This Occupation Report is compiled by Rebuild the Dream.
REQUEST FOR UPDATES FROM READERS: The Daily Occupations Report needs your help! We are currently putting together a list of cities that have been supportive of local Occupy groups and those that have been less than supportive (i.e.: police crackdowns and evictions). Please send your stories and updates to [email protected] or [email protected].
Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–November 3, 2011. This report includes updates from Occupy sites and related efforts across the country and the globe. It includes big wins, local organizing efforts, protests/events, police activity reports and calls to action where additional support from allies/general public may be needed.
For more updates from occupations around the country, listen to the Occupation America podcast at http://soundcloud.com/occupation-america
Occupy Albany
Last night Occupy Albany held a “People of Color Caucus” to address the need for racial diversity and visible women’s leadership within the Occupy movement. The group’s purpose is to develop critical consciousness within the movement and to extend the movement’s reach to include those most affected by the current crisis, particularly women of color.
Occupy Atlanta
The Southern Christian Leadership Conference which was once headed by Martin Luther King has pledged to mentor and guide the Occupy Atlanta movement, a branch of the Occupy Wall Street movement.
The decision to mentor Occupy Atlanta came after a six hour meeting led by SCLC President Isaac Newton Farris, Jr.
Occupy Baltimore
Yesterday (11/2) at 4:00pm, the City of Baltimore disconnected the power to the Occupy Baltimore camp. The occupiers were using the power outlets connected to the city lamp posts for electricity aid in communications, food preparations, and the medical tent. Local media showed up promptly at 4:00pm, aware of the situation, with cameras and ready for comment.
CALL TO ACTION: Occupy Baltimore asks for assistance with cold weather gear: warm blankets, heavy tents, and especially any help with bicycle powered generators. Contact Occupy Baltimore at http://occupybmore.org/
Occupy Chicago
Between 300 and 500 Occupy Chicago demonstrators walked out of area colleges Wednesday and marched on Chicago City Hall and the James R. Thompson Center. Protester Kelvin Ho said the march was a show of support for counterparts in Oakland, Cal. Clashes between police and protesters in Oakland left a 24-year-old Marine veteran critically injured. The protesters said they also had messages to deliver to Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Gov. Pat Quinn. The protesters are unhappy with restrictions placed on their protests, both on public and on private property.
Occupy Cleveland
Yesterday morning a little after 9 AM an Occupy Cleveland protester was arrested in the free speech quadrant of Public Square for not presenting for his ID after giving his name.
CALL TO ACTION: Occupy Cleveland is asking supporters to call the Mayor’s office at (216) 664-3990 and the Third District Police at (216) 623-5305 to ask that the movement to be tolerated by the police and the City of Cleveland.
Occupy Colleges
Today marked day 2 of Occupy College’s National Solidarity Teach-Ins. The teach-ins are live streaming. Check out today’s schedule at http://occupycolleges.org/2011/11/03/teach-in-schedule-nov-3rd/.
Occupy Denver
Michael Moore is visiting Occupy Denver in Civic Center Park Thursday, November 3 at 4 p.m. Here Comes Trouble is the title of Moore’s new book of stories about his life and we can certainly identify here at Occupy Denver.
Occupy Lawrence
A 99 minute (for the 99 percent) General Strike was held yesterday from 12:00pm-1:39pm at the intersection of 6th and Massachusetts Street in front of City Hall to show support for Oakland.
Occupy Oakland
Thousands of people jammed into downtown Oakland on Wednesday for a general strike called by Occupy Oakland to protest economic inequity and corporate greed – then marched en masse to the Port of Oakland and shut it down.
As many as 7,000 people, by police estimates, clogged the main port entrance on Middle Harbor Road and seven other gates as the sun went down, chanting slogans and halting all truck traffic going in or out. There were reports of sporadic vandalism, with windows broken at bank branches and a Whole Foods, but protesters were also seen cleaning up graffiti and holding others back from destroying property. After most protesters had left, a contingent of several hundred occupied the abandoned/foreclosed Traveler’s Aid building and barricaded surrounding streets; when police moved in, protesters reportedly set barricades on fire, and police deployed tear gas. The vandalism and police violence was an unfortunate end to what was otherwise, by all accounts, a peaceful, beautiful, powerful day.
