This is apparently the first such curfew imposed in the city since Japanese citizens were ordered off the streets during World War II. An ACLU lawyer said that restrictions on protests in some areas appeared to violate both the U.S. and Washington state constitutions. Mayor Paul Schell, who himself marched against the Vietnam War and in favor of civil rights, said that the restrictions were appropriate in the face of violence.
See "24-hour Seattle curfew near WTO site", CNN, December 1, 1999