Aggregating

Notes: 1057 / 2 weeks ago from anonmedics

anonmedics:

http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2012/05/david-graeber-new-police-strategy-in-new-york-sexual-assault-against-peaceful-protestors.html

A few weeks ago I was with a few companions from Occupy Wall Street in Union Square when an old friend — I’ll call her Eileen — passed through, her hand in a cast.
“What happened to you?” I asked.
“Oh, this?” she held it up. “I was in Liberty Park on the 17th [the Six Month Anniversary of the Occupation]. When the cops were pushing us out the park, one of them yanked at my breast.”
“Again?” someone said.
We had all been hearing stories like this. In fact, there had been continual reports of police officers groping women during the nightly evictions from Union Square itself over the previous two weeks.
“Yeah so I screamed at the guy, I said, ‘you grabbed my boob! what are you, some kind of fucking pervert?’ So they took me behind the lines and broke my wrists.”
Actually, she quickly clarified, only one wrist was literally broken. She proceeded to launch into a careful, well-nigh clinical blow-by-blow description of what had happened. An experienced activist, she knew to go limp when police seized her, and how to do nothing that could possibly be described as resisting arrest. Police dragged her, partly by the hair, behind their lines and threw her to the ground, periodically shouting “stop resisting!” as she shouted back “I’m not resisting!” At one point though, she said, she did tell them her glasses had fallen to the sidewalk next to her, and announced she was going to reach over to retrieve them. That apparently gave them all the excuse they needed. One seized her right arm and bent her wrist backwards in what she said appeared to be some kind of marshal-arts move, leaving it not broken, but seriously damaged. “I don’t know exactly what they did to my left wrist—at that point I was too busy screaming at the top of my lungs in pain. But they broke it. After that they put me in plastic cuffs, as tightly as they possibly could, and wouldn’t loosen them for at least an hour no matter how loud I screamed or how much the other prisoners begged them to help me. For a while everyone in the arrest van was chanting ‘take them off, take them off’ but they just ignored them…”

http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2012/05/david-graeber-new-police-strategy-in-new-york-sexual-assault-against-peaceful-protestors.html

A few weeks ago I was with a few companions from Occupy Wall Street in Union Square when an old friend — I’ll call her Eileen — passed through, her hand in a cast.

“What happened to you?” I asked.

“Oh, this?” she held it up. “I was in Liberty Park on the 17th [the Six Month Anniversary of the Occupation]. When the cops were pushing us out the park, one of them yanked at my breast.”

“Again?” someone said.

We had all been hearing stories like this. In fact, there had been continual reports of police officers groping women during the nightly evictions from Union Square itself over the previous two weeks.

“Yeah so I screamed at the guy, I said, ‘you grabbed my boob! what are you, some kind of fucking pervert?’ So they took me behind the lines and broke my wrists.”

Actually, she quickly clarified, only one wrist was literally broken. She proceeded to launch into a careful, well-nigh clinical blow-by-blow description of what had happened. An experienced activist, she knew to go limp when police seized her, and how to do nothing that could possibly be described as resisting arrest. Police dragged her, partly by the hair, behind their lines and threw her to the ground, periodically shouting “stop resisting!” as she shouted back “I’m not resisting!” At one point though, she said, she did tell them her glasses had fallen to the sidewalk next to her, and announced she was going to reach over to retrieve them. That apparently gave them all the excuse they needed. One seized her right arm and bent her wrist backwards in what she said appeared to be some kind of marshal-arts move, leaving it not broken, but seriously damaged. “I don’t know exactly what they did to my left wrist—at that point I was too busy screaming at the top of my lungs in pain. But they broke it. After that they put me in plastic cuffs, as tightly as they possibly could, and wouldn’t loosen them for at least an hour no matter how loud I screamed or how much the other prisoners begged them to help me. For a while everyone in the arrest van was chanting ‘take them off, take them off’ but they just ignored them…”

Notes: 628 / 2 weeks ago from anonmedics

anonmedics:

An extremely disturbing report on the emerging police tactic of employing brutal sexual assault against Occupation protesters as an intimidation and provocation tactic. Police have engaged in rape and sexual assault against civilians since time immemorial, but the use of such tactics against Occupy may finally serve to bring some light to the intrinsic evil, exploitation, and misogyny of the United States law enforcement industrial complex.

