5:25Cops are guarding the Gap. Rumours have it that something is happening at the Civic Center/City Hall, so marchers are heading there along with IMC folk. 5:10Around 3-400 people. Cops are everywhere. Reputed leader of the march who was targeted by undercover cops key was being violently arrested which caused a melay. Police has decided not to let the demonstrators hit the buildings so are preventing marchers from heading to the Civic Center. Police chasing people down to the Bart. They have blocked and cornered off the marchers in preparation for a potential mass arrest.
4:50Police are getting really aggressive. Motorcycle cops are rushing the demonstators. One violent arrest occurred. Starbucks has been hit.
4:50Black bloc reached the INS bluiding which was graffitied and some windows were broken, The people who did it got away. Police presence increasing. Motocycle cops and horse cops, cops on foot, cops cars cop vans all converging. People are now at the Embarcadero center.
4:35Black bloc is retreating behind a shield of smoke bombs and barricades. The british embassy has been hit. Wells Fargo has been hit. "Black bloc can do anything it wants right now," says one of our reports in the field.
4:20 People are now at Citicorp Bldg at Sansome and Market. Some are distracting the cops while others graffitied the bldg.
4:09 The breakaway marchers ran down sixth st. to get away from the police. They came to the SF Chronicle building. One bunch held off the cops at one end of the block, one bunch did the same at the other, while the ones in the center graffited the Chron building. People are now headed back down Market St, toward Embarcadero, with the cops behind them.
3:30 The second breakaway march is now getting started. The police are acting very confused
3:15 The breakaway march is getting started. About 1000+ people are headed down McAllister towards Hyde
2:20pm15 bike cops are at Polk & Grove and 2 police vans. The Breakaway march is preparing to start at Polk & Grove at 2:30pm.
1:50pm: Police estimate 200,000 people on the streets. There are small groups of 4-5 cops of riot police stationed around various locations. This is a new response from the SFPD, at the 10/26 demo there were no riot police at the main march. Two prison buses are stationed at McAllister & Van Ness.
1:30pm: The end of the march is at Market & Main. We have reports of 300,000 in D.C. In SF, Civic Center is jam-packed with another 3 1/2 miles of people behind it.
1:08pm: The end of the march just left embarcadero... Market St is completely filled with people.
12:24pm: The front of the ANSWER march has reached Civic Center Plaza. Market Street is nearly filled to capacity.
10:45AM: Thousands of people are mobilizing in downtown San Francisco. Colorful signs and a variety of contingents are gathering. Excitement is in the air. On the East Coast, word is that +80,000 are on the streets of DC.