Occupy Boston

[Lenina Rosenweg]

Occupy Boston has been developing into one of the biggest and most feisty Occupy movements. Yesterday a 100 people were arrested. In bits and pieces I've picked up throughout the day it sounds like the authorities are trying to shut it down or at least greatly downsize it,One camp was shut down There are similar things happening in other cities.

Am I over reacting or is this a coordinated strategy to suppress the movement. While obviously most protesters aren't socialists, they are extremely angry at the system and dissent is moving out of standard ruling class means of control, i.e. the Democratic Party. The ruling class is visibly worried.

Are we in for a clampdown?

A scenario for repression might consist of hysteria created by a terrorist threat, which would also provide rationale for shutting down public transit in cities and greater police presence-Mayor Bloomberg has been looking forward to this for a while,hysteria from the right of "violent mobs", possibly a staged Starbucks bombing. This may be an opportune time for a war with one of "our" many enemies.

Repression could either intimidate people, or as in Egypt and Syria, create even greater anger. I tend to over react to these things. It will be interesting to see how things play out. A gradual "whittle down" strategy is most likely.A different context, but that is how the US had South Korea crush the Kwangju uprising.

[Os Cangaceiros]

I don't think the authorities are worried.

Small (relatively speaking) clusters of malcontents isolated in specific districts isn't disrupting much...yet.

[Ele'ill]

..yet.


;)

The mayor and police marched the other day here in pdx with the marathon/occupation. I'm not sure who is playing who at this point but one side is going to be very very upset when this changes from demonstration to action. Also solidarity with Boston expressed by much of the Portland camp.

[La Comédie Noire]

Those bastards tried to shut us down, then the next day the corporate media got a bunch of clips of people whining about "a minority of violent trouble makers."

[coda]

yes, I caught a news clip that said the anarchists came and then the cops came and then the whole thing was shut down. She said it was all gone. She didn't outright say it was because of the Anarchists but it didn't take a rocket scientist to draw that inference. Rrrrrarrrrrr!! Screw that! Find another scapegoat!

[Catma]

It was the second camp that really did it for OB. They will come down hard at the edges of this movement and nip away what they can. They don't want any mold-breaking from the relatively peaceful form that it's settled into. With the unions joining in the protest marches here in NY, there is much less militancy and much more milling-around. Energy and creativity have been traded for numbers.

They need to defuse this. The first step is to keep it predictable and under control. After that, they can use the media and the passage of time to chip away at it.

The question is, do WE want the movement to become more unpredictable and militant, right now? Movements can grow, or they can shrink. They don't stand still very well.

This is an opportunity. But whether it's time to strike a blow or just grow our forces, I can't say.

[marl]

I apologize for the bump, but for all comrades in Boston:

https://www.facebook.com/events/306421419408980/

Reoccupation on April 1st. Hopefully the pigs here won't be as aggressive as their New York Pig Department counterparts.

[TheGodlessUtopian]

Reoccupation on April 1st. Hopefully the pigs here won't be as aggressive as their New York Pig Department counterparts.

I wouldn't count on them playing nice, go prepared to 'throw down.'

[marl]

After what happened with the vet early on, they've been keeping to themselves. The eviction wasn't as bad as others.

[GiantMonkeyMan]

I apologize for the bump, but for all comrades in Boston:

https://www.facebook.com/events/306421419408980/

Reoccupation on April 1st. Hopefully the pigs here won't be as aggressive as their New York Pig Department counterparts.

I loved the tagline: 'we showered, we worked, we're back!'. :lol:

[ellipsis]

boston cops are goons who talk like they're in good will hunting. "you boyz bettas do yaselves a favah an' gedthefugouttaere." actual quote.

[marl]

Boston Carmen’s Union Local 589 Joins April 4 Public Transit Day of Action (http://www.occupyboston.org/2012/03/31/boston-carmens-union-local-589-joins-april-4-public-transit-day-action/)



Declaring “Urban Transit is a Civil Rights Issue,” the Boston Carmen’s Union, Local 589, which represents over 6,000 MBTA workers, has called on “transit workers [to] join together with the occupy movement and transit passengers across the country to honor Dr. King’s legacy” on April 4 for the National Day of Action for Public Transportation (http://occupymbta.org/april-4-day-of-action-for-transportation/day-of-action-at-the-massachusetts-state-house/). In a press release (http://carmensunion589.org/2012/03/urban-transit-systems-have-become-civil-rights-issue/) on its website, the Boston Carmen’s Union wrote:

Urban Transit Is A Civil Rights Issue
On the anniversary of Dr. King’s death, April 4, transit workers join together with the occupy movement and transit passengers across the country to honor Dr. King’s legacy. Dr. King declared “transit systems in most American cities…have become a genuine civil rights issue…If transportation systems in American cities could be laid out so as to provide an opportunity for poor people to get to meaningful employment, then they could begin to move into the mainstream of American life.” His words ring true today as Boston and our country faces a public transportation crisis.
April 4th, 2012 marks a National Day of Action in Boston and throughout the country to honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., who, on April 4, 1967, delivered his famous speech, “Beyond Vietnam: Breaking the Silence,” in which he explained the link between war and poverty. On that same date, exactly one year later, Dr. King’s voice was silenced by an assassin’s bullet. Dr. King played a key role in Montgomery bus boycott for racial equality and throughout his life fought for the rights of those in the 99% impacted by cuts to public transportation: low-income Americans, communities of color, students, workers, and seniors.
We ask: “Where Is Mass Transit Today?” In 2011 Americans took 10.4 billion trips on mass transit, the most in decades, but public transportation is still under attack…


85% of transit systems have cut service or raised fares since the recession having a devastating impact on those who rely on mass transit — the 99%.
Thousands of transit workers have lost their jobs.
Transit systems are deteriorating: older vehicles, deferred maintenance, longer wait times for overcrowded buses and trains.
Wall Street is profiting off of the debt that transit systems face. The NYC Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) had to pay over $1.1 billion in interest payments in 2011.
Instead of cutting fares, MTA is cutting checks to Wall Street bankers – the 1%.
Service is being outsourced to foreign national companies looking to make a killing while compromising the safety and service for passengers and workers.

Meanwhile…


The Pentagon spends $300 million per day on the Afghan War. That’s our tax dollars that could be spent on public transportation and other critical investments for our communities.
Politicians won’t commit to fund mass transit adequately and blame the economic crisis. Instead they raise fares and cut routes, but service does not improve.
The bankers and brokers – the 1% – control the money for public transportation and threaten the transit systems that took a century to build. The greed and corruption must stop.

Take Action Now! Join us on April 4th, 2012 for hearing inside the State House at 3pm followed by a rally outside at 5pm.
April 4 at the State House
Hearing: 3-5pm
Rally & Speak Out: 5pm until we’re done
Join us as part of the National Day of Action on Transportation (http://occupymbta.org/april-4-day-of-action-for-transportation/) to demand:


No service cuts
No fare hikes
No layoffs
No privatization of our treasured public transit system.
A comprehensive state-wide plan for affordable and sustainable transportation that works for the 99%.

For more information on #A4 or to get involved in Occupy MBTA, please visit http://occupymbta.org/.