Battle for Occupy Oakland - Occupiers Undaunted by Massive Police Attacks, 10/25/11: photos

Once the 1500-person march reached the intersection of 14th & Broadway, almost immediately police declared an unlawful assembly and warned protesters about the use of "chemical agents" and the "serious injuries" that might be inflicted upon them by police weapons. Marchers then turned up Broadway to reconvene elsewhere in order to discuss strategies regarding retaking Oscar Grant Plaza which had been raided early that morning. The march stopped at 20th Street and Franklin, within the vicinity of numerous downtown banks, to discuss the role banks play in the growing economic inequality in this country. Marchers then convened an impromptu General Assembly at the foot of Snow Park by Lake Merritt to discuss how best to return to Oscar Grant Plaza. Once back at 14th & Broadway, police immediately declared an unlawful assembly and then, when protesters refused to leave, police began to disperse massive amounts of tear gas, hurling flash bang grenades and firing projectiles at anyone in the street. The 12th Street BART station was closed after passengers waiting underground began to be effected by the noxious CS gas flowing into the station. Residents in the area reported the gas filling their apartments and effecting them and their companion animals. At street level, marchers would retreat from the intersection of 14th & Broadway after a police attack only to return later to receive further chemical weapon and projectile attacks by police. This continued into the night, with at least four major volleys of police gas and countless people injured by projectiles, including Scott Olsen who was critically injured when a projectile struck him in the forehead. Nevertheless, protesters refused to allow the police attacks to hinder their determination to re-occupy the plaza.