$114.00 donated in past month
|
(Albany, Calif.), April 22, 2012 – Occupy the Farm, a coalition of local residents, farmers, students, researchers, and activists are planting over 15,000 seedlings at the Gill Tract, the last remaining 10 acres of Class I agricultural soil in the urbanized East Bay area. The Gill Tract is public land administered by the University of California, which plans to sell it to private developers. For decades the UC has thwarted attempts by community members to transform the site for urban sustainable agriculture and hands-on education.
On April 20th, thousands of people descended upon Porter Meadow at UC Santa Cruz for Four Twenty (420), a counterculture holiday observed in cities throughout the world, where people gather to celebrate and consume cannabis. Four Twenty in Porter Meadow at UCSC is an unorganized annual tradition. Last year, rain caused people to seek shelter under the forest canopy. This year, it was the hot sun which drove people to the shade provided by the trees.
According to Project Homeless Connect, which includes corporations, nonprofits, and government agencies, the organization began in San Francisco in 2004 "when Mayor Gavin Newsom challenged his county workers to create a better system of care for the homeless community." In Santa Cruz, Project Homeless Connect is "a service filled day that aims at widespread social justice for homeless."
Since 2004, Project Homeless Connect "has spread to more than 220 cities in 3 different countries to become a national best practice model with great success in getting homeless families off the streets and breaking the cycle of poverty. Rather than being a band-aid event, it is a transformational experience not only for the guests, but also for the volunteers, agencies, and businesses that participate."
On April 17th, the third annual Project Homeless Connect Santa Cruz was held inside and outside the Civic Auditorium on Church Street in Santa Cruz. Hundreds of people, most of whom are experiencing homelessness, and therefore typically marginalized and criminalized in our community, were provided with a wide range of services and some goods.
 Read more and view photos
On April 4th, a dozen people demonstrated on the sidewalk in front of the Wells Fargo Bank located at 74 River St. in downtown Santa Cruz, and across the street from the vacant bank building at 75 River St. The event was held to "encourage those victimized by the bank to learn they have allies" and "support the hundreds of people who visited or protested the vacant building at 75 River St. in late November and early December last year."
On April 1, community members gathered at the Town Clock in Santa Cruz to share food and spread the message that: Food Is A Right, Not A Privilege. The demonstration was held in conjunction with international actions calling for an end to laws restricting acts of compassion, and was organized locally by Food Not Bombs Santa Cruz and the Occupy Santa Cruz Food Justice Working Group.
A press release on the Food Not Bombs website describes the difficulties community members around the world have been having when attempting to share food with those in need: "It has been distressing to receive so many reports in the past few weeks of people being threatened with arrest or cities adopting new laws limiting people's right to share free food with the public. People in Belarus, England, California, Texas, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Florida have been contacting the Food Not Bombs global coordination office about having been threatened with arrest for sharing food. Others report that their local governments are considering laws to limit acts of compassion. Food Not Bombs volunteers in Minsk have been arrested for sharing meals and police raided a benefit concert on March 24, 2012 charging 15 volunteers with sentenced to administrative arrests."
Read more and view photos |  Houston City Council Hearings on Anti Food Sharing Ordinance |  Houston Keep Sharing Free! Important Documents
See also: No Fooling - April 1 Action in Fresno | Venice Homeless Sweep Stopped: A Good Day in Venice for Street People
Previous coverage: Santa Cruz Food Not Bombs Meal at City Hall
The legendary poet, essayist and feminist Adrienne Rich died on March 27, 2012, at the age of 82 in her Santa Cruz, California home. Rich was one of the most celebrated poets of the last half-century and a lifelong advocate for women, gay and lesbian rights, peace and racial justice. She was a key figure in the women’s movement and an uncompromising critic of the powerful.
Gary Johnson is a homeless activist who maintained a nightly protest at the Santa Cruz Courthouse from late December until earlier January against local and state laws which criminalize the basic human necessity to sleep. Johnson, who slept next to a sign which stated "6.36.010 647(e) A LEGACY OF CRUELTY", was arrested four times for "lodging" in violation of Penal Code 647(e) and "trespassing" PC 602(o) during his protests. "6.36.010" is the Santa Cruz Sleeping Ban, officially known as Municipal Code 6.36.010, which makes it a crime to sleep outdoors in Santa Cruz, with or without bedding, at any time between the hours of 11pm to 8:30am.
After witnessing Gary Johnson's arraignment on February 17th, Drew Lewis wrote, "The crime the prisoner was accused of was sleeping on the park bench in front of the County Courthouse. I sat there in awe and disbelief that our government was wasting so much of our tax dollars and police time prosecuting a homeless man with nowhere to sleep at night while allowing real criminals in the banking system to steal peoples' homes through foreclosure fraud and many other real crimes against our society."
