Updates 11/2/2011

Hello everyone,

I want to say that I really appreciate all the emails I have received thanking me for doing this. It warms my heart to know that even while I am home battling bronchitis, I can still do something to help.

Here are today's updates:

-- Occupy Oaklands General Strike and Mass Day of Action is today! They have picked up support from major unions and community organizations.

-- Also in Oakland, the President of the Police Union made a statement to the press concerning the negative feedback they (the police) have been getting.

From a CBS news article: "Last Tuesday alone cost Oakland $1 million, said Sgt. Dom Arotzarena, president of the Oakland police union. He said that police are now confused about Quan's stance heading into Wednesday. "What was last Tuesday all about? The mayor is painting us as the bad guys in all of this," Arotzarena told The Associated Press. "We get one order one day and then she flip-flops the next day. We're going to be seen as the establishment, and it's not fair to the police, it's not fair to anyone. "We're set to fail on this.""

-- Occupy Tulsa was evicted last night with nine arrests. Police came in to inform the Occupiers curfew had passed, and three hours later they returned. They fired bursts of pepper spray into the crowd, which many protesters are saying was unnecessary and unprovoked.

-- Occupy Philly is working on decisions concerning moving their camp. They are currently camped at Dilzworth Plaza, set to undertake a 50 million dollar renovation.

-- Occupy Nashville is growing at great speed. They will soon have portable toilets installed, and have union volunteers assisting with security.

-- Occupy Atlanta has released information saying that they will return to occupy Woodruff Park on Saturday, regardless of the city's threats that arrests will happen.

-- All major banks have retracted their fees from debit card usage. This is attributed to both a 300,000 strong petition, and the pressure that the Occupy groups have been putting on the with Bank Transfer Day, among other things.

-- Occupy St. Augustine (I used to live there) extended an invitation to all political groups from all spectrums to join them, but were rebuffed by the Tea Party, who says that they will instead picket Occupy's protest at Plaza de la Constitucion on Saturday.

-- Occupy Iowa City received good news that the City Council has voted to allow them larger arctic tents in their space.

-- In a bit of odd news, a victim of a robbery who was stabbed in San Francisco chose to take a cab to Occupy SF's medical tent instead of heading to a hospital. The EMT heading the medical tent called an ambulance for her.

-- Occupy Dallas has had a few issues lately. First there was an argument between protesters and a Fox News reporter, who turned bright lights on the camp in the early morning hours. Then there was a sexual assault at the camp, after a sex offender joined the ranks, but did not register or identify as such. Security at the camp has been boosted by forming a team that makes regular rotating security shifts.

-- Occupy Gainesville and Occupy UF are meeting up and joining forces to march to Gainesville's Occupy spot.

-- Occupy Flagler (also in St. Augustine) is working on a movement called "Awake the State" in order to increase the amount of people voting. News reports are saying it is already having an effect.

-- Occupy Chicago was visited by Reverend Jesse Jackson this week. This is amidst the controversy brewing over the Occupy site. Occupy nurses have been arrested while tending to injured, and the Chicago Board of Trade has been littering their site with fliers, letters, and McDonald's applications.

-- UVM staff is showing their solidarity with Occupy Vermont protesters.

-- Occupy Baltimore is having difficulty with reports of drug use and a sexual assault. They are taking these events very seriously, and will be working on proposals to possibly change the way the camp operates.

-- Occupy St. Paul may be coming into existence soon. Occupy Minneapolis does exist, but some protesters are having difficulty getting across the river.

-- Occupy Brisbane was evicted from a second location last night. They are charging the city with $30,000 in damages. There were reports of arrests, but the number is unclear.

Thanks for reading everyone. That's all I have time for today.

***Solidarity***

P.S. Anonymous has released two new videos on their TheAnonMessage youtube page, urging people to occupy, and giving methods to help if you cannot leave you home. If you are interested, please look it up.

If you have any updates you would like to share with me, or any corrections I need to make, please email me at elvishbutterfly@hotmail.com. Please use the subject "Occupy Updated Info" so I know not to delete it. Thank you.