The District of Columbia is the nation’s Capital and therefore a lightning rod for national organizing, but it is also the home of 600,000 people who deal day-to-day with the consequences of many of the important issues that get protested downtown. Often, there is a great divide in DC between locally and nationally focused groups even though these groups encounter the same difficulties, require many of the same resources and often have similar goals. This leads to competing for attention, attendees, media and support while wasting that most valuable of resources, time, by duplicating efforts. Often times there are class and race divides between local and national organizers, adding to the power dynamics and complicated relationships.

Thus begins the Washington Peace Center’s Principles for Organizing in DC, a set of guidelines constructed by DC activists in response to decades of frustration with missed opportunities and unintended consequences of poor communication with national action organizers.

The guide came from a workshop at the 2010 US Social Forum titled “DC’s Not Your Protest Playground” – a reference to the common misperception that DC is little more than the seat of federal government. This concept of DC is especially painful when it comes from allies, as it is the underlying logic that excuses DC’s status as the federal-tax-paying seat of federal government – whose 600,000 residents have no voting representation in that government.

“The colony of the District is a microcosm of a lot of the injustices that face the nation,” says long-time organizer and trainer Nadine Bloch, “and when people come here without acknowledging that, there is an underlying reinforcement of the problems that exist.”

The call to get buy-in from local organizers – a principle that applies in DC or in any other city – is not only a call for respect, but for efficiency and mutual aid. Like guerrilla fighters know their own terrain, DC organizers know their city – how to get permits quickly, how to negotiate the dozens of different types of police forces, and the politics of getting turnout from relevant groups.

“Why would you import all these people [from around the country],” says Robby Diesu, who often helps organize national actions in DC, “when there are five million people who live in the DC area? It’s Organizing 101 – if you don’t get buy-in, nobody’s going to help you.”

In turn, both local and national groups often miss out on providing each other crucial support.

Successful examples of mutually beneficial cooperation are hard to find, but they can make a difference. People who traveled to Occupy Chicago’s NATO protests might remember being recruited to march on Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s house to support a local campaign against his closure of mental health clinics, calling national, if brief, attention to the issue. Sonia Silbert, who helped write the Peace Center’s Principles, recalls watching Medea Benjamin get a crowd of mostly out-of-towners to call DC’s mayor and tell him not to give Lockheed Martin tax breaks to move to the city.

“We shouldn’t be anybody’s token,” says Basav Sen, a DC-based activist who helped organize large anti-globalization actions until he began to feel they were taking away from building a grassroots movement with staying power, and excluding the many people who can’t come to them, “people that should be your closest allies.”

“To be involved in the local struggles and in the global struggles, and to see them as part of the same struggle,” he says, “that’s vital.”

[Via OccupyWallSt.]

"Fannie Mae, you can't hide, we can see your greedy side," chanted over 200 homeowners and renters from across the country, who protested recently in front of Fannie Mae headquarters in Northwest, Washington D.C.. The protestors gathered to demand the resignation of acting Federal Housing Authority Director Edward DeMarco, whose agency oversees twin Government-backed mortgage regulators Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

These are themed days of action in resistance to the system and in solidarity with the 99%. Individual, autonomous affinity groups welcome to plan whatever inspires them.

10/1 – SHUT DOWN K STREET day of action. Meet at 7 AM at McPherson Square to shut down the street where corporate lobbyists, bankers, and the 1% do their shady dealings with the government. Bring tents, sleeping bags, other items as needed. Individual, autonomous affinity groups welcome to plan whatever inspires them.

10/2 – Bank/economic day of action. Meet 7 AM at Bank of America, Pennsylvania & 15th St NW, to “foreclose” a bank. Meet 1 PM at same location for march to deliver “bailout money” to social services, schools, and the people.

10/3 – Lobbyists day of action. A day to stick it to the notorious lobbyists, one-percenters, and Citizens-United Super PAC campaign donors who are undermining democracy and imperiling our system.

10/4 – 99% solidarity day of action. Visiting our 99% friends in shows of solidarity, and uniting together against the oppression of the 1%.

10/5 – Earth, sustainability, and energy day of action. A day of opposing industrial agriculture, GMOs, hydro-fracking, pollution, oil, coal, and other dirty energy, and working toward a healthy, sustainable planet.

