Feature Archives

An abandoned historic building in Oakland was unveiled on the morning of August 13th as the Victor Martinez Community Library. The building was one of seven library branch casualties of budget cuts in the late seventies, and since then it has mostly sat empty. On the first day of the re-opening, donations of books poured in and area children helped to start a community garden in a side lot. In less than 15 hours, however, OPD raided the Community Library. The next morning, activists re-opened the library on the sidewalk in front of the building and it has been growing since.

On July 13th, the legal team for the Davis Dozen, students and faculty of UC Davis who allegedly blockaded a corporate bank that appeared on their campus last Fall, filed a Pitchess Motion which alleges that the officers in the case used excessive force or lied about the events surrounding the defendants' arrest. This will provide the court access to the officers' records, allowing confirmation of past use of excessive force against the defendants. Their next court date has been set for Friday, August 24th.

The seven remaining Santa Cruz Eleven defendants — Cameron Laurendeau, Franklin "Angel" Alcantara, Brent Adams, Desiree Foster, Becky Johnson, Robert Norse, and Gabriella Ripley-Phipps — will have a preliminary hearing on Monday, August 20th before Judge Paul Burdick. The Santa Cruz Eleven were each charged with two felonies and two misdemeanors in association with the Fall 2011 occupation of the vacant Wells Fargo Bank building located at 75 River Street in downtown Santa Cruz.

On August 4th, a roving dance party with a large banner that read “Fuck The Permits, F.T.P., Fuck The Police” marched in solidarity with the vendors of Art Murmur. On July 6th, uniformed security officers had informed Art Murmur vendors that anyone without a permit would be ticketed, starting in August. Many vendors and artists ignored the threat of being ticketed, and set their tables in illegal spaces.

On July 25th, multiple homes were raided and grand jury subpoenas issued in Portland, Olympia, and Seattle. Three homes were raided in Portland, by approximately 60-80 police, including FBI and Joint Terrorism Task Force. Individuals at the homes say police used flash grenades during the raid. Grand jury subpoenas have been served to individuals in all three cities: two in Olympia, one in Seattle, and two in Portland. The grand jury is scheduled to convene on August 2nd at the federal courthouse in Seattle. No arrests have been made. In the Bay Area, solidarity actions have included banner drops and the vandalism of police cars and stations.

On Saturday, July 21st, Anaheim police shot and killed 25-year-old Manuel Diaz by shooting him in the back and head. Police then opened fire on protestors with beanbags and pepper spray, and also released a dog which attacked demonstrators. The next day, Anaheim police shot and killed Joel Acevedo. On July 26th and July 27th, marches were held in San Francisco and Oakland in solidarity with the people of Anaheim. In Oakland, protesters marched to OPD headquarters and windows were smashed at the Warehouse Bar & Grill, a local bar frequented by Oakland police.

Occupy Redwood City responded with a protest on Saturday, July 14th, within days of a groundbreaking ceremony at the site of a new prison in San Mateo County. Occupy members, along with a coalition of organizations all concerned about the increase in prison building, rallied across the street from the Redwood City police station. Former Assembly candidate Joseph Rosas of Occupy San Jose spoke at the rally about San Mateo County's practice of referring juveniles to ICE for potential transfer to detention centers and then deportation.