Oakland Occupy residents struggle with internal security issues

Stephanie · #1 (**permalink**) 10-20-2011, 04:58 AM

Occupying sounds like sooooo much fun..

SNIP:
By Scott Johnson
Oakland Tribune

Posted: 10/19/2011 05:48:30 PM PDT
Updated: 10/19/2011 07:59:19 PM PDT

OAKLAND -- Tension had been building for days in the Occupy Oakland camp before it erupted into violence Monday and Tuesday. When it finally did, Don Hughes, a substitute teacher and full-time tent resident of the camp, found himself amid a full-blown melee.

The next thing Hughes knew he was in a headlock, then he was being punched, and then he was on the ground as a large man began to choke him.

"This is a revolution, and we want it to be open to everybody," said Hughes early Wednesday morning, "but this guy crossed too many lines."

As dawn came Wednesday, the protest's 10th day, an almost overwhelming sense of urgency was developing around the need to resolve internal security issues that have bedeviled residents and passers-by alike. The tent city that has sprung up on the steps of Oakland City Hall has attracted a diverse range of people, many with competing ideologies and world views. Homeless people, ex-convicts, at least one registered sex offender, students, unemployed hotel workers, anarchists and reform-minded activists freely mingle together in what amounts to a democracy free-for-all.

Sometimes, everyone appears to be on the same page. But the skein of civility has been frequently shattered as bullies, the mentally ill, drunks, thugs and anarchists have threatened the safety and well-being of the camp's more peaceful residents. Occupy Oakland has grown out of demonstrations that began in a New York City park a month ago as a protest against what occupiers see as corporate greed.

Organizers have stressed the need for consensus in the camp's decision-making process. But as the demands for individual safety and security have grown, the movement's priorities have begun to bump up against people's concerns for their own well-being and that of their friends and, in some cases, their children.

One Oakland police officer, who asked to remain anonymous for reasons of police protocol, described the scene in tent city as akin to a scene from "Lord of the Flies." And, indeed, the on-the-fly rule-making can often veer into an oppressive, anarchic mood.

Journalists are routinely shooed away and told off by angry residents. One Oakland police supervisor said that the participants first appeared to him as "freethinking activists" but have since devolved into something more sinister. He said it was "interesting for a group that claims to be against current civilization and rules to set up a far more oppressive society than our own."

Many camp residents, however, have celebrated their growing ability to deal with serious conflict on their own terms, and without the help of police or county medical staff members. They say internal conflict resolution is necessary if the larger aims of the Occupy movement are to mean anything. "If we're going to be concerned about injustices on a large scale, we have to be concerned about injustices on a small scale, too," said Hughes, a slight and bespectacled 30-something who does "freelance security" around the camp.

The tumult around security centered on the man who throttled Hughes on Monday morning. His name remains unknown, but camp followers described him as a large man with an intimidating physical presence and a penchant for harassing residents verbally and physically. He worked in the camp kitchen and made regular appearances at meetings and gatherings.

On Monday morning, tensions came to a head when the man attacked a woman who was staying in the camp. That's when Hughes intervened. A large group of people immediately surrounded the two, and pulled them apart.

read it all..
http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-...nclick_check=1

chanel · #2 (**permalink**) 10-25-2011, 03:39 PM

Quote:

Everywhere I went, I encountered people taking drugs — mostly marijuana. Many of them were understandably camera-shy. But this guy stood right on the main walkway and puffed away on a drug pipe.

Even more disturbingly, all over the camp were signs that said “Not a toilet,” because some occupiers basically relieve themselves wherever and whenever they feel the urge. Disgusted campers started putting up signs so that their particular tents wouldn’t be on the receiving end of any effluvia.

But not all is rosy in this new society. Some of the very worst customs already banned from our existing society have re-emerged at Occupy Oakland. One of the ugliest of these is segregation.

Occupy Oakland — the signage was about 50% communist/socialist, 25% anarchist/anti-authoritarian, and 25% incoherent/confused/personal. A casual observer would conclude that the protest was predominantly communist. But I suspect the anarchists and the crazies outnumber the actual communists, but they’re just not as good at advertising themselves.

Zombie » Is Occupy Oakland as Bad as They Say?

Wow. Worse than I thought. Great photos at the link.

**Trajan** · #3 (**permalink**) 10-25-2011, 04:53 PM

I think you are going to see some mayors etc. patience begin to snap soon. The Atlanta mayor has apparently had enough, here in san jose, they never let get out of hand to start with and broke them up almost as soon as they set up shoppe.

in Zucotti park in NYC near walls st. they are putting up tents, which is prohibited by the park and city ordinance...we'll see what bloomburger does about it....hes such a wimp god knows, he'll probably give them a pass.

