(This was originally published at Greater Democracy

With protests there are various measures of the success of the protest. Did violence erupt? Did the police keep things under control? Who is perceived as the good guys and who is perceived as the bad guys? Based on unscientific methods, I need to award round one of the Republican Convention protests to the protestors. Last night, five thousand cyclists rode through the streets of New York. They were greeted by cheers by many along the streets. About an hour and a half into the ride, the street started cordoning off streets and arresting cyclists for disorderly conduct and confiscating their bicycles.

The bicycle is one of those ubiquitous Americana symbols. My next-door neighbors young daughter is learning to ride a bike on the cul-de-sac next to my house. My father-in-law and his wife, both retired U.S. Government agents just went on a twenty-five mile bike ride at the National Seashore on Cape Cod. This morning, my two-year-old daughter saw to bicyclists at the local store and asked them about the bicycles. We live in an area where the weekend bike ride has surpassed jogging as the exercise of choice.

This evening, I listening to a popular New York City radio station, the DJ dedicated his show to the bicyclists that were arrested, and dug through the stacks to find some good songs about bicycles.

While a few people have pointed out that some of the bicyclists were rude to some pedestrians, everyone I’ve spoken with agrees that the police over-reacted and needlessly escalated the tension in the city. While no one wants to see violence erupt in the city, the police are destroying the good will that they have and making violence more likely. It is truly unfortunate.