Protest // Current

Why We're Winning

http://news.infoshop.org/article.php?story=20091103125740393

A curious property evident in the discussion of insurrection in the United States is that it gets more respect the further it occurs from home. Anarchists who would never dream of complaining that the Thessaloniki Food not Bombs is being neglected while its members amuse themselves burning banks, who could never conceive of suggesting that the Somali pirates stop seizing ships for ransom in order to start a bike repair collective, have no problem criticizing their own friends and comrades for shortchanging local projects to attend semi-annual mass mobilizations. This is a shame, because a look at the broader picture reveals that summit demos are taking an ongoing toll on the ruling class, even when they are tactically unsuccessful.

Just for starters, any city hosting a summit has to impose de facto martial law for the duration of the meetings. Miles-long steel security fences, bag searches on the subway, black helicopters in the sky, armor-clad riot cops on every corner, among other measures, make a mockery of the myth of "civil rights." By employing such repressive tactics just to keep a few summit delegates from being confronted by those they claim to be helping, authority reveals its true nature, undisguised by the usual lies and propaganda. People who claim that we should abandon summit protests because we can never replicate the WTO (World Trade Organization) riots in Seattle are missing this point. While it's true that the cops will never again allow themselves to be defeated on the street the way they were in Seattle, the things they have to do to win in the short term erode the perceived legitimacy of the entire ruling system in the medium term. If all they had to do was stop the protests they could just shoot the protesters. But since they must also maintain the illusion of freedom of assembly and freedom of speech, their problem is complicated immensely. They have no good options, so it's not a matter of whether we will win, only of how.

Their situation becomes all the worse when, after turning the host city into a militarized encampment for a week, the cops can't even stop a few kids in black from breaking windows. The resulting frustration often leads them to attack and arrest defenseless groups and individuals who have minimal connection to the protests, further compounding their problems when the videos hit Youtube. Then to justify their own brutality, the cops make an example of a handful of protest organizers by hitting them with ridiculously inflated charges, usually for actions that most people would consider perfectly innocuous. As an added bonus, the lawsuits generated by blatantly unconstitutional arrests and searches strain city budgets, consume prosecutors' time, and extend their PR nightmare. For authoritarians, the only thing worse than appearing brutal and repressive is appearing brutal and repressive and ineffectual. Cops, by their nature, will fall into this trap every time, as long as we show up and set it for them.
full article at link......http://news.infoshop.org/article.php?story=20091103125740393 A curious property... more

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DC Protesters Mocked by Media, Ignored by Politicians

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Suicide Prevention Groups Target 'The Office'

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Health care advocates arrested at Lieberman’s office

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WakeUpPeople
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The Great Climate Swoop

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UEBSzex3_JE Saturday 17 October 2009: The Great... more

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Violent attacks reported as Iranians protest

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23 Billion: Where's the Outrage?

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Why the Tea Party Movement is Good For America

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Health Care Reform Movement Grows and Persists

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Blue Shield Shut Down by Protesters

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8 Arrested at Seattle Healthcare Protest

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Glendale 7 Arrested at CIGNA: What's a Life Worth?

They're at it again. Those pesky health care people who think everyone deserves to live a healthy life, or just plain live, for that matter. 122 people die every day for lack of health care and more for denial of care despite paying high premiums. That's the way it is in America. But some people just can't let it go. What is this, some kind of first world democracy where everyone has equal rights to life?

Seven were arrested today at CIGNA headquarters in Glendale CA, including Dr. Matt Hendrickson, MD MPH, as they sat-in on the CIGNA lobby. Police and CIGNA security barricaded the entrance to the lobby and only allowed "registered" press inside, of which there were very few.

Sit-in supporters chanting "Arrest the Real Criminals" and pointing at the CIGNA building, had to watch from afar through the glass doors as police carried protesters away through the building to a loading dock garage. Protesters then walked around to the loading dock where a Glendale Police motorcycle squad promptly followed them and kept them at a s distance from the garage entrance. Then they closed the garage door enough so that the arrests and their loading into the police van could not be witnessed by protesters, the public, or cameras.

I talked to Shelia Dvorak who was there in support of the sit-in protesters and who was arrested on 10/15/09 for a sit-in at Blue Cross in L.A.'s beautiful downtown financial district. She said she's not afraid of being arrested and was not treated badly, and that in fact the police she talked to sympathized with her. She made a video of that sit-in here: http://mobilizeforhealthcare-la.ning.com/video/blue-cross-sit-in-for-medicare The police arrested the sit-in protesters only in response to CIGNA on charges of trespassing.

