Despite a delay to the start of the Republican National Convention, Monday's major protest march in downtown Tampa is scheduled to go on.
Jared Hamil, spokesman for the Coalition to March on the RNC, says he hasn't heard of many cancellations among the expected 5,000 protesters, so they'll brave the storm.
"The weather is not working in our favor, but we will be wet, we will be angry, but we'll still be here," Hamil said during a Sunday press conference in Perry Harvey, Sr. Park, where Monday's events will start with a 10 a.m. rally.
Hamil also took the opportunity to tweak the GOP for delaying the start of its Convention.
"While the Republicans hide away in fear, we will be here to oppose their agenda of poverty, war and hate," he said.
And while the possibility remains that some marchers might show up to cause trouble, Hamil isn't too worried.
"You know, we're not concerned with that,'' he said. "What we're having is a permanent, peaceful march and we urge everyone to attend.
" You know, we're going to have the people from all over the country, we're going to have families here, we're going to have people from all walks of life, and that's what we're going to have here--we're going to have a peaceful demonstration," Hamil said.
A back-up interior location has been lined up if necessary, he said.
The march will proceed from Harvey Park to a designated protest location near the Tampa Bay Times Forum, where a second rally will be held.
