War Protesters Lie Down In Street, Block CMU Facility

POSTED: 8:07 am EST March 2, 2007
UPDATED: 3:51 pm EST March 2, 2007

PITTSBURGH -- Dozens of students and anti-war activists tried to temporarily shut down a Lawrenceville facility developing robotic vehicles for the U.S. Army on Friday morning.

Slideshow Images From the Scene

The nonviolent demonstration took place at Carnegie Mellon University's National Robotics Engineering Center.

There was a large Pittsburgh police presence, and 43rd Street was closed between Willow and Railroad streets.

Protesters physically blocked the entrances to the facility, with some people lying down in the street.

"They're manufacturing robots that are going to be used to kill people," said one protester. "Not only is that a bad thing, but it dehumanizes the process of killing people."

Police said six protesters were stationed at the main entrance, secured to the front gate. Another person was in a sling, suspended from a homemade tripod about 22 feet tall.

Police said the incident was orderly and peaceful, but some protesters were arrested because they did not comply with an order to disperse, first at 6:23 a.m. and again at 7:45 a.m.

"I would say it's been very passive in resistance," said Assistant Police Chief William Bochter of the Pittsburgh Police Department. "They've been very peaceful. The crowd that's gathered has also been very peaceful. We've had no use of force, other than having to physically carry them into the wagons to be arrested."

The protestors were transported to the Allegheny County Jail.

Pittsburgh Organizing Group is the main organizer of the event. The group often arranges protests outside the Army recruiting station on Forbes Avenue in Oakland.

According to a news release, the group claims that CMU has become one of the largest academic military contractors in the country, with government funding for computer science and robotics work.

The engineering center's Web site identifies NASA and the Department of Defense as partners in new product development.

Teresa Thomas, a spokeswoman for the university, said the technologies being developed at the robotics center "will save lives by keeping soldiers out of harm's way."

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