We Speak For Earth
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#OccupyOakland. A photo of police smoke bombs from roughly 2 hours ago in Oakland.
Taken by Steve Rhodes, on Flickr here, and also Twitter.
This is a big deal. Dan Siegel, legal adviser to Oakland, Calif. Mayor Jean Quan, resigned over the brutalization of Occupy Oakland protesters and says he now supports the Occupy Wall Street movement. Approximately an hour ago, he wrote on Twitter, “No longer Mayor Quan’s legal advisor. Resigned at 2 am. Support Occupy Oakland, not the 1% and its government facilitators.”
This came after he encouraged people to mobilize to Occupy Oakland late last night, where another raid resulted in upwards of 32 arrests, according to Occupy Oakland leaders. Police declared the park a crime scene Monday and forced media to leave.
If more high-ranking municipal officials have an attack of conscience and do the right thing, what then? It appears city and state governments are already a titch frightened of the Occupy movement. If their own people refuse to obey or resign in protest, perhaps it will be time to take this a little more seriously. Change from the bottom on up, folks.
Amazing!
(via stfuconservatives)
Police Infiltrators and Provocateurs At Occupy Oakland
There were rumors this was going on, so it’s good to have this sort of verification, though any more info about this would be very helpful.
Oakland police fire a rubber bullet on a camera man filming them. This is extremely unacceptable and is just as bad as the mace incident that happened in New York.
Keep in mind, this does not mean all policemen are like this, please do not generalize.
More info needed, but this seems pretty f***ed up.
Ian Murdoch cleans graffiti off the BART elevator structure in Ogawa Plaza Thursday morning Nov. 3, 2011 following yesterday’s General Strike. Murdoch does not work for the city, and also says he is not a volunteer. He’s an Oakland Occupier, and says, since he lives there, he naturally feels compelled to clean up after people who did things that “don’t represent what we believe.” (Karl Mondon/Staff)
This.
Personally, I think this should not be allowed or condoned at Occupy events at all. Here’s why:
1) Occupy’s philosophy has been non-violent, peaceful protesting. What these people are doing should, at a minimum, not be done at Occupy events, and certainly not in the Occupy name. (If you believe in OWS, then show some respect for its philosophies.)
Thus, it should not be done at Occupy events.
2) Occupy’s peaceful nature is one of its greatest strengths. It earns the movement respect, avoids the demonization which will surely accompany any violence (just look at how people reacted to the police’s violence at OWS!) or “civil unrest” (can only imagine what the media is doing with the OO photos), and it doesn’t alienate people who agree with Occupy but who aren’t extremists, don’t want to smash things, or are afraid of getting into danger or hurt. (I’ve met quite a few people like this, people who were afraid to even go see what the movement is about because they were freaked out.)
Thus, it’s counter-productive to the Occupy cause.
3) It will basically force the city to break up the protests, and with legitimate reason. And considering that so many cities are trying to break it up, this is just the excuse they need to justify breaking it up and to justify the extreme methods for breaking it up. If we’re peaceful, we have a very legitimate claim that we should be left in peace. It gives us the upper hand, and earns us sympathy and supporters when the city or police act out of line.
Thus, it endangers all the Occupy locations.
4) It harms the wrong people. Who is effected or hurt? The people and corporations that caused the problems? Not really, and perhaps not at all. For one, the cost of a window is a drop in the bucket for them and completely insignificant. For another, breaking a bank window or putting graffiti on a store may simply be a loss and harassment for the local owner, manager, the guy who’s got to clean things up, and for the local residents whose town looks trashy. And this is assuming that the store vandalized has anything to do with OWS. Just trashing a local shop has no justification.
Thus, it hurts the wrong people.
In summary, it doesn’t belong at Occupy events, it’s extremely counter-productive for the Occupy movement, it endangers Occupy locations, and it hurts the wrong people. In other words, it’s a really terrible idea.
-Ari
Occupy Oakland volunteer John Lucas of Alameda, Calif. uses a cleaning product to remove graffiti sprayed on a drug store near Frank Ogawa Plaza early Thursday, Nov. 3, 2011 in Oakland, Calif. “It’s just embarrassing,” said Lucas, who said he tried to stop vandals unsuccessfully. (D. Ross Cameron/Staff)
-sigh-
Again, go to the protests, let your voice be heard, but don’t be a dick.
because they’re doing it
I’d like to know the answer as well and also get verification if this actually occurred.
Quite evident that anarchists are a splinter cell in Oakland. Here, protesters clash with aggressive, vandalizing anarchists.
Damn!
I know not all anarchists are violent and vandals, but this is what I mean about a small group of radicals fucking up the whole atmosphere and point of Occupy.
This should not be tolerated!