Read the full article here.

Arbitrary violence is nothing new. The apparently systematic use of sexual assault against women protestors is new. I’m not aware of any reports of police intentionally grabbing women’s breasts before March 17, but on March 17 there were numerous reported cases, and in later nightly evictions from Union Square, the practice became so systematic that at least one woman told me her breasts were grabbed by five different police officers on a single night (in one case, while another one was blowing kisses.) The tactic appeared so abruptly, is so obviously a violation of any sort of police protocol or standard of legality, that it is hard to imagine it is anything but an intentional policy.

For obvious reasons, most of the women who have been victims of such assaults have been hesitant to come forward. Suing the city is a miserable and time-consuming task and if a woman brings any charge involving sexual misconduct, they can expect to have their own history and reputations—no matter how obviously irrelevant—raked over the coals, usually causing immense damage to their personal and professional life. The threat of doing so operates as a very effective form of intimidation. One exception is Cecily McMillan, who was not only groped but suffered a broken rib and seizures during her arrest on March 17, and held incommunicado, denied constant requests to see her lawyer, for over 24 hours thereafter. Shortly after release from the hospital she appeared on Democracy Now! And showed part of a handprint, replete with scratch-marks, that police had left directly over her right breast. (She is currently pursuing civil charges against the police department)

Notes: 29 / 2 weeks ago from collaterlysisters

collaterlysisters:

Ready for May Day?

Gaze upon my protest buddy, ye mighty, and despair.

Even if you aren’t going to a march tomorrow, cut class or call in sick. General strikes own. Catch up on your video game and feel righteous doing it.

Notes: 7 / 3 weeks ago

Notes: 81 / 3 months ago from facingreality

To Be Fair, He Is a Journalist: A Short Response to Chris Hedges on the Black Bloc

Read it all. You’ll thank yourself later when you’re the only person in the room who has any idea what a black bloc actually is or what it does. Just think of all the sweet fact-based ownage you’re going to be doling out. Doling out the harshness.

facingreality:

By Don Gato

It was a little weird to wake up today to an article by Chris Hedges on a website called “Truth-Out” when “truth” is in such short supply in the piece. Hedges was trained as a journalist and worked for years at such luminaries of lies like the New York Times, so it shouldn’t be a secret where he’s gotten his sensationalism, his tendency to lie, his hyperbole, and, most of all, his seeming inability to do rudimentary research. Nonetheless, when activist celebrities like Hedges (and his friend here, Derrick Jensen) write even complete nonsense like this, it tends to have a certain conceptual currency with people. And though I’d much rather be visiting with friends today (who promised me peanut butter cookies, no less!), I figured I’d take a few minutes to point out some of the more egregious distortions in Hedges’ terrible piece.

Definitions

First, we need to clear up some definitional problems. Now, as a journalist, I really don’t expect Hedges to be able to “research,”—it does seem to go against the prime directives of the profession, but let’s be clear: There’s no such thing as “The Black Bloc movement.” The black bloc is a tactic. It’s also not just a tactic used by anarchists, so “black bloc anarchists” is a bit of a misnomer—particularly because Hedges doesn’t know the identities of the people under those sexy, black masks. In fact, it was autonomists in the 80s who came up with the (often quite brilliant) idea in Germany. Protecting themselves against the repression of what Hedges calls “the security and surveillance state,” squatters, protesters, and other rabble rousers would dress in all black, covering up tattoos, their faces, and any other identifying features so they could act against this miserable world and, with some smarts and a sharp style, not get pinched by the pigs. This was true of resisters who were protecting marches (because the state never needs an excuse to incite violence and police are wont to riot and attack people), destroying property, or sometimes just marching en masse. That is, the black bloc has all kinds of uses. And in Oakland, where Hedges seems particularly upset by people actually having the gall to defend themselves against insane violent police thugs instead of just sit there idly by getting beaten, on Move-In Day the bloc looked mostly defensive—shielding themselves and other protesters from flash grenades and police mob violence with make-shift shields (and even one armchair). So, to be clear: The black bloc is a tactic used by lots of people, not just anarchists, and it has all kinds of uses. It’s not a “movement.”

