
CHICAGO — Thousands of protesters marched through downtown Chicago on Sunday in one of the city's largest demonstrations in years, airing grievances about war, climate change and a wide range of other complaints as world leaders assembled for a NATO summit. The protest, which stirred worries about violence in the streets, was largely peaceful until the end, when a small group of demonstrators clashed with a line of police who tried to keep them from the lakeside convention center where President Barack Obama is hosting the gathering. The protesters tried to move east toward McCormick Place and threw objects at police. Some officers responded by swinging their batons. After more than an hour, the two sides were still locked in a standoff, with police blocking the protesters' path and the crowd refusing to leave. Some protesters appeared to have blood streaming down their faces. Authorities were seen carrying a few people away from the scene. Esther Westlake, a recent graduate of Northeastern Illinois University, marveled at the size of the crowd. She said she had been involved in antiwar marches before the war in Iraq in Chicago, but had never seen one this big. "It's crazy. There's so many people here," she said. "Having NATO in town is kind of exciting." But some participants wondered whether the protest agenda was too unfocused to get the diplomats' attention. "It seems like there's so many messages and people aren't really sure what they want to get accomplished <b>...</b>
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