OCCUPY WALL STREET

[VintageFemme]

I don't know if this article has been shared or not since it's dated from October, but I had just come across it from a friend and wanted to share it as well:

http://www.disinfo.com/2011/10/jp-mo...e-of-protests/

No surprises.

[SoNotHer]

"JP Morgan Chase Donates $4.6 Million To NYPD On Eve Of Protests

Wondering how much it costs to buy off the police department? JP Morgan Chase just gave the New York City Police Foundation the largest donation in its history. How the police show their gratitude will presumably determine whether they receive similar donations from companies in the future."

Originally Posted by VintageFemme

I don't know if this article has been shared or not since it's dated from October, but I had just come across it from a friend and wanted to share it as well:

http://www.disinfo.com/2011/10/jp-mo...e-of-protests/

No surprises.

[persiphone]

i'm shocked that we have a president that should have a unique perspective on the civil rights protests of our history and he's not intervening in police brutality on protesters. i've been waiting this whole time for him to say SOMEthing. some kind of words of calm or words of rationality.....SOMETHING. but he hasn't said anything to the protesters and nothing to the cops. he's mentioned the general movement a couple times in passing but that's it. i think he won't be getting my vote on the next go around. i really hope there's a decent candidate to oppose him but i'm not holding my breath.

[Toughy]

Phase 1 has been about occupying turf....parks, sidewalks, etc...with a message of social, political and economic justice. We need to keep this turf war going while doing something else....move forward.

Now it's time for Phase 2 because if there is not a Phase 2 then folks are getting gassed, beat, hospitalized and jailed for no good reason except a turf war.

So what would Phase 2 look like?
* The halls and offices of Congress should be occuppied in the form of lobbying (going in the offices and talking to them or their staff) all Senators and House members.
* Voter registration drives should be part of every protest and every encampment.
* Call a Constiitutional Convention to get money out of politics would be a good thing. There are occupy movements in (I think) all 50 states now and we should be working in our states as well as on the national scene.

The Constitutional Amendment could be only 2 lines....that's it ....short sweet and unambigious.
1. Corporations are not people and money is not speech.
2. All federal elections will be publicly financed. No private money can be spent on federal elections. (this means the president, senate and house elections....Personally I think ALL elections should be publically financed.)

Article V of the Constitution outlines how it is done. Basically there are two ways to do it. One is by Congress and the way all previous amendments have been done. The other way is if 2/3 of the states (legislatures) demand a Convention, it must be called by Congress. To ratify an amendment it must be approved by 3/4 of the states. So 34 states demand a convention, then it takes 38 to ratify the amendment.

We get money out of politics and the possibility that government would again be by and for the people exists.

I got this idea from listening to the radio.........it makes sense to me.

[UofMfan]

[atomiczombie]

Originally Posted by Toughy

Phase 1 has been about occupying turf....parks, sidewalks, etc...with a message of social, political and economic justice. We need to keep this turf war going while doing something else....move forward.

Now it's time for Phase 2 because if there is not a Phase 2 then folks are getting gassed, beat, hospitalized and jailed for no good reason except a turf war.

So what would Phase 2 look like?
* The halls and offices of Congress should be occuppied in the form of lobbying (going in the offices and talking to them or their staff) all Senators and House members.
* Voter registration drives should be part of every protest and every encampment.
* Call a Constiitutional Convention to get money out of politics would be a good thing. There are occupy movements in (I think) all 50 states now and we should be working in our states as well as on the national scene.

The Constitutional Amendment could be only 2 lines....that's it ....short sweet and unambigious.
1. Corporations are not people and money is not speech.
2. All federal elections will be publicly financed. No private money can be spent on federal elections. (this means the president, senate and house elections....Personally I think ALL elections should be publically financed.)

Article V of the Constitution outlines how it is done. Basically there are two ways to do it. One is by Congress and the way all previous amendments have been done. The other way is if 2/3 of the states (legislatures) demand a Convention, it must be called by Congress. To ratify an amendment it must be approved by 3/4 of the states. So 34 states demand a convention, then it takes 38 to ratify the amendment.

We get money out of politics and the possibility that government would again be by and for the people exists.

I got this idea from listening to the radio.........it makes sense to me.

This is excellent, T. I totally agree. Now, how do we get this message to the general assemblies of the Occupy groups across the US?

[Cin]

Bloomberg stated that media were prevented from reporting for their own protection.

We have a kind Securitarian state going on, and I guess we have for awhile. We seem to accept this.

It is a kind of totalitarianism that needs the appearance of elective democracy in order to function but the reality is that the representatives of the government agree that security trumps all. It is a government where the pursuit of elusive and illusionary security is used as an excuse to trample rights and freedom. We can thank the Occupy Movement for illuminating this for us in case we still doubted it.

And yet many still ask what are those protestors on about anyway? What do they want?

