PITTSBURGH -- Riot police turned back hundreds of protesters trying to march downtown on the first day of the Group of 20 summit, arresting nearly 70 people as authorities braced for smaller, scattered protests at dozens of businesses and organizations Friday.

---

RAW VIDEO: Protesters March Throughout Pittsburgh
PERIMETERS: Convention Center Security
ROAD CLOSURES: List Of Downtown Road Closures
PHOTOS: Submit Your Images To WPXI

---

Police, in an overwhelming show of force, declared Thursday's "People's Uprising" march illegal almost as soon as it began at 3 p.m. in Lawrenceville's Arsenal Park, firing rubber bullets and canisters of pepper spray and smoke after small bands of anarchists responded to calls to disperse by rolling huge metal trash bins, throwing rocks and breaking windows.

Mayor Luke Ravenstahl commended police for their "swift decisions to send a message to the anarchists that we will not tolerate unlawful behavior," adding there was minimal property damage as a result.

The protesters shattered windows and ATMs at the Bloomfield PNC Bank after the crowd broke up.

According to Pittsburgh police, 24 people were arrested during the day and another 42 people were arrested overnight as protesters and students thronged in the city's Oakland section.

Thursday afternoon's march turned chaotic at just about the time President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama arrived for a meeting with leaders of the world's major economies.

The clashes began after hundreds of protesters, many decrying capitalism, tried to march from an outlying neighborhood toward the David L. Lawrence Convention Center downtown, where the summit is being held.

The protesters clogged streets, banged on drums and chanted "Ain't no power like the power of the people, 'cause the power of the people don't stop."

"Our city, our streets, our park" was among chants that also included, "This is what democracy looks like."

The marchers included small groups of self-described anarchists, some wearing dark clothes, ski masks and bandanas and carrying black flags. Others wore helmets and safety goggles.

"It's only natural for us to cover our face because, you know, naturally if the government has dissent, they're going to want to their dissenters are and they're going to do what they can to throw them in prison," said one protester. "We're just defending our liberties."

The marchers did not have a permit and, after a few blocks, police declared it an unlawful assembly. They played a recorded announcement over a loudspeaker ordering people to leave, as well as ear-piercing sirens, then police in riot gear moved in to break it up.

"This protest is in violation by order of the chief of police," authorities yelled over the loudspeaker, Channel 11 News reporter Vince Sims said.

Channel 11 News reporter Rick Earle said police in riot gear set up to block the group at the corner of 34th Street and Liberty Avenue and 33rd Street and Penn Avenue.

Protesters split into smaller groups. Some rolled large metal trash bins toward police, and a man in a black hooded sweat shirt threw rocks at a police car from Charlotte, N.C., breaking the front windshield. Protesters broke windows in a few businesses, including a bank branch, a Boston Market restaurant and a BMW dealership.

Officers fired rubber bullets, pepper spray and smoke at the protesters and set off a flash-bang grenade. Some of those exposed to the pepper spray coughed and complained that their eyes were watering and stinging.

"The demonstrators were being aggressive toward the officers who felt it was necessary to utilize that kind of force," Harper said late Thursday.

At one point, officers surged onto the sidewalks and grabbed several protesters who had been shouting at them.

"That was ridiculous," said T.J. Amick, 22, of Pittsburgh. "People were being grabbed if they just got too close to the cops. It didn't matter what they were doing, what they were saying. They were just asking what was going on, and they were being taken off the streets to God knows where."

Sims spoke to the first protesters to arrive in Pittsburgh for the march. They were protesters in town from Denver and they thanked Sims for covering the story and giving the cause a voice in the media.

The G-20 ends Friday after a day of meetings at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center.

---

OTHER PROTESTS:

Oakland

Hundreds of protesters gathered at the Cathedral of Learning Thursday evening in Oakland.

Students at the University of Pittsburgh gather at the Cathedral for the unique opportunity to question the president of the Russian Federation.

President Dmitry Medvedev was set to speak to the group, but he was delayed.

For more information on the story, Click Here.

West Penn Hospital

About 200 peaceful protesters gathered at West Penn Hospital Thursday evening, Channel 11 reporter Gordon Loesch reported.

North Side, Strip District Protesters Gather

Other protesters gathered on the North Side and in the Strip District early Thursday morning. Those protesters were also considered peaceful.

For more information on these protests, Click Here.

Tibetans Converge To Protest Chinese Actions

A contingency of protesters has already congregated in Pittsburgh to call attention to an international issue.

Members from Tibetan communities from several US cities are in Pittsburgh for the G-20 summit to protest the Chinese government’s actions in Tibet.

For more on this protest, Click Here.