May Day Protesters Clash With Police

Activists across the US joined the worldwide May Day protests today, with Occupy Wall Street members in several cities leading demonstrations and in some cases clashing with police. Some examples:

• In Oakland, police fired tear gas and "flash-bang" grenades to disperse the crowds, sending protesters fleeing a downtown intersection where they were demonstrating. Officers took four people into custody.

• In Seattle, black-clad protesters used sticks to smash small downtown windows and ran through the streets disrupting traffic.
• In New York, police in riot gear lined the front of a Bank of America, facing several dozen Occupy activists marching behind barricades. "Bank of America. Bad for America!" they chanted.
• In Chicago, about 50 demonstrators rallied outside another of the bank's branches.
• In Atlanta, about 100 people rallied outside the state Capitol, where a law targeting illegal immigration was passed last year. They called for an end to local-federal partnerships to enforce immigration law.
• In the San Francisco Bay area, service on the Golden Gate Ferry was shut down as ferry workers went on strike. They have been in contract negotiations for a year in a dispute over health care coverage.

(More May Day stories.)