Police and Demonstrators Tense for Panther Protest

(Special to the CRIMSON)

NEW HAVEN, April 30-Demonstration organizers and law-enforcement officials nervously completed final preparations here tonight on the eve of the expected massive May Day demonstrations.

Protest leaders expect more than 25,000 people to attend the demonstration in support of Black Panther National Chairman Bobby G. Seale and a group of New Haven Panthers who are facing trial here on charges stemming from the murder of a fellow Panther last May.

Despite continued assertions by the demonstration's organizers that the protest will be non-violent. Connecticut governor John Dempsey announced today that he had requested that U.S. troops-as well as the National Guard and state police-stand by in case of trouble.

Beyond Capacity

In a telegram to Attorney General John Mitchell asking for the troops, Dempsey said that "the possibility for domestic violence in New Haven. . . is and remains great." The telegram added that "the violence could escalate beyond our capacity to contain it."

Four thousand paratroopers have been flown to Rhode Island and Massachusetts and are standing by in response to the request.

Although New Haven police chief Joe Ahern had originally intended to use a "low-profile" policy-by which police, although present in force, would remain relatively inconspicuous-officials announced today that National Guardsmen would be deployed at the demonstration site early this morning.

Yale president Kingman Brewster Jr., in a press conference this morning, urged that the demonstrators use "self-discipline and self-restraint," warning that "the best possible thing for the defendants would be the avoidance of violence."

Broken Windows

But Yale chaplain William Sloane Coflin warned the New Haven community that "we will be lucky if we get through this weekend with only a few broken windows."

Coflin is one of the organizers of theYale Student-Faculty Monitoring Committee, a group which has attempted to coordinate efforts to keep the demonstration peaceful. A report issued by the group last night charged that "the chance of disorder" at the demonstration was greater than at previous demonstrations in New Haven. The report cited "inadequate" marshaling provisions and the absence of a clear police chain of command.

A spokesman for the New Haven Panther Defense Committee-a predominantly white group which is coordinating the weekend demonstrations-labeled the report "bullshit." "We have marshals," he said.

Several hundred Yale students and "street people" have been training to act as marshals for the defense committee. Ann Froines, a Defense Committee leader, said yesterday that she expected the marshals to be able to "deal with certain situations which might arise and might need cooling off."

The Black Panther Party, which has supported the rally, asked all students today to help defend it against repression. David Hilliard, Party Chief of Staff, said that the arrest of two Panthers in Baltimore is part of a national pattern of government actions against the Panthers.

Although the Panthers have joined the Defense Committee, the Southern Christian Leadership Council, and other groups in calling the demonstration. few Panthers are expected to attend the rally. Elbert "Big Man" Howard, Panther Deputy Minister of Information, said yesterday that "those brothers who are assigned to be there will be there."

The rally will begin at noon Friday on the New Haven Green, across the street from the courthouse. where Seale and the other Panthers are scheduled to be tried. Rock bands-including Cat Mother and the All-Night News Boys-will play until 4 p.m., when Big Man and Abbie Hoffman and David Dellinger of the Conspiracy Seven will address the crowd. A dance at Yale's Ingalls Rink is scheduled for the evening after the parade permit expires at 8 p.m. Another concert and rally is planned for Saturday.

Most Yale students are hopeful that the university will not be damaged by demonstrators. The strike, which continues to be about 80 per cent effective, shows, Yalies hope, that the university is on the side of the Panthers and should not be a target.

Most students do not know what a large militant demonstration is like. Rumors of Weatherman plans for burning Yale, gun thefts in New Haven, and arson have prompted many to leave for the weekend. Those who remain have organized a variety of groups to accommodate the expected 25,000 demonstrators. Free meals are being served in all Yale dining halls. Student marshals will patrol the area 24 hours a day until Sunday. Housing Committee members have stated that they can accommodate up to 35,000 people in Yale dormitories.

In their plans the students have received full cooperation from the Yale administration. A potential point of difference arose when the administration announced that it would close Phelps Gate, the main gate to the campus which faces on the Green. But late tonight, Brewster announced that the gate would be open to provide an exit for demonstrators after the events in the Green end.

Despite the elaborate preparations, most Yale students are unsure about what will happen Friday. This is the first time that Yale has undergone any major political disruption. Even the most bizarre rumors find believers. Students are scared, confused, but cautiously hopeful that somehow Kingman Brewster and thousands of moderate, non-violent Yale students will pull the university through the weekend without major violence.