Tens of thousands of marchers protested today against US President George W. Bush and his free-trade push, as leaders from the Americas gathered in an Argentine resort for a contentious debate on improving Latin America's economy.
A mixed bag of protesters - from Bolivian Indian women in traditional bowler hats to mothers of Argentine "dirty-war" victims - filled 15 city blocks carrying signs with "Fuera Bush" (Get out Bush) and flags with the face of Argentine revolutionary Che Guevara.
About 7,500 police kept a heavy guard at the meeting site and in the city center, but paid little attention to the protesters, who were 4 miles (6 km) away.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, the leftist leader who opposes Bush's economic model, prepared to take the protesters' message inside the summit meeting room.
He vowed to bury the stalled Free Trade Area of the Americas, or FTAA. "Every one of us has brought a shovel, an undertaker's shovel, because here in Mar del Plata is the tomb of FTAA," Mr Chavez told a full stadium hosting an alternative Peoples' Summit before the afternoon start of the two-day meeting of leaders.
By his side was Argentine soccer legend Diego Maradona, who carried the flag of communist Cuba and wore a T-shirt saying "War Criminal."
They were joined by Bolivian indigenous leader Evo Morales, front-runner for the December 18th presidential election. A large Cuban delegation of athletes sent by President Fidel Castro, who was not invited to the summit, was also popular with the crowd, estimated at 25,000.
Marchers urged the region's leaders to pursue alternatives to the US-backed free-market recipes, which dominated in the region in the 1990s but failed to reduce poverty and inequality.
"We are here to show our proposals and alternatives to build a new dawn in Latin America," said Argentine Nobel Peace Prize winner and author Adolfo Perez Esquivel.
As Mr Chavez rallied the protesters, Mr Bush told reporters he would be polite if he saw Mr Chavez, but offered implied criticism of Venezuela's democracy.
Mr Bush said he judged leaders "based upon their willingness to protect institutions for a viable democratic society."
Mr Bush also met with Argentine President Nestor Kirchner and praised the country's comeback from a 2001-2002 economic collapse. Many Argentines blame the collapse on policies backed by the United States and the International Monetary Fund.