As the Democratic National Convention begins in Los Angeles, we at McSweeney's have decided to pay attention to a matter of important national interest that has been more or less, though not entirely, ignored by the major media. Since the November 1999 WTO riots in Seattle, various local police departments and an amorphous culture of protesters have been at war, with no definite result as yet. We believe that these battles between police and protesters are events of historical significance that test the very limits of our society's tolerance for dissent. These are serious times, and these protests will eventually have serious consequences. Recently, Neal Pollack went to Philadelphia to cover the Republican National Convention and the protests surrounding it, on assignment from a major glossy American magazine. He wrote a very long story of which he was quite proud. For various reasons, none of which were unreasonable, the magazine rejected his piece. However, at McSweeney's, we are not concerned about such things as timeliness, and are certainly not concerned with length. Therefore, we will present Pollack's piece nearly in full, and with great pride. Pollack's work on this site, and in his new book The Neal Pollack Anthology of American Literature, are only a part of his large body of work. Pollack has been reporting on urban-affairs issues for many years in publications like the Chicago Reader, Salon, The New Republic, and The New York Times Magazine. He is a real person, and this piece, which will be presented in eight or so installments, is also real. The events described within really happened, and no names have been changed. Again, they are the real experiences of a real person. Now, please, no more explanations. We hope you enjoy: - - - - PHILADELPHIA: INTO THE MAW, PART ONE PHILADELPHIA: INTO THE MAW, PART TWO PHILADELPHIA: INTO THE MAW, PART THREE PHILADELPHIA: INTO THE MAW, PART FOUR PHILADELPHIA: INTO THE MAW, PART FIVE PHILADELPHIA: INTO THE MAW, PART SIX PHILADELPHIA: INTO THE MAW, PART SEVEN PHILADELPHIA: INTO THE MAW, PART EIGHT
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