The Michigan Daily-Wednesday, August 13, 1980-Page 3
- <:"mommeConvention Reports
CONVENTION MEANS HEADACHES FOR SOME
Gotham residents grumble
By NICK KATSARELAS "They shouldn't have the convention here," grum- the convention," complains Sister Maria Martin, a
y pea Ic KA TarELAy bles Willie Eason, a porter for Amtrak. "IT's very in- bespectacled, gray-haired nun 'cloaked, in blue.
Specialto TheDaly convenient as far as working." He leans against his "We're surrounded by religious services. There's a
NEW YORK - A burly electrician from Macy's metal baggage cart and continues, "It's not open to Catholic church adjacent to Madison Square Garden,
leans against a lamppost eating ice cream and chats the public and there are too many policemen who are one across the street, and one on Eighth Ave. There's
about how the Democratic National Convention has being overpaid. Besides, it ties up the city for a probably some Episcopalian churches around here,
changed his life. "I tell my wife to pick me up, okay? week." too."
So with all the blockades she can't get, through. The Overpaid or not, Officer Fredrick Thompson of the Two twenty-year-old men from the South Bronx
police tell her to turn here, turn-there, and here I am, New York Police Department is happy with his over- drink Cokes at Arty's Luncheonette in downtown
I worked all day and my wife can't pick me up.' time compensation. Hiking up his dark blue trousers, Manhattan. "The cops are out all the time now," says
John Marano is in the majority in New York city - he says, "The convention means a lot of money for Eddie Rodriguez. "They are locking up all the pimps,
he is one of the millions of New Yorkers who gain the city; which means a lot of money for me." whores, and cocaine dealers. The cops, they just want
nothing directly from the convention except maybe a "People forget that there is more to the city than See GOTHAM, Page 11
neauacne.
Democrats
approve
abortion
plank on
platform
NEW YORK (AP) - The Democratic
National Convention voted yesterday to
add a far-reaching abortion-rights
plank to its platform and to penalize
party candidates who do not support the
Equal Rights Amendment by
withholding funds and technical aid.
The ERA vote was by acclamation.
S But the abortion vote came in a sur-
prisingly strong showing on a roll call,
passing by 2,005.2 to 956.3.
THERE WERE early signs that
President Carter might not support the
abortion plank.
"I guess that he will not support it,"
said Sarah Weddington, an assistant to
Carter. "It's one of the planks of the
platform he does not agree with." She
said he would consider his stand last
night.
If Carter does not go along with the
party platform, it will doubtlessly
anger the women's coalition that lob-
bied on behalf of the pro-ERA and abor-
tion planks.
CARTER CONVENTION sources
decided beforehand not to make either
the abortion or the ERA vote a test of
strength.
The ERA plank not only restates the
party's endorsement of the amendment
but said support for the amendment
would be a condition of financial and
special aid to anyone running as a
Democrat.
The abortion plank affirms the par-
ty's support for the Supreme Court
decision which made abortions legal
and identifies reproductive choices as
private matters with which gover-
nment should not interfere.
The plank opposes restrictions on
federal funding for abortions and also
comes out against involuntary or unin-
formed sterilizations.
There was a noisy "no" vote against
the ERA proposal. But the chairman,
ruled that the "ayes" had carried.
DEATH (AT LEFT) and Three Mile Island wander outside Madison Square Garden yesterday. The two, along with a
blood-smeared Statue of Liberty, were protesting the use of nuclear power and weapons as part of the "No Nukes Die-
In." -
Ima ginaton delegation
brings fantasy to N.Y.
By MAUREEN FLEMING
specialtoThe Daily
NEW YORK - Three Mile Island and Death, followed by
the Statue of Liberty with blood smeared on her hands,
distributed blood-soaked money.
Others walked around with fluorescent paint covering
their arms, chests, and faces chanting "Two, four, six, eight
-we don't want to radiate."
THE IMAGINATION DELEGATION, a group which
says it has no formal name but represents discovery, ideas,
and fantasy sprinkled the crowd of more than 100 with "star-
dust." They implored everyone to join their party - "the
party's party" - to use their imaginations, and to make the
world safer, prettier, and sillier.
They were all at Madison Square Garden yesterday,
about 100 of them, participating in the "No Nukes Die-In,"
sponsored by the Coalition for Direct Action.
The Die-In was the second in a series of events during con-
vention week sponsored by the Coalition, which is comprised
of Rock Against Racism, the Coalition for Direct Action
Against Seabrook, the Committee Against Registration and
the Draft, and the Yippies. The groups say they are trying to
provide an alternative "unconvention" to give people an op-
portunity to voice their social concerns.
THE CARTER OLYMPIX kicked off the week's events
at the Sheep Meadow in. Central Park. Ben Masel, coor-"
dinator of the event and a staff member of the underground
Overthrow magazine, said the Olympix "seemed a light way
to open up the week."
Characters wearing Ronald Reagan, Jimmy Carter, and
John Anderson masks participated in the three-legged
presidential race. Amid cheers and hurrahs of "Yeah, Ron-
nie!"the Reagan impersonator swept the race to win' first
prize, termed by Masel "The first bribe of his presidential
career."
MASEL SAID THERE was no winner in the "Billy Car-
ter-Joan Kennedy Drinking Contest" because neither could
drink the other under the table.
Then there was the "Teddy Kennedy Underwater
Driving Race." "Teddy" won, tossing "Mary Jo Kopechne"
out of a children's play truck.
The Coalition expected a lot of out-of-towners to par-
ticipate in the protest and decided to "liberate" the Sheep
Meadow for a campsite. Sunday night they marched from
Madison Square Garden to the Meadow to occupy the land,
renaming it "Freestate."
According to a camper, Rich, who said he has been
"hanging around".with the Yippies for the past few months,
the group wasn't sure whether the police were trying to
prevent them from camping. He explained that the Coalition
was trying to discuragecampers from drinking as the police
would not be attracted.