Who Is This Straw Fankenstein?

And, importantly, people in black blocs don’t have “unity” with one another about politics. This is another bizarre part of Hedges’ hatchet job. He goes on this long diatribe about what “The Black Bloc Movement” (this weird straw Frankenstein he’s created) believes. We learn in his piece that this Frankenstein is “against organization” when members of the black bloc, anarchists included, have all kinds of ideas about organization (none of which are “against organization”). If Chris did a little research, he’d find that “The Black Bloc Papers,” for example, were edited and compiled by two members of a formal political organization. And while many anarchists do reject formal political organizations, no anarchists oppose “organization” as such. Rather, we have disagreements over organizational form, duration, formality, purpose, and so on. Not to state the obvious, but considering our collective failure to smash capitalism, the state, and all other manifestations of coercive power over others, uh, shouldn’t we be building those kinds of critiques? If Hedges were interested in honesty, he might know that’s also why many anarchists are critical of the Left (I imagine dishonest and divisive hatchet jobs by Leftist celebrities like this one is another reason why more and more anarchists reject the Left—among its many other shortcomings and failures).

He goes on to state that this Frankenstein he’s created is universally under the influence of John Zerzan, then attacks Zerzan. Again, this just shows how out of touch Hedges is and how he’s fooled himself into believing he knows what he’s talking about when he doesn’t (a very common trait for celebrity journalists). Apparently it needs repeating, the black bloc is not a unified “movement”—it’s a bunch of folks dressed similarly so they can’t be identified by the popo. There are all kinds of thoughts on Zerzan in such a grouping, some supportive, some not, some who, no doubt, have no idea who he is. But Zerzan doesn’t speak for the bloc—no one does. And so there’s this weird “guilt-by-association” in this piece which ends in blaming criticisms of the Zapatistas on this “Black Bloc Movement” that he’s created.

Gender Essentialism! It’s Not Just For the 70s Anymore!

Hedges also critiques the black bloc for its supposed “hypermasculinity,” engaging in a gender essentialism that belies his inability to keep up with contemporary radicalism. In Oakland, part of the militant march on Move-In Day was the “Feminist and Queer Bloc.” I’m sure they would be quite surprised to learn that self-defense against violent police thugs and petty vandalism is actually a man’s activity! Why, those poor, beleaguered women and queers are probably alienated from such militancy, along with the befuddled masses that Hedges seems to be writing for! Rather than a lengthy critique of this already-disposed-of pseudo objection, I’ll let Harsha Walia enlighten Hedges on the problems of wealthy white, men like himself attempting to speak for the alienated and frightened “victims” of such “masculine” activities as building a confrontational and militant movement against capitalism and the state. Check it out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oesjegD1-Vg

The Personal Is Antipolitical

Some of this is personal to me, in the interest of full disclosure. I have friends in Oakland. They’re brave and awesome. Seeing them stand up to police repression and attempt to take an empty building while people sleep in the streets was exciting and invigorating for me. It was a welcome sight in today’s age of non-violent fundamentalism, where so many are beset with the crippling belief that if we just get beat up badly enough we’ll attract “the masses” with our moral superiority and somehow the wealthy and powerful will recognize the error of their ways and give us the world back that they’ve so successfully turned into their nightmarish, authoritarian, and wasted playground. My friends were gassed, beaten, given broken faces, broken dreams, and locked in cages for their bravery. And now they’re being denounced by a comfortable journalist who wasn’t there who refers to them as a “cancer”.

I don’t want to suggest that they shouldn’t be critiqued. Self-critique is important for any improvement of practice—if it’s honest.

