Democracy in Action in Madison, WI

[The Capitol is typically open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays. But for the past two weeks, protesters have crammed into the rotunda to protest Gov. Scott Walker's budget repair bill, occupying the building 24 hours a day. 

They have turned the historic building into a sort of protest village, complete with first aid centers, scheduled events and child care. Capitol Police started on Friday enforcing a new set of rules for the rotunda, most of them aimed at ending the camp out...

In a statement Monday, DOA officials said police started letting protesters into the building at 8 a.m., but there was no evidence of that until State Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Madison, confronted police at around noon. 

Pocan caused a ruckus when he tried to enter through a side door. He was joined by dozens of firefighters, many of them carrying signs in support of union workers.

"You can't stop the function of state government, just because Gov. Scott Walker says so," Pocan yelled through.]  emphasis added

http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/local/govt-and-politics/article_549b88ea-4359-11e0-bf9e-001cc4c002e0.html

"strange and new, exciting day indeed when the police are delivering bratwurst" to protesters

[...The Capitol building in Madison has been occupied by students and workers for more than ten days now. But at 11 PM the doors are locked, and if you're in, you're in, and if you're out, you're out. We were out. And so one of the protesters on the inside claimed that I was his intern in order to slip me through security. Once inside, I was amazed at what I saw: the building was packed with a cross section of the people of Madison, all demanding justice. There were students, teachers, firefighters, policemen, veterans, nurses, old hippies and young rebels in every corner and corridor of the building. There was a festive spirit in the air and a determined feeling that they were indeed making history. On my way out, I was actually "bro-ing down" with some cops…AT A PROTEST. Quite new for me. The police were union men themselves, and wholly supportive of the protesters, and I thought, "This is a strange and new, exciting day indeed when the police are delivering bratwurst to the students occupying the State Capitol and high-fiving The Nightwatchman...


I told them that I've been a proud union man for 22 years, as part of Musicians Local 47 in Los Angeles, and a Red Card carrying member of the IWW, and that for me this fight was personal, because my mom, Mary Morello, was a public high school teacher for almost three decades in Libertyville, Illinois. And while we never had much money, we always had enough food on the table and we had clothes on our backs because my mom was a union teacher. And if Governor Walker is going to attack the rights of people like my mom, then The Nightwatchman is coming for his ass.]
http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/frostbite-and-freedom-tom-morello-on-the-battle-of-madison-20110225?page=1

The Nightwatchman