Police clear out downtown Occupy Oakland (And Occupy Portland)camps

[KurtFF8]

Source (http://news.yahoo.com/police-clear-downtown-occupy-oakland-camp-141946461.html;_ylt=Al6JMlVk9Y3kdTmR20bsbTSs0NUE;_ ylu=X3oDMTNtNDNjdmpmBG1pdANKdW1ib3Ryb24gRlAEcGtnAz BmNDlhOTZmLTZjMTAtMzhmYy1hMzdkLTE2ODJiYTFjYzU5ZgRw b3MDMwRzZWMDanVtYm90cm9uBHZlcgMwZTUxYzg2MC0wZWQxLT ExZTEtOTdlYi1hYjExZTQxYjM4ZjM-;_ylg=X3oDMTFpNzk0NjhtBGludGwDdXMEbGFuZwNlbi11cwRw c3RhaWQDBHBzdGNhdANob21lBHB0A3NlY3Rpb25z;_ylv=3)

http://l3.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/XIBtLhGuYqWUG2wTFfPt1w--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Y2g9MTI0MDtjcj0xO2N3PTE4NzE7ZHg9MD tkeT0wO2ZpPXVsY3JvcDtoPTQxODtxPTg1O3c9NjMw/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/2ca3d9a099dc7719fe0e6a706700f007.jpg



OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Riot-clad law enforcement officers cleared out a weeks-old anti-Wall Street encampment in Oakland just before dawn Monday, arresting dozens of Occupy demonstrators and clearing out tents from a downtown plaza after issuing several warnings over the weekend.
Protesters appeared to put up little resistance and officers could be seen leading some handcuffed demonstrators away. Warnings from authorities had been similar to those issued before officers used tear gas and bean bag projectiles to clear the encampment on Oct. 25.
Police and sheriff's deputies blocked off surrounding streets before Monday's raid. Afterward, some demonstrators gathered near the barricades and vowed to return.
"I don't see how they're going to disperse us," said Ohad Meyer, 30, of Oakland. "There are thousands of people who are going to come back."
The action came a day after police drove hundreds of anti-Wall Street demonstrators from weeks-old encampments in Portland, arresting more than 50 people.
Oakland officials stepped up calls for an end to their city's encampment after a man was shot and killed Thursday near the plaza. Police issued a fourth cease and desist order Sunday night telling demonstrators they couldn't camp there.
Mayor Jean Quan had allowed protesters to reclaim the disbanded site after facing criticism following the Oct. 25 raid. The camp grew substantially afterward, although city officials said on Sunday the number of tents has dropped by about 30 to 150 since Nov. 8.
Officials across the country have been urging an end to similar gatherings in the wake of three deaths in different cities, including two deaths by gunfire.
Demands for Oakland protesters to pack up increased after a man was shot and killed Thursday near the encampment site.
Protesters had said that there was no connection between the shooting and the camp. But police Sunday night identified the slain man as 25-year-old Kayode Ola Foster of Oakland, saying his family confirmed he had been staying at the plaza.
Police officer Johnna Watson said witnesses have told police that one of two suspects in the shooting had also been a frequent resident at the plaza. The suspects are being sought and their names haven't been released.
Investigators suspect that the shooting resulted from a fight between two groups of men.
In the hours after the midnight Saturday eviction deadline in Portland, the anti-Wall Street protesters and their supporters had flooded the park area. At one point, the crowd swelled to thousands. As dawn arrived, riot police had retreated and most of the crowds had gone home, but protesters who have been at the two parks since Oct. 6 were still there, prompting one organizer to declare the night a victory for the movement.
"We stood up to state power," Jim Oliver told The Associated Press.
It didn't last. Police moved in later. An officer on a loudspeaker warned that anyone who resisted risked arrest and "may also be subject to chemical agents and impact weapons." Demonstrators chanted "we are a peaceful protest."
"We were talking about what we were going to do and then they just started hitting people. Seems like a waste of resources to me," protester Mike Swain, 27, told the AP.
One man was taken away on a stretcher; he was alert and talking to paramedics, and raised a peace sign to fellow protesters, who responded with cheers.
City officials erected temporary chain-link fences with barbed wire at the top around three adjacent downtown parks, choking off access for demonstrators as parks officials cleaned up.
Portland Mayor Sam Adams Sunday defended his order to clear the park, saying it is his job to enforce the law and keep the peace. "This is not a game," Adams said.
Officials said that one officer suffered minor injuries. Police had prepared for a possible clash, warning that dozens of anarchists may be planning a confrontation with authorities.
In other cities over the weekend:
— In Salt Lake City, police arrested 19 people Saturday when protesters refused to leave a park a day after a man as found dead inside his tent at the encampment.
— In Albany, N.Y., police arrested 24 Occupy Albany protesters after they defied an 11 p.m. curfew in a state-owned park.
— In Denver, authorities arrested four people as they forced protesters to leave a downtown encampment.
— In San Francisco, police said two demonstrators attacked two police officers in separate incidents during a march, leaving them with minor injuries. The assailants couldn't be located.
___
Associated Press writers Terrence Petty and Jonathan J. Cooper in Portland, Ore., Josh Loftin in Salt Lake City, Jim Anderson in Denver and Andrew Dalton in Los Angeles contributed to this report.


