I didn’t have an exclusive press pass to watch the leaders of the free world unite for the G-20 Summit on Sept. 24-25. But since it seemed unlikely that this event would occur again in Pittsburgh, Pa., I wanted to see what stories I could find in the highly fortified downtown. At rush hour on a Thursday morning, the city bus carried just seven people while we passed National Guard trucks at many intersections. Most vehicles were not permitted into the city center.

Scared by predictions of violent protests and blocked streets, most people stayed away, and most businesses closed. That left the streets to security (over 4,000 police), protesters and media. While many of the protests were peaceful, one march by anarchists and others turned destructive, and the police swooped in by the hundreds. It was confusing to watch. I was very thankful for the police but also disheartened by innocent bystanders and nonviolent protesters being lumped in with the violent protesters. Thankfully, nearly everyone practiced restraint, and I heard of no serious injuries.

The G-20 Summit itself was controversial, with many in the media and on the streets believing that this was primarily a public relations stunt, and that little real change would result. Perhaps the greatest clarity amidst the fog of summit and protests could be found on a couple of street corners downtown, where “protesters” from an evangelism school in Wisconsin (pictured) had come to point people to real answers. In the midst of a strange day in a city I barely recognized, here was the clear, stark, transforming truth.

—Drew Gordon