A jury trial was held March 20th-22nd at the Santa Cruz Courthouse, the publicly owned building which Johnson slept in front of. About an hour after assembling, the jury returned a guilty verdict on all four counts of "illegal lodging". Johnson's attorney, Ed Frey, noted the jurors looked somber as they left. "In my opinion, [because of Judge John Gallagher's rulings] the jury had no idea what was going on."
Johnson has been incarcerated since January 6th for the crime of sleeping. Judge Gallagher slated the sentencing hearing for March 29th at 8:30 AM in Dept. 2.
Read more | SleepCrime Prisoner Faces Four Years in "Lodging" Trial | SleepCrime Defendant Denied Necessity Defense
Previous related coverage:  Sheriff's Deputies Wake, Question and Photograph People at Peace Camp 2010 | Attorney Ed Frey Arrested on 35th Night of Santa Cruz Peace Camp 2010 | Gary Johnson Held on $5000 Bail for Sleep Protests at Santa Cruz County Courthouse
Monsanto closed its facility in Davis, California on March 16th after 150 occupiers from throughout the state blocked the entrances to their Davis facility at 1910 5th Street. The occupiers reported that they shut down operations at the corporate giant, which produces genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and is notorious for its inordinate influence over the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Students, educators, workers, and supporters of the Occupy movement, converged in the thousands on the State Capitol in Sacramento on March 5th. They were there to demand that the government fund education and social services. In the morning, a march left Sacramento's Southside Park headed for the Capitol. There they were joined by thousands of other protesters.
They came from across the state.
On March 1st, hundreds of students at the University of California Santa Cruz, with the aid of local community members, built a tent university at the base of campus as part of a coordinated day of Occupy Education actions statewide. A general strike with regards to the main campus was also planned, and students blocked both entrances to the university, which effectively shutdown UCSC for approximately 16 hours. In the words of one UC police officer that day, "students have taken control of the campus."
One of the major issues now confronting the City of Santa Cruz, and residents outside the city limits, too, is whether or not the City should partner with the Soquel Creek Water District to construct a $100 million dollar desalination plant to meet the need for water during drought periods in the City of Santa Cruz water service area, and to help relieve the threat of groundwater overdraft in the Soquel Creek Water District. A kickoff party for the Right to Vote On Desalination initiative will be held on Sunday, February 12th in Santa Cruz.
In the pre-dawn hours of Monday, January 30th, a small group of activists hung a banner from the La Fonda HWY 1 overpass by Harbor High. The banner read "WIDENING WASTE$" and was tied to the chain link fence on the bridge, facing the southbound traffic during the morning commute. The banner was up for a few hours until being removed between 11am and noon.
The approximately one-mile widening project will cost almost $20 million, to be funded by the State Transportation Bond and State Transportation Improvement Program funds. There are a number of other projects competing for those millions of dollars that may now not be funded because of the high cost of the widening project. Many sustainable transportation activists argue that these opportunity costs make the highway widening too expensive, and that these funds should be used instead on other projects already identified as improving transportation infrastructure in Santa Cruz County.
Read more and view photos | previous coverage: Santa Cruz Regional Transporation Commission Votes To Widen Hwy 1, Others Vow To Fight It | The Alternative to Widening Highway 1
At the last General Assembly of 2011, Occupy Oakland decided to take over a large vacant building with the purpose of putting it to the use of the people of Oakland. The Move-In Assembly met twice a week to plan the move in. The new social center was intended to be launched with a two day Oakland Rise Up Festival packed with speakers, workshops and performances.
Occupy Oakland met as planned at Oscar Grant Plaza at 1pm on Saturday, January 28th and marched to the building that was to be reclaimed for the movement. The Move-In Assembly explained previously: "Occupy Oakland has a demonstrated need for such a space. We have served tens of thousands of meals without charge, provided a place for thousands of people to sleep free from police repression, planned and carried out actions in which tens of thousands of people have participated. Most importantly, unlike a charity, Occupy Oakland provides people with the opportunity to get involved and determine the direction of the movement. It is open to the initiative of everyone."
As the intended target for occupation came into sight, the abandoned Henry J. Kaiser Convention Center, Oakland police formed lines of riot police armed with projectile weapons and tear gas on perimeter streets and around the building. Tear gas was fired at marchers in front of the convention center, and again in large amounts along with projectiles around the corner at 10th and Oak streets. Marchers headed back to Oscar Grant plaza to recover from the police attacks and then a new march headed through downtown Oakland, presumably to find an alternative building to claim as community space. Police kettled marchers in the Uptown Apartments park on Telegraph, and then again on Broadway in front of the YMCA. At the YMCA, hundreds were arrested, including several independent journalists. Many of those not kettled then marched back to the plaza where a small group took a flag from inside of City Hall and burned it on the steps in front of the building to protest the mass arrest still on-going on Broadway.
