NY Police Say No Protest in Central Park During Republican C

 

By Barbara Schoetzau

New York City has rejected a protest group's request to hold a massive rally in Central Park on the eve of the Republican presidential nominating convention at the end of August. But the group, United for Peace and Justice, or UFPJ, says it will continue to press for a permit.
New York is granting 14 groups permits to demonstrate during the four-day Republican Convention that begins August 30. But the city says "no" to UFPJ's application to stage a massive demonstration² on the Great Lawn of Central Park the day before the convention.
The group requested a permit for as many as 250,000 people to rally against Bush administration policies, including the war in Iraq, in Central Park. The 340-hectare park is located in the middle of residential¹ neighborhoods in Manhattan. Parks Commissioner³ Adrian Benape says the damage caused by such a large protest could take up to a year to repair.
"You simply cannot fit a quarter of a million people onto the Great Lawn," said Adrian Benape. "That would be like trying to put a quarter of a million people into Shea Stadium, which holds 50,000."
Instead, the city suggests that protesters march along a route on Manhattan's West Side, which will take them past Madison Square Garden, the site of the Convention. Part of the route is along the West Side highway, which borders the Hudson River. Leslie Cagan, national coordinator⁴ for United for Peace and Justice, says the proposed alternative will put the group at the edge of the city and makes it impossible to construct a sound system that will reach all participants.
"We are very happy with the march part of it, marching past Madison Square Garden," she said. "We are not happy with their proposal to go the West Side Highway. We think that marginalizes us. It puts us literally⁵ on the edge of the city. That is not where we want to be. We would like to keep the negotiations⁶ going."
UFPJ is an umbrella organization for more than 800 local mostly anti-war groups across the country. The group staged a rally at City Hall Thursday to express its disappointment and called Mayor Michael Bloomberg to continue discussing demonstration sites.
"Part of why I am out here today is because I think that absolutely we have a right to protest at the RNC [Republican National Committee]. Millions of people across this country are outraged⁷ over what this president has been doing," said a protester.
New York Police Commissioner Ray Kelly says UFPJ can accept the alternative proposal or pursue the issue in court.
"This is our final offer," he said. "Obviously they have the ability to go to court to resolve it in some fashion that way. But this we believe is a reasonable alternative and we need closure on this issue now."
The city and the police have been discussing the site of the rally for months. But Commissioner Kelly says it is now time to move on and work out the logistics of the security and sanitation⁸ requirements of protesters.
UFPJ leaders say they have not yet decided⁹ if they will appeal to the courts.
Barbara Schoetzau, VOA news, New York.

注释：
UFPJ 和平正义联合组织
permit 通行证
demonstrate 示威
Great Lawn 大草坪
marginalize 排斥
umbrella 庇护
RNC 共和党全国委员会
logistics 后勤
sanitation 卫生设施

1 residential   

adj.提供住宿的；居住的；住宅的

参考例句：

• The mayor inspected the residential section of the city.市长视察了该市的住宅区。
• The residential blocks were integrated with the rest of the college.住宿区与学院其他部分结合在了一起。

2 demonstration   

n.表明，示范，论证，示威

参考例句：

• His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
• He gave a demonstration of the new technique then and there.他当场表演了这种新的操作方法。

3 commissioner   

n.（政府厅、局、处等部门）专员，长官，委员

参考例句：

• The commissioner has issued a warrant for her arrest.专员发出了对她的逮捕令。
• He was tapped for police commissioner.他被任命为警务处长。

4 coordinator   

n.协调人

参考例句：

• The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, headed by the Emergency Relief Coordinator, coordinates all UN emergency relief. 联合国人道主义事务协调厅在紧急救济协调员领导下，负责协调联合国的所有紧急救济工作。
• How am I supposed to find the client-relations coordinator? 我怎么才能找到客户关系协调员的办公室？

5 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

6 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

7 outraged   

a.震惊的，义愤填膺的

参考例句：

• Members of Parliament were outraged by the news of the assassination. 议会议员们被这暗杀的消息激怒了。
• He was outraged by their behavior. 他们的行为使他感到愤慨。

8 sanitation   

n.公共卫生，环境卫生，卫生设备

参考例句：

• The location is exceptionally poor,viewed from the sanitation point.从卫生角度来看，这个地段非常糟糕。
• Many illnesses are the result,f inadequate sanitation.许多疾病都来源于不健全的卫生设施。

9 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。