Very bad developments for the movement of course. It looked like both of these camps were going to be able to defend their respective spots, but now that they have both failed to do so: this is a huge blow to the movement.

[aty]

I dont think it is over yet. I can see both of them moving into occupied houses...

[KurtFF8]

I think in both, there is talk of returning to the evicted sites. The real issue now is that the police/city governments know they can clear it whenever they want now.

The earlier victory in Portland was followed up by a major defeat.

[RED DAVE]

Very bad developments for the movement of course. It looked like both of these camps were going to be able to defend their respective spots, but now that they have both failed to do so: this is a huge blow to the movement.It is clear that without active labor support, the occupations will be picked off one by one. What is unique about Occupy Wall Street is that it has active participation of organized workers. This is what saved it from Mayor Bloomberg's attempt to "clean up" the site several weeks ago.

No one can blame occupiers for not forging relationships with the labor movement at this point, but it is clear that these links must be made. In New York, the labor leadership/bureaucracy, for a host of reasons, has chosen to defend OWS, and this has made all the difference.

RED DAVE

[The Douche]

It is clear that without active labor support, the occupations will be picked off one by one. What is unique about Occupy Wall Street is that it has active participation of organized workers. This is what saved it from Mayor Bloomberg's attempt to "clean up" the site several weeks ago.

No one can blame occupiers for not forging relationships with the labor movement at this point, but it is clear that these links must be made. In New York, the labor leadership/bureaucracy, for a host of reasons, has chosen to defend OWS, and this has made all the difference.

RED DAVE

But didn't you argue that occupiers should not resist attempts at eviction? Or have you changed your mind about that?

[aty]

It is clear that without active labor support, the occupations will be picked off one by one. What is unique about Occupy Wall Street is that it has active participation of organized workers. This is what saved it from Mayor Bloomberg's attempt to "clean up" the site several weeks ago.

No one can blame occupiers for not forging relationships with the labor movement at this point, but it is clear that these links must be made. In New York, the labor leadership/bureaucracy, for a host of reasons, has chosen to defend OWS, and this has made all the difference.

RED DAVE
Oakland probably have the strongest support by labour. Did not stop them...

[Ele'ill]

There needs to be some type of leverage on the side of the working class with these types of actions which has been my (and many other's) main critique of this movement from day one. We won a battle in Portland but the city knew this was a possibility and they have the time and money to wait it out, which they did, and they won that mini-war in the second battle. I'd like to think that if this is tried again that perhaps people will realize how fast it goes from 'a couple bike cops in yellow and all the time in the world' to 'oh my god giant horses and five hundred cops in riot gear' (about 45 seconds). There needs to be a sense of urgency that only hands on experience can give. Next time there's 4,000 people in the street like that with the camp already half abandoned, take the fucking justice center and court house.

[RED DAVE]

But didn't you argue that occupiers should not resist attempts at eviction? Or have you changed your mind about that?I did, at the point where it was not at all clear that the occupiers had massive labor support.

In addition, I just might have been, I don't know how this could have happened, but maybe I WAS FUCKING WRONG!

RED DAVE

[A Marxist Historian]

Oakland probably have the strongest support by labour. Did not stop them...

Unfortunately, the labor support weakened after the Oakland Travelers Aid fiasco. It was used as an excuse by labor bureaucrats like the president of the SEIU local to withdraw their support.

There is still strong support from the ILWU in particular, prominent activists in the ILWU called last week for the ILWU to be there defending the occupation. And if there is an attempt to reoccupy the plaza, any chance of success is 100% dependent on the ILWU getting its members out there, in which case Quan would probably have to back off. Otherwise, forget about it.

