by Debra Sweet
Yesterday, Occupy Oakland was evicted, again, from Oscar Grant Park at Oakland City Hall, after the unprecedented general strike on November 2. See Occupy Oakland: Police Tear Down Camp in Early Morning Raid.
This morning, beginning at 1:00 am, NYC police massed to remove everyone and everything from Occupy Wall Street’s home at Zuccotti Park. From Sarah Seltzer:
According to reports on Twitter, an OWS press release, and emails over internal OWS listservs, downtown subways and the Brooklyn Bridge were shut down, airspace was blocked off, and a barricade was erected to prevent supporters who were alerted by text from entering.
Several bystanders who arrived to help were pepper-sprayed or beaten. Read this dispatch from Anna Lekas Miller for one such story: "The police came towards us. I was live tweeting when I realized there was a funny smell and something in my eyes that was making them burn … I was shoved against a wall by a cop with a riot shield telling me to, ‘Keep it moving.’ … Their batons were out. It was violence."
Posted on Occupy Wall Street today:
You can’t evict an idea whose time has come.
A massive police force is presently evicting Liberty Square, home of Occupy Wall Street for the past two months and birthplace of the 99% movement that has spread across the country and around the world
The raid started just after 1:00am. Supporters and allies are mobilizing throughout the city, presently converging at Foley Square. Supporters are also planning public actions for the coming days, including occupation actions….
Supporters of this rapidly growing movement were mobilized in the middle of the night, making phone calls, taking the streets en masse, and planning next steps. Americans and people around the world are appalled at Bloomberg’s treatment of people who peacefully assemble. We are appalled, but not deterred. Liberty Square was dispersed, but its spirit not defeated. Today we are stronger than we were yesterday. Tomorrow we will be stronger still. We are breaking free of the fear that constricts and confines us. We occupy to liberate.
We move forward in the grand tradition of the transformative social movements that have defined American history. We stand on the shoulders of those who have struggled before us, and we pick up where others have left off. We are creating a better society for us all.
Occupy Wall Street has renewed a sense of hope. It has revived a belief in community and awakened a revolutionary spirit too long silenced. Join us as we liberate space and build a movement.
More at occupywallst.org
As I write this afternoon, a court order has allowed protesters back into Zuccotti Park. A supporter wrote this morning abut the scene there and its importance to the occupiers, and to the powers-that-be:
"It was the encampment that made the protest effective and drew many people to it. Without the occupation with tents, it would have been another protest ignored by the mainstream media, and it would have faded away. It was a vibrant place full of lively political discussion and protest, a place where the 99% felt they had a voice…
The rule of no tents is enforced, but not the regulations on Wall Street that harmed so many but richly profited the few. International Law is broken regularly by the US and Israel regarding wars and occupation, but there are no consequences for either government. But tents in a park, well that’s serious stuff and can’t be tolerated."
I urge everyone to support the occupations, and come out Thursday, November 17th – the 2 month anniversary of Occupy Wall Street. If you’re in NYC, find out how to help here.