[null, {"document_url": "https://gettotheroots.wordpress.com/2011/10/31/occupy-oakland/", "unformatted_src": "https://gettotheroots.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/black-flag.png", "src": "https://gettotheroots.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/black-flag.png", "formatted_filename": "black flag", "alt_text": "Occupy Everything! Anarchy!", "rendered_width": 580, "rendered_height": 450}, null]
By @ Article

#Occupy Oakland


800 Police Evict Oakland, Oscar Grant Plaza Retaken

Compiled from IndyMedia Sources

Oakland – Early in the morning of Tuesday, October 25th, a massive police presence began a coordinated raid on Occupy Oakland. Despite the erection of barricades, the site was cleared several hours later and 70 people were arrested. Occupy Oakland was occupying Oscar Grant Plaza, named after a man executed by the BART transit police in 2009.

That evening, hundreds of occupiers and their supporters gathered to attempt to retake the park. Police aggressively broke up crowds with tear gas, flash grenades, and rubber bullets, and some protesters responded by hurling projectiles and paint bombs while police broke up crowd.

One man, a 24-year old Iraq war veteran named Scott Olsen, was struck in the head with a tear gas canister. Protesters were repeatedly prevented from protecting the man by intentional flash grenades which was videotaped and posted online. Eventually he was carried out by friends. Olsen has a fractured skull and is currently hospitalized in stable but critical condition at Highland Hospital.

Occupy Oakland had announced that gatherings at 6pm at 14th and Broadway will continue, and that “We will do this everyday until we #RetakeThePlaza.”

The following day, a vigil for Olsen took place at 3pm in downtown Oakland. At 6pm massive crowds began showing up, upwards of 3000 people. The crowd surged towards Oscar Grant Plaza, and began tearing down the fence that had been erected by police around the park.

Once torn down, having reestablished the occupation, the occupiers held a belated general assembly, in which an Oakland general strike was proposed and passed with 96.9% support. The General Assembly operates on a modified consensus process that passes proposals with 90% in favor and with abstaining votes removed from the final count.

The date of the general strike is set for Wednesday, November 2nd. Since this announcement, social media has been abuzz with calls for a US-wide General Strike and a Global General Strike!

General Assemble to General Strike

Proposal Given to the Occupy Oakland General Assembly:

We as fellow occupiers of Oscar Grant Plaza propose that on Wednesday November 2, 2011, we liberate Oakland and shut down the 1%.

We propose a city wide general strike and we propose we invite all students to walk out of school. Instead of workers going to work and students going to school, the people will converge on downtown Oakland to shut down the city.

All banks and corporations should close down for the day or we will march on them.

While we are calling for a general strike, we are also calling for much more. People who organize out of their neighborhoods, schools, community organizations, affinity groups, workplaces and families are encouraged to self organize in a way that allows them to participate in shutting down the city in whatever manner they are comfortable with and capable of.

The whole world is watching Oakland. Let’s show them what is possible.


Stay tuned for much more information and see you next Wednesday.