Another man who was inside with the sit-in protesters came out when police threatened to arrest everyone. He was carrying a sign that read "What's a life worth?", with a picture of his daughter on it. He had full CIGNA coverage for his family when his daughter was denied treatment for a liver problem and died.They're at it again. Those pesky health care people who think everyone deserves to... more

JonRaymond
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Unions vs Wall Street - The Showdown In Chicago

On Tuesday morning, in Chicago, the unions came to town. It was the final day of the rolling protest dubbed The Showdown in Chicago, a confrontation with the American Bankers Association, whose members had gathered for their annual meeting. With a crowd estimated at 5,000, it was without a doubt the largest demonstration against Wall Street's ravages since the economy crashed a year ago.

From the desperate manufacturing sector came members of the Sheet Metal Workers and the Machinists and the Steelworkers. From the collapsed housing market came the Carpenters and the Painters and the Insulators. There were laid off workers from shuttered factories – Republic Doors and Windows, whose battle over severance pay was captured in Michael Moore's new film, Capitalism: A Love Story, and Quad City Die Casting, whose hundred employees all lost their jobs with far less fanfare last month. Pulling up the rear, a large contingent of garment workers from Hart Marx, suit makers to the president, who successfully fought off a shutdown threatened by creditor Wells Fargo, saving some 3,500 jobs. And, of course, a vast purple army from the Service Employees Union, SEIU.

"There is something wrong with America," Anna Burger, SEIU's secretary treasurer, told the crowd, in the stirring rhetoric that was typical of the day. "Over a year ago the big banks on Wall Street, because of their greed and risky decisions, put our whole country and our whole economy at risk. And what did they do? They came to us. They asked for trillions of dollars and they said they would help us rebuild our economy. Did they rebuild our economy? Did they stop home foreclosures? Did they cut interest rates? Did they lower bank fees? Did they stop layoffs? Did they extend credit to small businesses? Or create new jobs? No. What did they do? They squeezed us harder. They exploited us more, raked in millions in fees, made lots of money and now they're giving themselves bigger bonuses than ever before." The shouting in response to her was boisterous, as it was to equally tough words from AFL-CIO president Richard Trumka.

more at link...On Tuesday morning, in Chicago, the unions came to town. It was the final day of the... more

WakeUpPeople
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"Showdown In Chicago": Protesters Crash Bankers Convention, (VIDEO, IMAGES)

Via National People's Action, here is some footage from the protesters at the ABA conference. From the footage, it's clear there are some strong emotions from the protesters.

At one point a protester grabs a megaphone and says:

"The American Bankers Association has helped loosen the rules that protect us, allowing the unfettered greed that has brought us to the brink of a recession. And for those bankers who are members and support the ABA's war against the working and middle class, shame on you!"

The crowd soon begins chanting "Shame On You!" in unison.

Via Progress Illinois' Twitter feed, here's more video of Sen. Durbin's speech. In this section, he calls for a "showdown" with Wall Street.

According to the Twitter feeds of National People's Action and the SEIU, the protesters are headed to the ABA's "Roaring '20s"-themed cocktail party. (Perhaps the ABA is not aware of the irony of having such an event.)

Sen. Dick Durbin spoke in front of the protesters earlier today. Here's a clip from the video, in which Durbin tells the story of homeowner who was struggling to stay in her home -- and was apparently talked into agreeing to a seemingly atrocious mortgage. The woman's mortgage was riddled with hidden fees and by, "the types of things even a Wall Street lawyer couldn't explain to anyone," Durbin said.

The American Bankers Association's annual convention in Chicago has become the scene for a series of major protests, which are set to continue through Tuesday. Dubbed "the Showdown in Chicago." (http://www.showdowninchicago.org/index.html) (Check back here frequently for updates on the protests.)

Groups like the National People's Action, the Service Employees International Union, Americans For Financial Reform and the AFL-CIO are expected to turn out with thousands of protesters. Sen. Richard Durbin (D - Illinois) is scheduled to address the protesters Sunday evening. Conference speakers include Newt Gingrich, conservative columnist George Will and FDIC chairman Sheila Bair.

Check out these photographs of the "Showdown in Chicago," taken by organizers of the protest.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/25/showdown-in-chicago-prote_n_333245.htmlVia National People's Action, here is some footage from the protesters at the ABA... more