But there too, the OTA occupation fiasco was the perfect excuse for the *top* ILWU bureaucrats to step aside.

Realistically, the best thing at this point to do is probably to help the students occupy UC Berkeley tomorrow. Tomorrow is the day for the student strike in protest of the brutal assault on Berkeley students last weej. Was at Sproul Hall yesterday, and the organizers are hoping to revive the campus occupation if the strike goes well enough.

-M.H.-

[A Marxist Historian]

I did, at the point where it was not at all clear that the occupiers had massive labor support.

In addition, I just might have been, I don't know how this could have happened, but maybe I WAS FUCKING WRONG!

RED DAVE

I have been quite critical of Red Dave in a number of forums over a number of issues.

But I have to say that having the guts to be willing to say "I was wrong" raises my opinion of him. This is rare.

Shoulda left out the "maybe" however.

-M.H.-

[The Douche]

I did, at the point where it was not at all clear that the occupiers had massive labor support.

In addition, I just might have been, I don't know how this could have happened, but maybe I WAS FUCKING WRONG!

RED DAVE

I didn't mean to upset you, man.


At least this is a good thing to be wrong about.:thumbup1:

[ellipsis]

Shit, I know the dude in that picture.

Cmoney, he is from baltimore and laughed when I said "murda-land," so he appreciated the joke i stole from your profile.

[The Douche]

Unfortunately, the labor support weakened after the Oakland Travelers Aid fiasco. It was used as an excuse by labor bureaucrats like the president of the SEIU local to withdraw their support.

There is still strong support from the ILWU in particular, prominent activists in the ILWU called last week for the ILWU to be there defending the occupation. And if there is an attempt to reoccupy the plaza, any chance of success is 100% dependent on the ILWU getting its members out there, in which case Quan would probably have to back off. Otherwise, forget about it.

But there too, the OTA occupation fiasco was the perfect excuse for the *top* ILWU bureaucrats to step aside.

Realistically, the best thing at this point to do is probably to help the students occupy UC Berkeley tomorrow. Tomorrow is the day for the student strike in protest of the brutal assault on Berkeley students last weej. Was at Sproul Hall yesterday, and the organizers are hoping to revive the campus occupation if the strike goes well enough.

-M.H.-

If the labor bureaucrats are mad at us, then we're probably on the right track.

Forcing the rank and file to question and break with the leadership is an integral part of moving forward as a class.

[Ocean Seal]

I think in both, there is talk of returning to the evicted sites. The real issue now is that the police/city governments know they can clear it whenever they want now.

The earlier victory in Portland was followed up by a major defeat.
What happened in Portland?


It is clear that without active labor support, the occupations will be picked off one by one. What is unique about Occupy Wall Street is that it has active participation of organized workers. This is what saved it from Mayor Bloomberg's attempt to "clean up" the site several weeks ago.

No one can blame occupiers for not forging relationships with the labor movement at this point, but it is clear that these links must be made. In New York, the labor leadership/bureaucracy, for a host of reasons, has chosen to defend OWS, and this has made all the difference.

RED DAVE
I doubt that this has to do with labor ties, but rather that OWS is much more benign than Occupy Oakland and Occupy Portland.

[Lenina Rosenweg]

As I understand Occupy Oakland has relocated to another park, The mayor's office has said that people can stay there 24/7 but can't bring tents. People are setting up tents anyway.

OWS and Oakland have different characteristics. OWS doesn't appear to be militantly anti-capitalist.Th action on Thursday to shut down Wall Stret may change that.

A place to follow OO.

http://www.livestream.com/occupyoakland

The commentaries are along the lines of "give the police flowers, hug them, show them radiance and love." A bit too much Ursula LeGuin.

[ellipsis]

Another comrade who was arrested is facing possible deportation due to being arrested yesterday. He is "illegal." :(:(

Amazing that he did barrio defence in arizona post-sb1070 and didn't get arrested there, but gets nabbed here.

[The Douche]

As I understand Occupy Oakland has relocated to another park, The mayor's office has said that people can stay there 24/7 but can't bring tents. People are setting up tents anyway.

OWS and Oakland have different characteristics. OWS doesn't appear to be militantly anti-capitalist.Th action on Thursday to shut down Wall Stret may change that.

A place to follow OO.

http://www.livestream.com/occupyoakland

The commentaries are along the lines of "give the police flowers, hug them, show them radiance and love." A bit too much Ursula LeGuin.

Can somebody confirm/deny this? Remember that before the eviction the city was trying to bargain with the liberals and "give" them a park.