But here I feel betrayed. When Hedges wrote about the Greeks, notorious for their black blocs, he praised them for “getting it.” Indeed, according to Hedges, they knew what to do. In Hedges own words:

They know what to do when they are told their pensions, benefits and jobs have to be cut to pay corporate banks, which screwed them in the first place. Call a general strike. Riot. Shut down the city centers. Toss the bastards out. Do not be afraid of the language of class warfare—the rich versus the poor, the oligarchs versus the citizens, the capitalists versus the proletariat. The Greeks, unlike most of us, get it.

Apparently for Hedges, that’s good enough for the Greeks. But, by God, don’t you dare bring this filthy resistance to his home! You might accidentally (horror of horrors!) break a window! Perhaps it might belong to Hedges! Well, I passed around his piece on Greece thinking that perhaps there was, in fact, a journalist that “gets it.” I was wrong and I feel betrayed.

So I am angry at Hedges. I know it shows and it will look ugly to some people, but at one point, I trusted his work. And now, I have broken and brave friends that he is denouncing in a movement that he is dividing and presuming to speak for.

After the Move-In Day, the Mayor of Oakland, Jean Quan, asked the Occupy movement to “disown” Oakland because they were militant, uncompromising, and because they were willing to engage in the kinds of “class warfare” that Hedges once praised in Greece. Occupy groups quickly dismissed this as a divisive tactic, but Hedges and Derrick Jensen seem all too eager to help Mayor Quan out. We live in interesting times, but we need to see these kinds of attacks for what they are—forms of recuperating needed and justified rage. When rigid ideologues who think they have some kind of special access to “Truth” come in swinging like this, particularly right after being politely asked to by liberal Mayors like Quan to do so, it’s time to do some quick disowning. We should reject the attempts to divide us by the likes of Quan, Jensen, and Hedges and, more importantly, reject the lies and distortions embedded in these facile “critiques.” Shame on you, Chris. If you want to denounce “violence,” you might use your time to target the police and Mayor Quan instead of doing the work they’ve asked Occupy “leaders” to do for them.

Notes: 83 / 3 months ago from ectoplasmosis

ectoplasmosis:

Extraordinary portraits of the human beings who make up Occupy Oakland by photographer JR, who says:

Let’s use art to turn OCCUPY OAKLAND inside out. The strength of Occupy lies in the fact that a professor, a laborer, a student, an immigrant, the unemployed, and a business owner can stand together demanding change. We will line the streets of Oakland with large scale portraits that highlight the diversity of Occupy.

I am particularly struck by the intensity of each subject’s personality, which is something I have noticed in other photographs from Occupations: it is as if these people are most truly themselves when gazing out from a principled position, which is really no surprise, I guess. I have to fight the urge to romanticize and fictionalize them—they are not concept art, nor are they plucky rebel fighters from a post-apocalyptic film. They are really doing it—they are really going out and breathing tear gas and catching rubber bullets, batons and grenades, and they’re doing it to prove a point.

It’s a good point, too.

Inside Out Project [Facebook]

Inside Occupy Oakland [Flickr | more photos here]

Notes: 6 / 3 months ago from bookmarklet

"Cognitech, Inc. has announced the recent donation of it’s forensic video enhancement Tri-Suite 11 software system to the Oakland Police Department, at the request of the Oakland Law Enforcement, and in the interest of the City of Oakland, CA, community at large with the purpose of forensically enhancing and analyzing video footage from the Occupy Oakland protests in order to “find the forensic truth” in the recorded incidents/events footage."

-

Cognitech, Inc. Announces Donation of Software to the Oakland Police Department

I told you it was the grim cyberpunk future, and you didn’t fucking believe me. Why didn’t you believe me?

Notes: 15 / 3 months ago

Aerial video of Saturday evening when the Occupy Oakland march was kettled in a public park by the Oakland Police, ordered to disperse, and then not allowed to do so. Anarchists knocked down a cyclone fence to allow the trapped civilians to escape.

