Occupy Atl News 1

8/3/2019 Occupy Atl News 1

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1Occupy Atlanta News 1

Occupy Atlanta Newsan independent production

Who are the Occupiers?

It seems that people come out to the park or a numbero dierent reasons, but the one thing that pervades isthat people are looking or some kind o change. Be itregarding high unemployment rates, campaign nancereorm, support or small businesses, environmentalconcerns, a better justice system, ending the ederalreserve system, or corporate greed and incompetence,encompassing, o course, wall street.

Tere are a lot o young people in the crowd. Contrary

to some reports, though, the age range is great. Froma ew children with their parents, a number o middleaged occupiers, and some even older, people o all agesare agreeing that, well, something needs to change.

One mans opinion was that Occupy Atlanta is ull oyoung, underdeveloped politics. People who haventdeveloped concrete political stances. Tat the coremovements associated with the counterculture werentthe most prevalent. He sees more reormists, liberals,

and a tea party vibe.

What youre doing is great, said one older blackgentleman, a Sandy Springs resident, ormerly o theNavy. He, and other olks as well, were o the opinionthat Mayor Kasim Reed would not want to take hastyaction against Occupy Atlanta, lest he alienate a voterbase. Aer the arrests made in Boston on Wednesdaynight, some eel that the allout rom that is anotherreason the police are taking a hands o approach.

One man sees the occupiers as having a lot o di-erences o opinion. Te GA gives people an equalchance to speak. He sees a respectul, peaceul occu-pation as the key to having itsel taken seriously.

Te olks involved in Occupy Atlanta are not all job-less hippies, though some o them might be. However,there have been a lot o people who are volunteeringcountless hours o their time coordinating logistics,

legal deence, making phone calls, running errands,

holding committee meetings, preparing meals, and allthe other tasks needed to keep an occupation o thissort going.

Setting the scene

Despite all the rain and chill temperatures, there wereapproximately 50 tents set up. Mid-week, there wereapproximately 35. Te number o people that are at thepark varies at any given time. When the general assem-blies are in session, there is an inux. Tis evening, the

General Assembly met together at 7 pm, as a light driz-zle began. An American ag had been erected in thepark, the occupiers gathering to one side o the make-shi ag pole. When asked, a ew occupiers seemedunperturbed about the ag hanging over the GeneralAssembly, and some ound it a welcome addition.

Local residents have expressed concern about the stateo the park, some accounts even calling it unsanitary.o aid in maintaining the park, and to avoid a low

point where water collects in the grass, a section oland was cordoned o. Te grass has certainly beeneeling the impact o all the tents and all the peoplewalking around through days o rainy weather. Terewas a bag or recycling, a sign hung above it, placed abit o to the side. A ew people could be seen walkingaround with garbage bags, collecting loose reuse.

Despite what some people may state, there was novisible indication o any drugs or alcohol being con-sumed in the park. All in all, the occupiers seemed to

be respecting the park as best they could.

In an eort to maintain sanitary conditions, the cityeven dropped o six portable toilets. A release issuedon 10/14, signed by Candace Byrd, the mayors chie osta, announced park cleaning, planned or Saturday10/15, between 10 am and 4 pm. (See attached imageo the release). It is stated in the communication thattents will need to be taken down, but that aer the

Insights rom the Occupation Zone


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park cleaning, can be put back in place.

As or the homeless population around the park, somewere intermingling with the occupiers, while othersstayed urther o, keeping to themselves. Many home-less have been ed, some clothed, by donations to theoccupation. A man calling himsel Doctor Love saidthat when he heard about a whole group o people

sleeping in the park where he used to sleep, he had tocheck it out. I can eel the love, he said. I the wholeworld could be like this, it would be a better place.

Donations are being made to the occupation rom anynumber o individuals and groups. Yung Joc, a rapperlocal to Atlanta, dropped o a van ull o supplies on10/12. Tere have been massive ood and water dona-tions.

Te only injury reported has been an accidental selinicted wound. Tere have been no issues with vio-lence. Te atmosphere seems airly laid back. Tat is,until sirens are heard in the distance. Te people in thepark tense as the sound gets closer. A re truck wailsaround the corner, and a lot o heads turn to ollow itdown the street, out o sight at the next block.

Numbers are expected to increase over the weekend.

Occupy Atlanta News is an independent newsletterattempting to chronicle reports, opinions, and obser-vations rom the occupation. All words are the opin-ion o whomever submitted them. Within reason,well try to print anything un-edited. All are welcometo participate. Tis is a work in progress and needsyour help, your words and your hand drawn images(drawn, to save on ink, o course). Send submissions,questions, or requests or inormation to [email protected]

What is this thing, anyway?