10/6 – OCCUPY DC FREEDOM PLAZA ANNIVERSARY, a day for calling for an end to wars and militarism. The Occupy DC Freedom Plaza location began on the anniversary of our invasion of Afghanistan on October 6, 2001. This October 6, join Occupy DC to oppose war and militarism, and call for US troops out of Afghanistan now!

10/7 – Occupy Democracy day of action. A day for calling for a true democracy, one month prior to Election Day. Meet 5 PM in McPherson Square for a general assembly to display what a real, egalitarian, horizontal democracy might look like!

A year ago, on October 1, 2011, ecstatic that the 99% had begun occupying Wall Street, brave activists here in Washington DC began occupying McPherson Square on K Street, the corridor where corporate lobbyists, bankers, and the 1% come to wield their power. On October 6, more fearless members of the 99% began occupying Freedom Plaza in downtown DC, about ten blocks to the south. Two active camps were established with several hundred occupiers between the two of them. They survived the snow and rain of winter and persecution from the police, until the police violently raided the camps in the second week of February 2012.

There are more reasons than ever to occupy -- to dwell in the places where the 1% do their corrupt dealings, and refuse to leave. Join the 99% as we reclaim our democracy, our future, our world.

[Via]

Streaming Live by Ustream

Livestreaming from Washington, DC, Occupy DC is marching on K Street...

More on this later.

American Autumn Trailer: World Premiere, Tuesday June 26th at the Indie Screen Cinema and Bar/ 26 Kent Street in Williamsburg Brooklyn.

Come see the World Premiere, Tuesday June 26 at the Indie Screen Cinema and Bar/ 26 Kent Street in Williamsburg Brooklyn.

Doors open - 7pm

Tickets: FREE

RSVP facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/383559275025108

First 50 people through the door get 50 free copies of the American Autumn DVD and a free copy of Lee Camp's new comedy CD "PEPPER SPRAY THE TEARS AWAY."

See Lee Camp perform, watch the World Premiere of American Autumn, and stick around for the opening night party.

Dozens of Occupy Our Homes DC activists attempted to prevent a court-ordered eviction in Washington D.C. on Tuesday before being forcefully removed from the property by U.S. Marshals. They were attempting to stave off the eviction on behalf Dawn Butler, a D.C. resident who has lived at her home for over six years.

The Activists gathered outside the home around 8 a.m. with D.C. Metro Police and U.S. Marshals arriving shortly thereafter. Metro Police warned protesters that they would be subject to arrest after multiple warnings if they didn’t leave the property. U.S. Marshals then announced that they would carry out the eviction. When protesters refused to leave, the Marshals began forcefully removing them, dragging some across the sidewalk and others down the front stairs.

Continue reading »

Occupy Peeps Street
The Occupy Wall Street movement can't be stopped - not even in Peepville!

Protesters Re-Occupy Minneapolis: At least a dozen Occupy Minnesota protesters were arrested as their return to Minneapolis became heated overnight.

Much more here, including a lot of video footage and photographs.

This just in: A newly uploaded video from Occupy Minneapolis last night. This one shows Minneapolis police police attacking journalists and flipping a commercial news videographer and his camera at about 1:22 and another independent journalist arrested:

And then this video shows that videographer being actually flipped over by a police officer in slow motion:

Occupy Wall Street activists arrested for L train stickers after inviting film crew along: Two Occupy Wall Street protestors have been arrested after they allowed NY1 to record their subway sticker campaign. Jeffrey Brewer and Aaron Minter were among those who last week covered subway seats with stickers that read, "Priority Seating for the 1%.

Occupy Salt Lake activists who maintained a round-the-clock presence in Salt Lake City’s Gallivan Center this past winter on Friday packed up their tents and moved a few blocks south to Library Square, a grass-and-gravel area east of the Salt Lake City Library at 210 E. 400 South.

Since Oct. 6, the Salt Lake contingency has stood in solidarity with Occupy Wall Street, a grass-roots movement decrying corporate greed and its influence on society and the political process.

'Wall Street' merger: DC's 2 Occupy groups to merge at McPherson Square: Washington's two ongoing Occupy protests plan to merge with one group moving out of Freedom Plaza and joining protesters at McPherson Square. On Friday evening, the Freedom Plaza protesters voted unanimously to approve the move.

