Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Updates 2/1/12

Hello everyone.


Happy February, aka Black History Month here in the USA, and LGBT History Month in the UK.


Here's the news:



-- Oakland officials are hoping to calm down any future protests by banning people from returning to the plaza. So far 12 people have been hit with "stay-away" orders, demanding that they remain at least 300 feet away from Frank Ogawa Plaza or face up to six month's jail time for disobeying a judge's orders. Defense attorneys say the order has nothing to do with the misdemeanors the Occupiers were charged with, and that they will be fighting the ruling.


-- Occupy DC is still holding strong, despite an unwelcome visitor to the occupation spot yesterday. An unidentified man showed up at the encampment, taking scissors to the "Tent of Dreams" while declaring "This is my city." He got through a few of the ropes holding the tent in place before he was surrounded by protesters and park employees. He was led away and driven off in a police car, unhandcuffed. The Occupiers quickly resecured the tarp.


-- In other DC news, a judge has ruled that Occupiers must be given 24 hours notice before any eviction may occur. The park service is thus far unaware of any eviction plans. The ruling would allow protesters to appeal an eviction notice in court.


-- Occupy Miami was raided yesterday, leading to at least three arrests and plenty of video. During the livestream of the event, officers in full riot gear could be seen pushing protesters down several streets, lined up and shouting "Back! Back! Back!" as they used their shields to shove people. The arrests came as police were quickly advancing on the street. One Occupier was dancing in front of police when he was hit and dragged past the advancing officers to be detained. Two others fell when police were using their shields to push, falling under the police line and being arrested. The Occupation had been served an eviction notice for that night.


-- Occupy Chicago is outraged at the behavior of a police officer, and the law that protects him. Currently, Illinois has eavesdropping laws that prohibit the recording of police. On Sunday during a march, a woman was recording the events when a police officer began to yell at her, using "sexist and verbally abusive comments." The woman was videotaping the situation, at which point the officer took her phone, erased all the video footage, and turned it off, telling her that recording police is a class 4 felony. Legislation to remove the law is heading through the system, but it is unknown if and when it will begin to take effect.


-- Tim Pool is the well-known Ustreamer in NYC, who often records the events of OWS for over 24 hours at a time. He has apparently been receiving threats from all sides, and is worried for his health. Read this article for more info:

http://redtape.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/31/10282654-cameras-no-longer-welcome-at-occupy-wall-street-attack-highlights-conflict



-- Susie Cagel is a cartoonist/journalist who is the first reporter to be arrested twice in Oakland. In this article, she gives her side of the story; what she's seen and how things have really happened. Check it out:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/comic-riffs/post/occupy-oakland-after-2nd-arrest-comics-journalist-susie-cagle-shares-her-on-the-ground-experience/2012/01/30/gIQAAu7UgQ_blog.html



***Solidarity***


To contact me for any reason, please email me at elvishbutterfly@hotmail.com. Thanks for reading.

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