**Trajan** · #4 (**permalink**) 10-25-2011, 04:55 PM

Quote: Originally Posted by chanel

Quote:

Everywhere I went, I encountered people taking drugs — mostly marijuana. Many of them were understandably camera-shy. But this guy stood right on the main walkway and puffed away on a drug pipe.

Even more disturbingly, all over the camp were signs that said “Not a toilet,” because some occupiers basically relieve themselves wherever and whenever they feel the urge. Disgusted campers started putting up signs so that their particular tents wouldn’t be on the receiving end of any effluvia.

But not all is rosy in this new society. Some of the very worst customs already banned from our existing society have re-emerged at Occupy Oakland. One of the ugliest of these is segregation.

Occupy Oakland — the signage was about 50% communist/socialist, 25% anarchist/anti-authoritarian, and 25% incoherent/confused/personal. A casual observer would conclude that the protest was predominantly communist. But I suspect the anarchists and the crazies outnumber the actual communists, but they’re just not as good at advertising themselves.

Zombie » Is Occupy Oakland as Bad as They Say?

Wow. Worse than I thought. Great photos at the link.

thx, I think they need more Lenin and Che t shirts...

**Trajan** · #5 (**permalink**) 10-25-2011, 05:00 PM

and by the way, I think shes full ....

waltky · #6 (**permalink**) 10-26-2011, 06:50 PM

OWS protesters tear-gassed and arrested...

Atlanta Police Arrest Protesters Who Refused to Leave Park
October 26, 2011 — With helicopters hovering overhead, police moved into a downtown Atlanta park and arrested around 50 Occupy Wall Street protesters who had been encamped there for about two weeks early Wednesday.

Quote:

Like in many other cities, protesters had been camping in Woodruff Park to rally against what they see as corporate greed and a wide range of other economic issues. Before police moved in, protesters were warned a couple times around midnight to vacate the park or risk arrest. Inside the park, the warnings were drowned out by drumbeats and chants of "Our park!" Organizers had instructed participants to be peaceful if arrests came, and most were. Many gathered in the center of the park, locking arms, and sang "We Shall Overcome," until police led them out, one-by-one to waiting buses. Some were dragged out while others left on foot, handcuffed with plastic ties.

Police included SWAT teams in riot gear, dozens of officers on motorcycles and several on horseback. By about 1:30 a.m. Wednesday the park was mostly cleared of protesters. State Sen. Vincent Fort was among those arrested and had come to the park in support of the protesters in recent days. He said the police presence was "overkill." "He's using all these resources ... This is the most peaceful place in Georgia," Fort said, referring to Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed. "At the urging of the business community, he's moving people out. Shame on him."

Reed told reporters he had serious security concerns. They were heightened Tuesday when a man was seen in the park with an AK-47 assault rifle, the mayor said. He said authorities could not determine whether the weapon was loaded, and were unable to get additional information about it. Occupy Atlanta organizers said the demonstrators who were arrested would go before a judge Wednesday morning. They were planning a march from the park to the jail shortly before the court hearings. "It's real simple: This is a crisis of priorities that this small group of campers ... is the greatest threat in this city. It's outrageous," said organizer Tim Franzen.

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See also:

Police in Riot Gear Disperse Oakland Protesters With Tear Gas
October 26, 2011 — The scene was calm but tense in Oakland, Calif., early Wednesday as a crowd of hundreds of protesters dwindled to just a few dozen at the site of several clashes between authorities and supporters of the Occupy Wall Street movement a night earlier.

Quote:

Police in riot gear stood watch only a few yards away from a group of stalwart demonstrators in the aftermath of skirmishes in front of City Hall that resulted in five volleys of tear gas from police, in blasts that seemed to intensify with each round, over a roughly three-hour stretch of evening scuffles. The conflict began much earlier in the day when police dismantled an encampment of Occupy Wall Street protesters that had dominated a plaza across the street from the government building for more than two weeks. Police fired tear gas and beanbag rounds, clearing out the makeshift city in less than an hour.

Hours after nightfall Tuesday evening, protesters had gathered at a downtown library and began marching toward City Hall in an attempt to re-establish a presence in the area of the disbanded camp. They were met by police officers in riot gear. Several small skirmishes broke out and officers cleared the area by firing tear gas. The scene repeated itself several times just a few blocks away in front of the plaza, where police set up behind metal barricades, preventing protesters from gaining access to the site.

Tensions would build as protesters edged ever closer to the police line and reach a breaking point with a demonstrator hurling a bottle or rock, prompting police to respond with another round of gas. The chemical haze hung in the air for hours, new blasts clouding the air before the previous fog could dissipate. The number of protesters diminished with each round of tear gas. Police estimated that there were roughly 1,000 demonstrators at the first clash following the march. About 200 remained after the final conflict around 11:15 PDT, mostly young adults, some riding bicycles, protecting themselves from the noxious fumes with bandanas and scarves wrapped around their faces.

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