Anonymous hacks UK government sites over 'draconian surveillance': Anonymous has launched a Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) against multiple UK government websites. The group is not pleased with the UK government’s plans to monitor Internet users.

Afghan youth in U.S. protest war: Some 150 people from Fremont and Occupy Oakland demonstrated outside a U.S. military recruiting center in Fremont on March 30 at a protest organized by Afghan youth. They were also joined by a number of San Francisco Bay Area Iraq Veterans Against the War activists. Fremont has the highest concentration of Afghans in the U.S.

Two more stay-away orders against Occupy Cal protesters lifted.

Occupy Wall Street Figured Out How to Have Sleepovers!

And via Treehugger, the coal industry mocks Occupy Wall Street. The message?

It's time to put aside silly things like idealism, or discontentment with pollution, and get back to reality. Hard, dirty, coal-stained reality. So listen up, Americans:

Lee Fang at Republic Report hits back:

The coal lobby thinks “reality” is a world dependent on their dangerous product. Coal-fired power plants kill at least 13,000 people a year by spewing over 386,000 tons of pollutants, including mercury, into the air. Coal is also the most significant driver of carbon emissions, making the industry responsible for global warming that will cause more extreme weather, droughts, famine, crop failures, mass extinction of various species, as well as flooding. Coal is hardly even a source of middle class jobs given efforts by major coal companies to bust their respective unions.

Auto Industry Provides Bright Spot In Jobs Report, Proving Again That Letting It Fail Would Have Been The Wrong Course

Last but not least, from Open Secrets: Let there be no doubt where Wall Street's political loyalties lie: Of all the money the securities and investment industry has poured into the 2012 presidential contest so far -- to the candidates and the super PACs behind them -- an unambiguous 92 percent has gone to the GOP, according to a new Center for Responsive Politics analysis.

Retired Navy Commander Leah Bolger to plead guilty to interrupting the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction to tell the truth about the only things needed to fix the federal budget, "Tax the rich, end the wars!"

Bolger spent 20 years on active duty in the U.S. Navy and retired in 2000 at the rank of Commander. She is currently a full-time peace activist and serves as the President of Veterans For Peace. She was also a member of Occupy D.C. at Freedom Plaza. Bolger was arrested on October 26, 2011 for an act of civil disobedience, and will plead guilty at her hearing on these charges, which is scheduled for April 12, 2012.

A press conference will be held at 8:30 am, Thursday April 12th in front of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, 500 Indiana Ave NW, Washington DC. Those scheduled to speak and/or answer questions include:

Leah Bolger, defendant, President of Veterans For Peace (VFP)

Mark Goldstone, attorney for the defendant

Art Brennan, NH Retired Superior Court Associate Justice, member of VFP

Kevin Zeese, Co-director, Its Our Economy, organizer of Occupy Washington, DC

David Swanson, author, activist, radio host, member of VFP

With the escalation of police tactics at many Occupations, some Occupiers argue for more active resistance. Chris Hedges and Kevin Zeese are questioned by DC Occupiers over future tactics at a seminar sponsored by a Ralph Nader group.

Whether or not you agree with Chris Hedges' stance on 'black bloc' tactics within the Occupy movement, he is spot on when he says that the goal of taking down occupy encampments across the country is to sever the movement from the mainstream because "The Occupy movement is fundamentally a mainstream movement."
And in short, the grievances and the concerns of the Occupy movement are the grievances and concerns of mainstream America.

It's a great nearly 20 full minutes of discussion, worth the listen.

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What caused Andrew Breitbart's now infamous meltdown at CPAC?

Many commenters suggested that Breitbart was drunk, and this video seems to suggest just that. Listen as Breitbart is preparing to go confront the crowd, someone off-camera says that it would look bad to do so with a glass of wine in his hand.

“So what? We’re allowed to drink wine in America!” Breitbart says. A moment later, there’s the sound of breaking glass.

Then he heads outside towards to protesters, and Breitbart jumps out from behind some shrubs and decides to take it upon himself to take the occupiers to task, and starts shouting "Behave yourself! Behave yourself! Behave yourself!" Before security escorts him away he continues screaming "Behave yourself! You're freaks! You're freaks and animals! Stop raping the people! You freaks! Stop raping the people!"

Was he drunk? You decide. He certainly was disheveled, wild-eyed and vitriolic...oh, wait.

Here's the video of that epic rant again, too.

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