Saturday 10/15

11:00 AMMarch Oct15

2:00 PMFlash Mob Meditation

2:00 PMGroup eaching and Idea Exchange

7:00 PMAL General Assembly

9:00 PMFilm Screening o Te Corporation

Donate to the legal und.

You might need it!

www.wepay.com/donate/65516

Te up to date schedule can be ound at http://occupy-atlanta.org/schedule/

Sunday 10/16

12:00 PMMeditation on Peace and Justice

1:00 PMNon Violence raining

:00 PM

Solemn March to the omb o Martin Luther King

9:00 PMAL General Assembly

Schedule


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Te Necessity oCalling Out Names

Submitted by Courtney Cascadian

Call out a Banker a daya current banker, not as wetypically do as Americans and reerence those whoeither have already gotten caught or are no longer in

ofce. Put a name with a ace and start with the currentGovernors o the Federal Reserve both national andwithin each state. Tis also serves to give us somethingcohesive and concise as a signature response in inter-views (and something to put on picket signs lol) as welas to remind the public who their real enemies are, atthe same time. We use their media and vast audiencesagainst themwe are talking mainstream media pub-licity and its ree! For example, they may come downrom some radio morning show to make un o us (asoccupiers) but we respond with something to the eect

o, Anyway, this is a picture o Elizabeth Duke. Shewent rom starting out as a bank teller to sitting on theBoard o the Fed. She is currently working on theirbehal Otherwise, they have no impetus to negoti-ate with the people as long they are allowed to hidetheir identities behind institutional cloaks. As long asWall Street or Te Federal Reserve looks bad whilethe people who lend their talents and abilities to thesemasters o greed arent called to light, people like MissDuke can run their daily citizen errands as social pil-

lars not as pariahs alas say Michael Vick at one point.While our very rst step rom here should be edu-cating Te Occupy Community, at home and on theground, Im advocating moving orward simultane-ously. In act I think we need to address Te Fed im-mediately while we are still relevant news. I am advo-cating starting to oer classes immediately to not onlyeducate ourselves and the community on the ins andouts o this nancial collapse so that we are not onlylearning as were moving but also to help us clariy our

demands. Tis applies to those who already possessan understanding o Wall Street nance as well. Foryou the classes will only reinorce/make sharper thosepathways in your mind. For those o you with an evenmore procient understanding o the subject then youbecome our guides as we sort through conspiracy oracts.

Im not claiming to be a nancial wiz but o the top o

Ofce Needs (60 Walton Street)

Rolodex Spatula Walkie talkies x 2 meal organization sheet large whiteboards lock box le cabinets, binders, notebooks, and le slots or

inbox/outbox le olders or Media printing thumb drives Pin-style name tags in plastic holders Computers door mat sheets and abric

Park Needs (91 Peachtree Street, Atlanta, GA)

Spatula Walkie talkies x 3 ables meal organization sheet large whiteboards brooms and gloves or trash cleanup lock box emergency cones chairs clock with alarm Pin-style name tags in plastic holders. orange vests or marches

General Needs

resh water (bottles o water, water containers, etc.) trash cans/ trash bags Gas cans (w/ gas is great) Blank stickers (or name tags) gazebos paints painting drop cloths painters tape waterproong tarps / tarp lines / plastic sheeting duct tape plastic bins towels

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my head there a couple o simple things the Fed cando:

1. Outlaw the policy o banks automatically runningchecks through two times and charging insufcientunds ees twice.

2. Allow mortgage payments to reect substantial de-creases in the original value o homes

3. Change their name; Federal in their name ismisleading at best when they are a private nancialinstitution with virtually nonexistent regulations toadhere to other those which they impose on them-selves. At least you know Federal Express is a privatesector company where as 90% o the population likelybelieves Te Federal Reserve is, well, ederal. Likewisetheir very name scares the shit out o people, making

our job o bringing them in the old with the conscious99% that much harder.

4. etcOur demands will continue to evolve in di-rect correlation with our collective knowledge until atwhich point they are willing to sit down at the tablewith us.

In summary, we need to make these olks uncomort-able. I cant think o a better way to do that than bycalling names. We always call them out aer they get

caught (Bernie Mado) or when they are no longerin power (Alan Greenspan). Lets call out the currentbankers. Lets put names with aces and lets start withthe Federal ReserveAnd we better do it while we stillhave some spotlight le.

Tere is no logical excuse for protesting banking corrup-tion, in earnest, and not addressing the Te Federal Re-serve, who sets banking policy nationallysome wouldargue globally. You may be protesting but you certainlycouldnt be protesting banking corruption.

Tese are the 10 points about talking with the policethat everyone in your group must know by heart.Make sure every single person knows and obeys these

rules.