1. A march was stopped at Telegraph Ave and William St.
2. All park exists were blocked off
3. The crowed was ordered to leave without being allowed any exit
4. Gas / Chemicals, projectiles, batons, and explosives were used on the public

I was not sure during the filming, but gas was definitely used on this residential area. I definitely felt sick later as the gas reached my apartment.
Protesters did not destroy any personal property. Building windows and cars remained untouched (in this area at least).

I have no doubt that the number of marchers will increase next time. This group started with camping - The city’s responses seem to be slowly turning them into some kind of militia.

See related video from earlier the same day: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=46UeXGhvaTI

Notes: 37 / 3 months ago

Jean Quan, mayor of Oakland (subject to an ongoing recall campaign), mourns the fall of one of City Hall’s fine vending machines, after anarchist violence on Saturday.

Notes: 77 / 3 months ago from fuckyescalifornia

fuckyescalifornia:

Occupy Oakland Saturday movement update

Occupy Oakland protestors vandalize City Hall and burn an American flag. Nearly up to 400 people were arrested, at least three officers and one protestor were injured. Apparently the occupiers are planning more actions.

Info and photos from:

http://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2012/01/oakland_leaders_assess_damage.html

http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-738326?hpt=hp_bn1

http://occupyoakland.org/2011/10/general-strike-mass-day-of-action/

http://edition.cnn.com/2012/01/30/us/california-occupy/?hpt=ibu_c2

(Sorry for the late update)

Your Occupy Oakland post is inaccurate and at best, a half-truth. OPD are on film agitating violence, beating unarmed protesters, firing rubber bullets, beanbags, CS gas and flashbangs. They arrested hundreds, after ordering them to disperse and then NOT ALLOWING THEM TO DO SO. They injured people, waited for medics to respond, then attacked the medics. Claims of police “injuries” are not backed up with records or evidence, while police-injured protesters number in the dozens, at least.

Notes: 15 / 4 months ago from anonmedics

Protest camps: Brian Haw

anonmedics:

Protest camps are a longstanding institution, by no means invented by Occupy. It’s easy to lose sight of this fact amid recent events, but camps have been used as a means of petitioning a government or other entity for many decades before now.

A friend was kind enough to write up the story of one such camp, and one such camper: We present the story of Brian Haw.

Read More

Notes: 42 / 4 months ago from anonmedics

"Documents recently released by OPD, coupled with news reports of the Campbell shooting, indicate that the department appears to have systematically assigned cops with histories of using deadly force to deal with Occupy Oakland protests."

- http://www.eastbayexpress.com/ebx/opd-used-violent-cops-against-occupy/Content?oid=3076433 (via anonmedics)

Notes: 80 / 5 months ago from anonmedics

anonmedics:

“It is an inherently privileged position to proclaim the cops as your ally, or even to resist nonviolently, which many people don’t have the opportunity [to do] when they face police violence their whole lives.”

Paolo, an anarchist and participant in the Oakland Occupation protests, lays out what is less of an open call to arms and more of a condemnation of the ahistorical half-myths that make up the contemporary American definition of a “nonviolent movement”.

The proliferation of “Peace Police” and other authority fetishists at Occupy events is a maddening trend, both because of the intent (to deliver the message of the police from a different angle) and the grotesquely privileged capacity in which they operate. The cognitive dissonance and stunted worldview required to shout “get back on the sidewalk” at fellow activists is stunning.

Nobody is asking you to get yourself killed in an armed struggle against the government. You should take a long look at yourself, however, if you feel compelled to inform on or “citizen’s arrest” an activist who uses methods you don’t agree with, putting them at the mercy of the same coercive, murderous institutions you claim to be against.

The state will not spare you because you laid a sacrificial anarchist lamb at their jackbooted feet. If anything, they will exploit your weakness, moral confusion, and desire to appease authority for their own ends.

Notes: 188 / 5 months ago from anonmedics

anonmedics:

If you have been participating in the Occupation protests with the mindset that you are there to defeat the evil Republicans and usher in a golden age for the DNC, you may want to rethink your position.

There are no good guys. There is no compassionate arm of government. There is no lesser evil. These people all sit at the same table, and you aren’t invited.

Notes: 28 / 6 months ago