This represents an obvious attempt to split this movement as the city seeks to legitimize a movement with no teeth and no radical demands (a movement that is liberal) by holding them up on a pedestal, and claiming that those who stick to the original decisions of the Oakland GA (no cooperation with the city) are just hoodlums and trouble makers.

Also, if the city gives you an area where you are allowed to be then you are not occupying jack shit.

[A Marxist Historian]

If the labor bureaucrats are mad at us, then we're probably on the right track.

Forcing the rank and file to question and break with the leadership is an integral part of moving forward as a class.

Oh, believe me, they were mad at us from the beginning, whatever they said in public.

You don't *force* the rank and file to break with the leadership, you persuade them. The way things went was the wrong way to go about this, counterproductive, strengthened the bureaucrats and weakened their critics. It gave the bureaucrats a reason to pull back that was plausible in the eyes of the rank and file.

But this argument is getting old, the incident happened two weeks ago, by now that's ancient history.

-M.H.-

[The Douche]

Oh, believe me, they were mad at us from the beginning, whatever they said in public.

You don't *force* the rank and file to break with the leadership, you persuade them. The way things went was the wrong way to go about this, counterproductive, strengthened the bureaucrats and weakened their critics. It gave the bureaucrats a reason to pull back that was plausible in the eyes of the rank and file.

But this argument is getting old, the incident happened two weeks ago, by now that's ancient history.

-M.H.-

Whether you use the word "force" or the word "persuade", is irrelevant, I think.

I think that as revolutionaries we should be creating/highlighting situations in which the rank and file of unions and left parties/movements will agree with us and identify with us, but their leadership will push the opposite way.

We're not going to win every time, especially in the beginning, but if we're going to win in the long run, I don't see what else we can do?

[coda]

<<'oh my god giant horses and five hundred cops in riot gear' (about 45 seconds). There needs to be a sense of urgency that only hands on experience can give. Next time there's 4,000 people in the street like that with the camp already half abandoned, take the fucking justice center and court house>>

it's easy to overpower 4,000 unarmed people when riot-police reinforcements are called from surrounding towns.

>>Unfortunately, the labor support weakened after the Oakland Travelers Aid fiasco. It was used as an excuse by labor bureaucrats like the president of the SEIU local to withdraw their support.>>

Yes. the problem is the labor bureaucrats always toe the line.

[Ele'ill]

it's easy to overpower 4,000 unarmed people when riot-police reinforcements are called from surrounding towns.

When we play by their rules and let them move first, yes. When we move and take initiative, no, I think we could do a lot. They lost control several times and were put into a position several times where they ran out of options and retreated albeit tactically and not in a full sprint or anything.

[ellipsis]

Can somebody confirm/deny this? Remember that before the eviction the city was trying to bargain with the liberals and "give" them a park.

This represents an obvious attempt to split this movement as the city seeks to legitimize a movement with no teeth and no radical demands (a movement that is liberal) by holding them up on a pedestal, and claiming that those who stick to the original decisions of the Oakland GA (no cooperation with the city) are just hoodlums and trouble makers.

Also, if the city gives you an area where you are allowed to be then you are not occupying jack shit.

Confirm. Some people moved to near by Snow park which had been occupied as a secondary encampment for a while. Snow park has been served an eviction notice but no action there, yet.

[ellipsis]

Another comrade who was arrested is facing possible deportation due to being arrested yesterday. He is "illegal." :(:(

Amazing that he did barrio defence in arizona post-sb1070 and didn't get arrested there, but gets nabbed here.

Mi hermano Pancho... words cannot describe his influence and awesomeness... this picture i found to be very powerful. He was arrested while in "receptive silence."

http://a2.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/s720x720/390010_10150949877325165_592270164_21720231_956672 73_n.jpg

[ellipsis]

LMW0-yzwmhE

[A Marxist Historian]

Whether you use the word "force" or the word "persuade", is irrelevant, I think.

I think that as revolutionaries we should be creating/highlighting situations in which the rank and file of unions and left parties/movements will agree with us and identify with us, but their leadership will push the opposite way.

We're not going to win every time, especially in the beginning, but if we're going to win in the long run, I don't see what else we can do?

Well, yes. My whole point from the beginning was that the OTA occupation, a good idea in theory, was mishandled. The rank and file workers in the ILWU and other unions and the huge crowd of Oaklanderes who marched to shut down the port by and large thought that bonfires were being lit and windows being trashed just for the fun of it, not for any serious purpose.