1. Shut up. Do not try to explain anything. Te onlywords out o your mouth are rom the points below.Dont try to convince them that theyre wrong aboutthe law. Dont start talking about your rights. Beprepared or this to be very uncomortable; ignoringsomeone is not pleasant. Many cops are perectly nicepeople who should be joining your ranks but youare not interacting with them socially, youre inter-acting with them as a suspect. Just shut the uck up.

Seriously.

2. Dont snitch. rust your buddies not to snitch.Snitching will not help you. Tey will play you againsteach other. Dont speak on anyone elses behal, dontsay anything about what someone else did or didnt do,even i you think it makes them look innocent.

3. Dont lie. Cops can and will lie to you (so dont trustem), but not vice versa. Lying alone will land your ass

in jail.

4. Dont resist or be rude. Dont even passively resist,like by going limp. Never, ever, ever, ever physicallyresist the cops. At least in the US, youre not at risko being randomly shot unless you resist. You will getbetter treatment i you cooperate.

5. Dont insist on Miranda warning. You dont haveany right to it unless youre about to be interrogatedanyway. By the time youre arrested they probably

already have enough, so they dont need to ask youanything. Getting Mirandized is actually against yourinterest; i you arent then they might uck up. Soagain,shut up.

6. Dont agree to any search. Say explicitly, i theymake any move whatsoever to pat you down, searchyour stu, look in your pockets, etc: I do not consentto a search. When asked why, dont answer. However,

ips or DealingWith the Police

Submitted by Sai


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do not resist; i they search you anyway, let them. Itllget thrown out in court i you were right; youll go tojail i you resist no matter what.

7. Show ID when asked unless youre certain thatyou are in a state that doesnt require it. I in doubt,clearly tell the ofcer e.g. Im happy to comply withthat i it is a lawul order and I am required to by law,but I will not do so voluntarily. I they say you have to,do. Youll get it thrown out later i they didnt have theright to insist.

8. Have your lawyers phone number written on yourarm. All o your stu will be taken away i you getbooked, beore you get your phone call.

9. Be patient. Itll take time; they might take you downor questioning (remember to *say nothing*); etc. Keep

your cool.

10. Know your detainment status. Te US police in-teractions you can have are: purely voluntary interac-tion (can walk away at any time; still get interviewed;might be seriously intimidating); erry stop (patdownor weapons only); detainment (reasonable suspicion,temporarily not ree to go, no right to search, possiblehandcus or ofcer saety), and arrest (probablecause, right to search everything on you and nearby,denite handcus, possible Miranda warning).

Ask the ofcer am I being detained, or am I ree togo?; i they say youre being detained, dont pesterthem about whether youre under arrest, because theyjust told you what your status is. I they dont answeror say youre ree to go or just talking, tell them thatas ar as you know youre not being detained and startwalking away. I they stop you, then they have de actodetained you, which you can use against them in court.

Finally, i at all possible:

11. Videotape everything. Have two people who arenot involved tape it rom opposite angles, at least aew eet away. Tey are not to interact with or intererewith you or the police in any way; their job is strictlydocumentation, in case you need it in court or or yourmedia campaign.

Big Banking has done nothing less than put the econ-omy into near depression, take taxpayer money to thetune o $1 trillion dollars, curtail credit and lending,

oreclose on homes, and up interest rates and ees.Something must be done, but what? What can we do tochange the current stacked system?

For every dollar we use cash instead o plastic, BigBanking is deprived o 3.5 cents. Every dollar, everytime. Doesnt sound like much, but it adds up and allwe have to do is Use Cash. Big banks make $50 bil-lion a year on merchant interchange ees rom debitand credit cards. I you and I average $5,000 eachin plastic purchases per year and, instead, do those

transactions using cash, we just deprived the banks o$350 minimum. I one thousand o us do the samethats $350,000 minimum. I just one-million o usswitched to cash, less than one percent o U.S. house-holds, $350 Million minimum Big Banking is out.

Want to do it?Step one: Carry some cash and use it. Go to the bankrst and get the cash or larger purchasesStep two: Make purchases with cash at merchants that

oer a 5% Discount or CashStep three: alk to other people about Use Cash,

Are you a merchant?Step one: Continue to accept plastic, but also oer a5% discount or cash. (Wouldnt you rather have yourmoney now? And wouldnt you rather give your cus-tomers 5% in lieu o giving Big Banking 3.5%?)Step two: Hang a 5% Discount or Cash sign in yourstore window.Step three: alk to other merchants about Use Cash

and 5% Discount or Cash

ransaction by transaction, we can deprive Big Bank-ing o their lieblood: ees, penalties and interest. Jointhe movement.

For more inormation:http://www.usecashmovement.org/

We the PeopleMust Punish Big Banking

Submitted by Darlene Justice


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