Occupy Wall Street

Lawsuit Aims To Stop NYPD From Targeting Free Speech

September 15, 2015 Christopher Robbins, www.gothamist.com Resist! Freedom of Speech, New York City (NYC), NYPD, Occupy Wall Street

By Christopher Robbins in Gothamist - A new lawsuit filed in federal court last week aims to challenge a reality evident to anyone who has attended a large political gathering in Lower Manhattan over the past decade: lawful behavior is no safeguard against being arrested. The lawsuit centers on more than 200 arrests made around the first anniversary of Occupy Wall Street in September 2012, when the NYPD "should have known that members of its police force would encounter individuals engaged in expressive speech activity." Instead, the NYPD continued to arrest and harass protesters for seemingly no reason other than that they were protesting. The lawsuit asserts that this is part of a "pattern, policy, and practice of the NYPD misapplying the disorderly conduct statute to peaceful protesters in New York City."

$95K Settlement For OWS Whose Breast Was Grabbed By NYPD

September 10, 2015 Christopher Robbins, www.gothamist.com Resist! Law, Occupy Wall Street, Police, Sexual Harassment

By Christopher Robbins in Gothamist - An Occupy Wall Street protester who had her breast grabbed by an NYPD sergeant has won a $95,000 settlement from the city after arguing that "the police department demonstrated a pattern of sexual misconduct against female OWS activists." Cressa Perloff was arrested on March 17th, 2012, while she stood on the sidewalk during a demonstration to commemorate the six-month anniversary of OWS. In a statement, Perloff's attorney, Rebecca Heinegg, says that video from that date shows that NYPD Sergeant Joseph Catapano "grabbed her breast purposefully, dragged her into the street by her breast and hair, and arrested her." Catapano claimed that Perloff, who had never been arrested before, was trying to steal his badge, though he later admitted that this was untrue.

Court: OWS Pepper Spray Victim Can Sue For Excessive Force

August 22, 2015 Emma Whitford, www.gothamist.com Resist! Criminal Justice, Law, Occupy Wall Street

By Emma Whitford in Gothamist - Around 5:00 a.m. on November 15, 2011, a few hours after NYPD officers raided the Occupy Wall Street encampment at Zuccotti Park, two police officers arrested and pepper-sprayed 23-year-old protester Imani Brown outside of a downtown Starbucks where she was hoping to use the bathroom. Brown filed a civil suit this June, accusing officers Justin Naimoli and Theodore Plevritis of falsely arresting her, and using "excessive force." The suit was dismissed in district court, but yesterday the Second U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan reversed the excessive force claim. The court upheld the district court's dismissal of the false arrest claim. Brown's suit recounts how she "approached the Starbucks and knocked on the door and, using an elevated voice, gestured to herself and to an employee inside."

Occupy Protesters Pepper Sprayed By Cop Settle $60,000 Lawsuit

July 7, 2015 Christina Carrega-Woodby, www.nydailynews.com Resist! Law, New York City (NYC), Occupy Wall Street

By Christina Carrega-Woodby in NY Daily News - Two Occupy Wall Street protesters who were pepper sprayed by a high-ranking cop have settled their lawsuits for $60,000 each, the Daily News has learned. Chelsea Elliott and Jeanne Mansfield, whose payout is the most awarded to any individual Occupy Wall Street protesters, sued the city and Deputy Inspector Anthony Bologna in Manhattan Federal Court for blinding them with the spray during a protest on Sept. 24, 2011 near Union Square. “I’m gracious and thankful that we were able to hold them accountable. Freedom of speech is important,” Elliott told The News. Elliott, 28 of San Francisco and Mansfield of Boston learned about the settlement after the city quietly filed last week. “It’s crazy watching [the video] now, seeing it all happen again, it was surreal and strange,” said Elliott.

How Wall Street Used Government Forces to Crush Occupy

April 5, 2015 gulfgal98, www.dailykos.com Resist! FBI, Homeland Security, Occupy Movement, Occupy Wall Street, Police

It has been over two years since the Occupy Movement was brutally destroyed by a coordinated national effort led by the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security. Since that time, much documentation has been released under the Freedom of Information Act. Even though they are heavily redacted, these documents provide a frightening window into how far corporate America along with the federal, state, and local governments acting as their agents were willing to go to destroy a populist social movement like Occupy. Despite all the documentation we have, there are still many out there who are in denial about these facts. After reading some recent comments that misrepresent what happened to the Occupy Movement, I decided to review how Occupy was so brutally squelched by Wall Street and corporate America using government forces as their agents acting upon their behalf.

Councilman Arrested At Occupy Donates Settlement Cash

March 31, 2015 Rose Barkan, www.observer.com Resist! New York City (NYC), Occupy Wall Street, Politics

Councilman Ydanis Rodriguez, a Manhattan Democrat who sued the city after he was roughed up by cops at the Occupy Wall Street protests, said today he’ll donate his $30,000 settlement to the Center for Constitutional Rights. Mr. Rodriguez said he was beaten, knocked to the ground and arrested at Zuccotti Park, the locus of the anti-Wall Street movement, on November 15, 2011, the night NYPD officers forcefully cleared the park. Police charged him with resisting arrest and disorderly conduct. The charges were later dismissed. “No protester, whether an elected official or not, should be treated the way I was treated during my arrest in the Occupy Wall Street movement,” Mr. Rodriguez said at a City Hall Press conference.

