Tom Jackman still looked a little dazed. He had arrived in New York at 3am from New Mexico and now, just seven hours later, he was standing in Union Square park on a bright, clear and electrically charged morning. All around him were thousands of protesters banging drums, handing out leaflets or singing. The scene was slightly overwhelming.

The trip was a last-minute idea. “The whole issue of the city not giving permits [for a rally in Central Park] made us come,” he said. “They tried to make us fearful of coming and that was when we knew we had to be here.”