of Iraq was the reason for the lockdown. Many motorists honked in support and didn't seem to mind the disruption. CHP, SFPD, SFFD and Caltrans people showed up on the scene to remove the students who successfully gummed up 280 for over half an hour. When CHP prepared to move the students who were standing in the freeway, the students laid down, and were then dragged to the shoulder by CHP. CHP officers then began dismantling the lockboxes, first removing layers of duct tape, then clipping through chicken wire with bolt cutters. SFFD folks then cut through the plastic lockboxes with gas powered circular saws. The students were then loaded into a Caltrans van and taken to the Hall of Injustice where they are reportedly being held on conspiracy charges.