Coming out of the Christopher Street subway in New York City last Sunday one might not have noticed anything unusual. A few tourists squinted in the hot morning sun in front of the legendary Village Vanguard jazz club, a few police were milling around in front of St. Vincent’s hospital. There was a crowd of men dressed only in underwear and angel-wings, but in the Village that really isn’t enough to give one pause. Aside from a slight nervous energy in the air you would never know that a monumental political protest was starting just a few blocks away on 14th Street.

This week, hundreds of thousands of delegates, protesters and reporters descended on New York City for the Republican National Convention. Oberlin students were present on both sides of the barricades.

The convention, the first that the Republicans have ever held in New York, provided George W. Bush’s administration with a lavish showcase and an opportunity to remind the nation of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks which occurred only a few blocks south of the convention site and Madison Square Garden. Speakers including senators John McCain and Zell Miller, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani delivered prime time speeches in support of President Bush and his policies.

For the protesters, who took to the streets throughout the week with and without march permits, it was a chance to capitalize on a high profile event to voice their disapproval of the Bush administration. Chanting slogans like “Four more months” and “RNC go home,” the protesters were for the most part united by their stances on the war in Iraq, the legitimacy of the Bush presidency, reproductive rights and environmental protection, though opinion seemed mixed about Democratic candidate John Kerry. In addition to democrats, the Green party, the Ralph Nader presidential campaign and various socialist and anarchist groups were also present.

Conservatory sophomore Kevin Alexander spent the summer interning for the public television show New York Voices and got the chance to go down the convention floor as a cameraman, working with the show’s producers to interview delegates and guests.

“It was extremely energized and very hectic, especially for anyone in the press,” he said. “For the delegates it was basically a big party.”

Alexander, a Kerry supporter, said that Giuliani’s speech was the most exciting and effective. He was surprised by the diversity of opinion he encountered on the convention floor.

“We talked to Republicans who were pro-choice, pro-gay rights and pro-gun control as well as some who were the opposite,” he said. “No one really talked about the economy at all. The only thing that really united them was their faith in Bush and his security agenda.”

While Alexander was inside Madison Square Garden with the protesters, sophomore and RACO co-founder Leah Wagner was outside on Seventh Avenue protesting against the event. It is not known how many students attended the event as there was no official Oberlin group organizing protesters, but many members of Radical Activist Coalition and Student Labor Action Coalition attended,

“I went to RNC because I think this is a monumental time for our political system and it’s important to join protests and get close to people,” she said. “In such a liberal city its important that there be a radical presence there as well to show them that there are people who protest all the time, not just when it’s convenient.”

College sophomore Whit Forrester cited Bush’s environmental policy, specifically the Health Forests Initiative and the changes to the Clean Water Act, as his main reasons for coming to New York.

“People came down for a lot of reasons,” he said. “It wasn’t a very focused protest, but I was glad that everyone realized that Bush is just a symptom of the larger problem.”

Wagner was unimpressed, however, by many of the protesters at the Aug. 29 march, which it is estimated attracted between 100,000 and 300,000 people.

“If a bunch of rich, quasi-liberal Democrats want to go out and have a Sunday picnic, that’s fine, but it makes a mockery of the issues,” she said. “They might go out and vote against Bush, but they still won’t stop to give change to the homeless and still eat in corporate restaurants and wear corporate clothes.”

One Oberlin protester constructed a giant green papier-mâché dragon, which they rolled down the streets with them. Sadly, the dragon erupted into flames a few blocks past Madison Square Garden. Forrester said he suspected that someone had sabotaged the float to cause chaos in the march.

The anticipated protests as well as fears over terrorism led the city to mount an unprecedented security effort.

“I’ve never seen so many police in my life,” said Alexander. “At the Hilton Hotel there were two cops with machine guns and there were at least one or two cops at every corner in midtown.”

“The cops were a lot more eager to talk than usual,” said Forrester. “It was a much better atmosphere than [the Free Trade protests in] Miami.”

Wagner was angered by the police presence.

“They were trying to incite violence by letting anti-protesters into the march,” she said.

Bush addressed the convention on Thursday night, emphasizing his plans for education and his record on national security. As expected, he invoked the memory of Sept. 11.

“As long as our country stands, people will look to the resurrection of New York City and they will say: here buildings fell and here a nation rose,” he said.

However, for the Oberlin students in New York this week, there was not much hope of a real change taking place in the American political scene.

“Maybe it’s just because I’ve spent all week with Republicans but I really feel like Bush is going to win,” Alexander said. “People just want security and they feel like Bush can keep them safe.”

Forrester was still deciding whom to vote for.

“I’m still trying to decide if it’s worth it to vote for Nader or if that would be throwing my vote away,” he said.

Wagner expressed similar sentiments.

“I believe in voting,” she said. “But I don’t think that Kerry can really change anything.”