One week after the Boston Red Sox “reversed the curse,” beating the St. Louis Cardinals in the World Series, all that remains are a few bruised knees and bent street signs.
Unlike when the New England Patriots won the Super Bowl in 2002, no trees in The Fens were set on fire.
Unlike after the Patriots’ 2004 win, no drunk drivers caused harm to onlookers while speeding through crowds.
And far from the events that ensued after the Sox took the American League Ch-ampionship from the New York Yankees, no “less-lethal” weapons claimed the life of a fan on the street.
Instead, crowds jammed into Kenmore Square, on Brookline Avenue and on streets near Northeastern’s campus. They strolled down the street with beer cans in one hand and brooms in the other, to symbolize the Red Sox sweeping victory.
Near Cask ‘n’ Flagon on Brookline Avenue, pictures of Manny Ramirez pointed down at fans from two billboards proclaiming, “Keep the Faith.”
On Boylston Street and in Kenmore Square, the smell of cigars in the air marked a time-honored tradition, while other fans tried to put a stamp on the moment by posing for pictures with riot police.
Still, some fans wore goggles as they pushed their way through the crowd, taking a poke at police for the accidental death of Emerson Coll-ege student Victoria Snelgrove after the ALCS.
“Please don’t shoot us,” the crowd chanted to the swarms of police — on motorcycle, on horse and on foot.
“I’m happy to see no violence going on,” said Tim Doyle, 23, of Brookline, as he was pushed back and forth in the swarms of people at Lansdowne Street and Brookline Avenue. “They realize it’s a time to celebrate, not a time to destruct.”
From the crowd that brought their celebration within the vicinity of Fenway Park, 35 people were arrested and approximately 20 were injured. Police used several methods of force including tear gas bombs to disperse rowdy crowds. Lansdowne St-reet, heavy with bars and adjacent to Fenway Park, as well as part of Brookline Avenue, remained closed throughout the night.
No major incidents were reported by the Northeastern Public Safety Division, said Ed Klotzbier, vice president for student affairs.
“Northeastern students by and large got the message that we stressed about acting responsibly,” Klotzbier said. “We heard nothing but good things about our students, the way they acted after the games. They did behave responsibly and proved they are good students, they are good people in the city and they’re not out to be troublemakers.”
Before the series began, Northeastern announced it would show the games in multiple locations around campus, including four in the Curry Student Center.
Before Game 4, the first possibility the Red Sox had to clinch the series, both students and faculty voiced their concerns over the way students would react to a victory. And a week after it ended, some members of the Northeastern community said they feel students made great strides from their victory celebration the previous week.
“If people are capable of taking care of their friends … and keeping each other in check and watching out for each other, that’s the first step,” said John Silveria, director of student leadership. “I’m glad there are so few students from Northeastern that are associated with what happened and I’m glad that, overall, our students are safe.”
Of the 35 people arrested the night of Game 4, one was a Northeastern student.
Despite warnings of administrators, some students would not give up the opportunity to be at Fenway Park after the first Sox victory in 86 years.
“It’s a generation thing,” said Francis Griffin, a senior business marketing and entrepreneurship major who was raised in Boston. “My grandfather has never seen this happen and right now he’s sitting at home and smiling. My dad called me so pumped, my grandfather’s pumped and smiling and here I am, the youngest generation, out at Fenway causing a ruckus.”
With police out in droves to keep fans in order, Griffin and hordes of other screaming fans made it home safely.
“I expected it to be more exciting, but there were so many cops that not that much could happen,” said Laila Pinajian, a sophomore business management major.
Other students said they agreed the crowds were generally under control after police in full riot gear cordoned off street after street until a dying crowd made their way to Massachusetts Avenue. In a last-ditch effort at celebration around 2:30 a.m., revelers rallied around a parked car until a police transport van pushed into the screaming crowd. The full force of police quickly followed, pushing street-dwellers from Boylston Street towards Symphony Hall, forcing some to seek back alleys to avoid the wrath of pepper spray.
“Some people were out of control,” said Jenna Ward, a sophomore business major. “They were throwing flaming things into the crowd. When people get crazy, it’s not fun anymore.”
The last of the crowd dispersed around 3 a.m., leaving scattered newspapers, garbage and shattered glass in their wake.
By the next morning, the streets were swept and Boston residents began to line up to purchase Red Sox merchandise and prepare for the parade Saturday.
Silveria, who attended the parade, said the mood of the day was generally happy — the way a sports team’s victory celebration should be.
“You just hope that somebody doesn’t have to lose their life to get that message across,” Silveria said.
– Staff writers Sarah Metcalf and Glenn Yoder and correspondent Jill Campbell contributed to this report.