Human Rights Group Concerned Over Journalists’ Arrests at Occupy Wall Street

NEW YORK — A human rights office for the Americas on Thursday criticized the arrest and assault of journalists during Occupy Wall Street protests in New York and other U.S. cities in recent weeks.

The Washington-based Office of the Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights called for authorities to guarantee and protect the practice of journalism at public demonstrations.

The office alleged in a statement that at least three journalists have been assaulted since October by police officers, and two others by participants, in demonstrations in Nashville, Tennessee, and Oakland, California.

“In addition, at least a dozen journalists have reportedly been placed under temporary arrest while performing their professional duties,” the statement said.

The organization pointed to this week’s arrests of seven journalists during a police sweep of the Occupy Wall Street encampment in New York. The journalists included Julie Walker, a freelancer who does work for National Public Radio and The Associated Press; Patrick Hedlund and Paul Lomax of DNAinfo.com; Doug Higginbotham, freelance cameraman for TV New Zealand; Jared Malsin of The Local; Karen Matthews and Seth Wenig of The Associated Press, and Matthew Lysiak of the New York Daily News.

The Committee to Protect Journalists, a nonprofit organization that promotes press freedom, also criticized the treatment and detention of the journalists in New York.

“Journalists must be allowed to cover news events without fear of arrest and harassment,” said Carlos Lauria, CPJ’s senior coordinator for the Americas.

The Americas group also criticized the restrictions placed on media access when police moved in. Mayor Michael Bloomberg told reporters the media were kept from the site for their protection.

“The disproportionate restrictions on access to the scene of the events, the arrests, and the criminal charges resulting from the performance of professional duties by reporters violate the right to freedom of expression,” the organization said.

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights was created by the Organization of American States, which includes countries from North and South America.

[Cin]

Sad but certainly not surprising.

Poll shows “movement is not wearing well with voters across the country.”

http://www.alternet.org/occupywallst...t/?page=entire

[SoNotHer]

Great post, Toughy. Yes, like most change, this will be come in waves and phases. It's time to get out of the parks and into the community meetings and media and capitols.

Originally Posted by Toughy

Phase 1 has been about occupying turf....parks, sidewalks, etc...with a message of social, political and economic justice. We need to keep this turf war going while doing something else....move forward.

Now it's time for Phase 2 because if there is not a Phase 2 then folks are getting gassed, beat, hospitalized and jailed for no good reason except a turf war.

So what would Phase 2 look like?
* The halls and offices of Congress should be occuppied in the form of lobbying (going in the offices and talking to them or their staff) all Senators and House members.
* Voter registration drives should be part of every protest and every encampment.
* Call a Constiitutional Convention to get money out of politics would be a good thing. There are occupy movements in (I think) all 50 states now and we should be working in our states as well as on the national scene.

The Constitutional Amendment could be only 2 lines....that's it ....short sweet and unambigious.
1. Corporations are not people and money is not speech.
2. All federal elections will be publicly financed. No private money can be spent on federal elections. (this means the president, senate and house elections....Personally I think ALL elections should be publically financed.)

Article V of the Constitution outlines how it is done. Basically there are two ways to do it. One is by Congress and the way all previous amendments have been done. The other way is if 2/3 of the states (legislatures) demand a Convention, it must be called by Congress. To ratify an amendment it must be approved by 3/4 of the states. So 34 states demand a convention, then it takes 38 to ratify the amendment.

We get money out of politics and the possibility that government would again be by and for the people exists.

I got this idea from listening to the radio.........it makes sense to me.

[dykeumentary]

Originally Posted by SoNotHer

Great post, Toughy. Yes, like most change, this will be come in waves and phases. It's time to get out of the parks and into the community meetings and media and capitols.

Totally agree. And I also would add an analysis of racism.
The "New Deal" that came out of the great depression created the white middle class, and left People of Color behind. Unless this new "99%" movement studies history, listens, and doesn't make the same mistakes, we might be building a new set of institutional racist structures that just serve a few.

The extremist "Rght" has been getting themselves elected in school boards, county and town-level positions since the mid 90s. Then they moved onto state-wide seats from those constituencies. And now they are national players. People who want justice would do well to get to know their neighbors well-- it's become apparent who has been talking with them.

I remain hopeful!

[atomiczombie]

Originally Posted by persiphone

i'm shocked that we have a president that should have a unique perspective on the civil rights protests of our history and he's not intervening in police brutality on protesters. i've been waiting this whole time for him to say SOMEthing. some kind of words of calm or words of rationality.....SOMETHING. but he hasn't said anything to the protesters and nothing to the cops. he's mentioned the general movement a couple times in passing but that's it. i think he won't be getting my vote on the next go around. i really hope there's a decent candidate to oppose him but i'm not holding my breath.

He takes so much corporate/bank campaign contributions, he is a bought and paid for president. This is who will be getting my vote:

http://www.jillstein.org/