Scuffle breaks out in 'Occupy' rally in D.C.

A scuffle broke out on Saturday at an "Occupy D.C." rally in U.S. capital Washington, with demonstrators against corporate greed and militarism getting pepper-sprayed as they tried to enter a national museum.

Protestors hold placards in front of the Capitol Hill in Washington, the United States, Oct. 8, 2011. A scuffle broke out on Saturday at an "Occupy D.C." rally Washington, with demonstrators against corporate greed and militarism getting pepper-sprayed as they tried to enter a national museum. [Wang Fengfeng/Xinhua]

Hundreds, possibly thousands, of protesters marched Saturday afternoon from Freedom Plaza near the White House to the National Mall just under the Capitol Hill. As they tried to enter the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum, a scuffle broke out between demonstrators and security guards. Security guards used pepper-spray to subdue those who tried to force their way into the museum.

"We got to the door, and they maced us. They pushed the people. They maced us again... before anyone of us can make it to the door, and then they locked the door," said Leslie Boyd, who came from Ashville, NC. "This is a nonviolent movement. We didn't do anything wrong."

Boyd said she was "a few people back" from the front line, but still got some pepper-spray on her face, "my nose, my throat, and my eyes a little bit," and it "burns like crazy."

As the pungent smell of pepper-spray spread, many protesters were forced to cover their mouths and noses with clothes. One protesters who got maced directly vomited on the ground. Many used bottled water to soothe their faces of the sting.

The museum's front door facing the National Mall was temporarily shut, and demonstrators sat on the steps leading up to the glass doors, demanding entrance.

Later, the Park Police, which is responsible for the National Mall, sent in squads of officers with canine units and horses. Fire trucks were also present, as demonstrators sat on the steps and refused to leave. No arrest was made until 4 p.m. EST, according to witnesses.

Against corporate greed

Saturday's rally was by far the largest of many in the "Occupy D.C." movement, which had been going on for the past week in and around Freedom Plaza and McPherson Square and elsewhere in Washington.

Lisa Simeone, one of the organizers of the movement, said they had permit to hold rally at Freedom Plaza until Sunday night, and organizers haven't decided what they will do next.

"Occupy D.C.," an offshoot of the "Occupy Wall Street" movement, has been slowly gaining traction for the past week, and a rally Thursday to coincide with the tenth anniversary of the Afghanistan War attracted hundreds of people. Many people came from out of town to join the protest against corporate greed, and called for the government to concentrate on people's needs.

Brian Jordan, a political science major from Northeastern University in Boston, said he joined the demonstration because he wanted to see the influence of big money out of politics. He also has problem with the growing wealth gap.

"Wage growth in the past few years has benefited the wealthy few, while majority of workers became less prosperous than 20 or 30 years ago," said Jordan, noting he is at the rally because he wants the country to go back to the right direction, and he has been "waiting for this."