Reports, Photos, Audio, and Video:
Oakland Police MisUsing Their Video Cameras |
Activists and Anarchists Speak for Themselves at Occupy Oakland |
The Battle of Oakland - Mini Documentary on Jan 28 |
Anonymous vrs. The City of Oakland |
Support of Occupy Oakland by Santa Cruz's Homeless United for Friendship & Freedom |
Communique from Occupy Oakland's Move-In Assembly re: J28 |
Letter to Mayor Quan from Occupy Portland |
Occupy London Statement in Support of Occupy Oakland |
Occupy Santa Rosa Statement of Solidarity with OO |
Occupy Oakland Move-In Day - The Return to Oscar Grant Plaza, 1/28/12: photos |
 Occupy Oakland Hosting Forum on Police Actions; CPRB Forum Cancelled |
Convergence Against State Repression of Occupy Oakland |
Contact the Independent Monitor re OPD Riot on January 28, 2012 |
A Call To Oakland's Non-Violent Movement: We Must Lead By Example |
#J28: A Day of Community, a Day of Violence |
Occupy Oakland Move-In Day - 19th Street and YMCA Kettles: photos |
Occupy Oakland press conference re: J28 police violence |
Press Release: Occupy Oakland Denounces Police Violence and City Lies |
Militancy and Counter-Insurgency: Occupy Oakland and State Repression |
One of many open letters to Mayor Jean Quan from Occupy Wall Street |
Photos from J28 Move-in Day (Plan B) -- 2/2 |
Photos from J28 Move-in Day (Plan A) -- 1/2 |
Jailed for Marching in Oakland: What it means for you and your children |
YMCA, Autism, & Why Mental Health IS an Issue for Occupy |
Nationwide Support for Occupy Oakland; Solidarity Demonstrations in Dozens of Cities |
If you have been arrested at Occupy Oakland, please read the following |
more jan 28 pix |
Occupy Oakland Move-In Day - Battle on Oak Street, 1/28/12: photos |
Occupy Oakland is Dead |
OPD's finest men |
#OccupyOakland Rise Up #J28 Festival Weekend |
Occupy Oakland Move-In Day - Henry J Plan A, 1/28/12: photos |
Oakland Photography Documentation |
a letter from some friends in Oakland |
Occupy Chicago Stands with Oakland! |
What really happened at Occupy Oakland on Saturday January 28
Event Announcements:
Occupy Oakland Move-In Day Frequently Asked Questions |
Occupy Oakland Move-In Day Mural on San Pablo Ave |
Oakland Rise Up Festival schedule |
Occupy Oakland Move-In Day and Rise Up Festival Press Conference: video & photos |
Letter to the Mayor, OPD and City Council on Occupy Oakland's Move-in Day |
Occupy Oakland Press Release |
Event Announcement |
Posters and Handbills |
Call for Supplies
See Also:
Chris Hedges and Krystof Lopaur of Occupy Oakland debate black bloc, militancy and tactics |
Organized Non-violent Civil Disobedience vs. OWS |
New Zine for Printing: 'Beyond A Critique of Non-Violence' |
The Struggle for Leadership Within “Leaderless” Occupy |
Occupy Love in Oakland Part Two |
Occupy Love in Oakland |
Never have sex with police, especially from Oakland |
UCB Occupation |
Inside Out | Occupy Oakland: An Urban Exhibition and an Inside Out Group Action |
Anonymous vrs. The City of Oakland |
Oakland Community Policing Advisory Board Member Rankles Anonymous |
Fuck the Police 7 |
Hedging Our Bets on the Black Bloc: the Impotence of Mere Liberalism |
Who is "Stand For Oakland"? - an info brief |
Oakland police supports counterinsurgency group to oppose Occupy Oakland |
February 4th Fuck The Police March |
Fuck The Police 6 |
OPD gets free facial recognition/video enhancement software to target Occupy Oakland |
aquapy craft confiscated |
Oakland Council to Make Deeper Cuts to Vital City Services |
Aquapy Oakland forces Media Bay Photographer into Lake Merritt |
Former Police Officer Kelly O’Haire Unacceptable as Oakland's Police Review Board Head |
OccupyOaklandMoveInDay.org |
OccupyOakland.org |
Unpacking Homelessness by Hyphenated-Republic
Previous Related Indybay Feature:
D12 West Coast Port Shutdown
|
|