Occupy Tulsa
It was a tough night in Tulsa as protesters sitting in the park were pepper sprayed by Tulsa PD. Current’s Keith Olbermann reported: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njjQ_nitC2Y. Occupy Tulsa movement is scheduled to meet with the Tulsa City Council tonight (11/3). They will be requesting a special permit that would waive fees, an insurance requirement, and any length of stay provisions.
Occupy Sacramento
[CBS13 report] — A federal judge has denied Occupy Sacramento protesters in their petition to assembly at Cesar Chavez Park overnight. Judge Morrison England upheld the city’s ordinance that parks be vacated at curfew, citing a U.S. Supreme Court case in 1984 where a group was camping in the park across from the White House to raise awareness about homelessness. England was also critical of Occupy Sacramento attorneys, asking why they hadn’t applied for a special-use permit earlier. The group applied for the permit this week and the city hopes to have a decision on it by Monday. Earlier today, dozens of Occupy Sacramento protesters were in court, including anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan, and a federal hearing was set to take place later this afternoon.
San Jose
[KCBS report] – An itinerant constructionworker who has been perched on a wall at San Jose City Hall for more than a week has no plans to leave, even as he is the only remnant of the Occupy San Jose protest.
Shaun O’Kelly said he took his inspiration from the UC Berkeley tree-sitters when he decided to spend 99 days on top of San Jose City Hall.
Seattle
Wednesday was one of the more rowdy days for the Occupy Seattle protest movement. Numerous scuffles with police broke out over the course of a day that saw protesters occupy a Chase Bank branch in Capitol Hill and rally outside the Sheraton Hotel where JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon gave a speech at a University of Washington business school event. At least seven were arrested during the protests and many others sprayed with pepper spray as the protesters pushed and shoved with police. Gallery of photos http://www.seattlepi.com/local/gallery/Protesters-arrested-pepper-sprayed-at-Chase-bank-31848/photo-1721965.php
Occupy Tulsa
http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=11&articleid=20111102_11_0_MoreOc74092 Tulsa PD arrested close to a dozen (just a guess at this point from watching the video) Occupy Tulsa protesters last night in the H.A. Chapman Centennial Green as the city
The decision comes as the Occupy Tulsa movement is scheduled to meet with Tulsa City Council Thursday evening. They will be requesting a special permit that would waive fees, an insurance requirement, and any length of stay provisions.
Wall Street
This past Friday, the General Assembly of Liberty Square voted to adopt an additional coordinating body called a Spokes Council. The proposal was put forth by the Structure Working Group, which was born out of numerous discussions in the GA on the need for a more accountable body for operational decisions around the occupation. The main challenges the Spokes Council aims to address are: effective coordination between Operations Groups and Caucuses; making responsible, accountable and holistic budgetary decisions; and the ability for the GA to engage in broader movement discussions, rather than being bogged down with time consuming, uncoordinated funding requests.
WORLDWIDE
Occupy Bristol
Why are the people of Bristol occupying College Green? Watch the video to find out: http://vimeo.com/31489386
Occupy Toronto
The city’s Public Works committee has passed a motion banning people from using public streets and sidewalks as a place to sleep, camp or live. The motion, if approved by council at the end of the month, would make it illegal for homeless people to stay on the streets.
CALL TO ACTION: Call to complain. Contact Mayor Ford at [email protected] or 416-397-3673
Occupy Wellington
Occupy Wellington needs your help. The group is interested in receiving information/trainings related to Safer Space policies – stuff that has been tried by other groups and has been successful. Contact Ruben de Haas at [email protected] if you have any materials that would be of use to the group.
ALLIED ACTION
Nationwide
National Day of Action: Make Wall St. Pay. Hundreds of actions being held in cities across the country.
DC
At 11:30am hundreds of nurses, consumer advocates, Occupy DC participants, and union member met in Lafayette park and marched to the Treasury Department to advocate for a Financial Transaction Tax—A Robin Hood Tax.
The Daily Occupation Report is compiled by Rebuild the Dream using information gathered from online news sites, Twitter, blogs and other sources of occupation-related updates. You are welcome to share this report and can download the Word document version at http://rebuildthedream.com/occupy-update.
If you have any questions, feedback or updates from your local Occupy site, please send them along with your contact information to [email protected] or [email protected].
Source: www.occupytogether.org