Whether this is actually true or not really doesn't matter, but certainly anybody reading the threads about this here on Revleft would get that impression.

So now we have an "occupation" by the grace of Mayor Quan, following all her little rules. And, without tents, it will dwindle as the rainy season hits.

Reflects the balance of forces. She and Bloomberg and all the rest of 'em, (unlike us they coordinate their tactics in a centralized fashion, being smart) know they can't yet get away with simply smashing OWS altogether, but the backlash vs. Black Bloc tactics means that they think they can neuter it and chain it.

The answer is not confrontationism over the tents, but to spread the movement to the general population. November 17, the labor march day nationwide, will be crucial. Here in the Bay Area the faculty union is going on strike Nov. 17 at Cal State Hayward, I'll be there, hopefully others will be there too in support.

Oakland OWS decided I hear to join the student strike/occupation at Berkeley today (Couldn't be there myself unfortunately.). Exactly the right thing to do.

-M.H.-

[ellipsis]

Oakland OWS decided I hear to join the student strike/occupation at Berkeley today (Couldn't be there myself unfortunately.). Exactly the right thing to do.

-M.H.-

March went from oscar grant all the way to sproul plaza. I was not there but my sources said the large march which grew larger as it marched through a Berkley business district. When it got to sproul plaza, they joined the 1000-1500 people already there. Apparently it got pretty loud, crazy and celebratory at this point, a powerful scene by the sounds of it.

I agree that supporting "the student movement" is the right direction to go in, along with building ties with labor and occupying more buildings.

[ellipsis]

Mi hermano Pancho... words cannot describe his influence and awesomeness... this picture i found to be very powerful. He was arrested while in "receptive silence."


he was released after being turned over to ICE.:D:D:D:D:D:D:D

Pancho is free!

but while in custody, from his lawyer, remember this is a person arrested while meditating:


Pancho wanted me to convey to folks that he was, for some reason, identified as a particularly dangerous inmate, wearing a red jacket in jail, and shackled so that the movement of his arms was restrained. The shackles were metal, and surrounded his waist. Apparently, this treatment is reserved only for the most "dangerous" inmates. It is unclear why Alameda County decided to place shackles on him. But after a short conversation, we agreed that, without a doubt, Pancho was the most dangerous person in Santa Rita Jail--dangerous to the system, and dangerous to the 1%. As Pancho reiterated, the most effective weapon against a system based on greed and violence is kindness.

[The Douche]

the most effective weapon against a system based on greed and violence is kindness.

Not to disrespect your friend, and good on him for putting himself on the line for what he believes in and everything...but... fucking oof.:cursing:

[ellipsis]

Not to disrespect your friend, and good on him for putting himself on the line for what he believes in and everything...but... fucking oof.:cursing:

Haha, to be sure is a kombayah-singing hippie and practitioner of Ghandian non-violence. But having known him and organized along side him, I can honestly say he is one of the most revolutionary people I know.

Just as an example, he started a collective house/ashram on the border of norteños and sureños, and he is literally meeting with gang leaders and having conversations about non-violence, community farming/family nutrition, and breaking the generational cycle of violence.

He's a goofy dude, he was on democracy now (http://www.democracynow.org/2011/11/18/occupy_oakland_protester_pancho_ramos_stierle)!:

But I hear you... when he talks about ghandi being an anarchist and how non-violence and anarchism are the same thing, i wanna vomit a little.

on that note, I am big on the old zapatista idea of each struggling in their own way. Pancho knows what I am about, and visa versa and we still break bread.

[The Douche]

TRS, you got any updates for us on the reoccupation in Oakland? I'm hearing that over a thousand (some say "thousands") are marching to reoccupy Oscar Grant plaza?

[ellipsis]

TRS, you got any updates for us on the reoccupation in Oakland? I'm hearing that over a thousand (some say "thousands") are marching to reoccupy Oscar Grant plaza?

My understanding was that the march today was going to occupy a new site, near Oscar Grant Plaza and Snow Park.

Edit:
looks like they successfully occupied the vacant lot.

http://www.facebook.com/indybay -this shoudl keep you updated.

[The Douche]

My understanding was that the march today was going to occupy a new site, near Oscar Grant Plaza and Snow Park.

Edit:
looks like they successfully occupied the vacant lot.

http://www.facebook.com/indybay -this shoudl keep you updated.

Yeah, I got up with a friend who's there, I posted/will post in the oakland newswire.