OWS Protesters Score $142,500 Settlement From NYC

January 7, 2015 Lauren Evans, www.gothamist.com Educate! Law, Occupy Wall Street

Three Occupy Wall Street protesters have netted a sizable settlement from the city after filing a lawsuit saying they were brutalized by police officers. Sandra Fields, 68, and Sean McKeown, 33, were each holding one end of a banner on September 25, 2012, when Fields was apparently attacked by Lieutenant Stephen Latalardo. According to the suit, Latalardo slammed Fields from behind, causing her head to hit the ground. A video shot at the scene shows Latalardo smirkingly telling Fields that she was being arrested for "displaying a banner." “I was in shock,” Fields told the Daily News. “I was dumbfounded and really in pain.”

Fear Of Occupy Wall St. Undermined Red Cross’ Sandy Relief Effort

December 13, 2014 Justin Elliott and Jesse Eisinger, www.propublica.org Educate! Occupy Sandy, Occupy Wall Street

In the days after Superstorm Sandy, relief organizations were overwhelmed by the chaos and enormous need. One group quickly emerged as a bright spot. While victims in New York's hardest hit neighborhoods were stuck in the cold and dark, volunteers from the spontaneously formed Occupy Sandy became a widely praised lifeline. Occupy Sandy was "one of the leading humanitarian groups providing relief to survivors across New York City and New Jersey," as a government-commissioned study put it. Yet the Red Cross, which was bungling its own aid efforts after the storm, made a decision that further hampered relief: Senior officials told staffers not to work with Occupy Sandy.

What US Movements Can Learn From The Hong Kong Protests

December 6, 2014 Ian Rowen, www.occupy.com Strategize! China, Hong Kong, Occupy Central, Occupy Wall Street

They were not the words of a local student or activist, but of a visitor from Shanghai. As we talked by my tent in the encampment, we reflected that Hong Kong activists were fighting to exercise the simple right that Americans across the Pacific would be using at the ballot box the very next day, in national elections on Nov. 4. More than 60 people now sit in prison in China for expressing various degrees of support for Hong Kong’s pro-democracy Umbrella Movement. Yet, more come here every day for a taste of what one man from Beijing described to me as "the first ever genuine movement for freedom on Chinese soil.” Although this could not have been said as easily across the border, it's an increasingly common sentiment these days in Hong Kong, where local, mainland and even Taiwanese activists continue forging new connections around the makeshift supply stations and study centers of the occupation.

Ferguson Protesters In Portland Build On Occupy Wall Street

December 3, 2014 Anna Griffin, www.oregonlive.com Resist! Ferguson, Occupy Wall Street, Portland

Zuccotti Park and the Ferguson, Missouri, street where Wilson shot Michael Brown sit almost 1,000 miles apart. But in terms of their recent impact, they're practically next-door neighbors. As they did three years ago, marchers the past week have opted for civil disobedience rather than simply making speeches and rallying in front of Portland civic landmarks. They've held "die ins," led police on long, winding marches through downtown, filled Willamette River bridges during rush hour and attempted to seize Interstate 5. The crowds have included black-clad anarchists and a few Occupy-style protesters inGuy Fawkes masks. The large groups have advocated for a number of causes besides police reform, including a $15 minimum wage, policies to stop gentrification and government disinvestment in multinational corporations.

Facebook Scrubs Activist Reporter’s Timeline

October 31, 2014 John Zangas, www.dcmediagroup.us Educate! Facebook, Freedom of Speech and Assembly, Occupy Wall Street

Eight years ago when Patti Beers joined Facebook she had no idea it would become her central link to thousands of friends. A fan of MySpace, Beers looked for something more interactive and discovered Facebook social media was sweeping the internet. She found friends she hadn’t heard from in years and was able to connect her family in one place via Facebook. When the Occupy Wall Street (OWS) encampments sprung up in New York City and around the country during the Fall 2011, Facebook became a natural fit for discussing views of world change, sharing ideas and organizing events. Eventually Beers began reporting on OWS protests and live-streamed events using the service UStream and had announced such live events through Facebook.

OWS Year Anniversary Schedule

September 15, 2014 Occuevolve, www.occuevolve.com Organize! Occupy Wall Street

Occupy Wall Street Celebrates it’s 3 Year Anniversary on Wednesday September 17,2014 Our Full Day Schedule for the day’s events happening at Liberty Plaza are as follows: 10:00am-Press Conference-Occupy For The 99%-Present/Upcoming Campaigns-Climate Convergence, No New Wars(In Syria or Iraq),Stop Mass Incarceration(October Month of Resistance), End Militarization of Police Nationally, Occupy The World Business Forum. Raise The Minimum Wage/Decrease The Cost of Living/Tax Wall Street. Stop Wage Theft Now. End Citizens United(Money Out of Politics) 10:00am-3:00pm-OWS Celebrates Independent Media-Workshops, Breakouts, Live Streaming and more.. 11:00am-12pm-Alternative Media is the New Mainstream-Workshop Part 1...

The DNA Of Occupy

September 14, 2014 Marina Sitrin, www.telesurtv.net Strategize! Occupy, Occupy Wall Street

It is three years since Occupy Wall Street shook the world—and the reverberations are felt everywhere. No longer seen with the occupation of parks, plazas and squares, Occupy has relocated, it is in us, it is in our ways of being, relating and coming together. People are changed—feel more dignity and organize for a different world because of it. Occupy was never about a place or a moment—it was and is about a way of being and doing. As all ways of relating, it changed and changes, and must do so as to thrive. We have created a new generation of organizers/activists who are not part of a movement to win one thing and then declare victory, but a movement that is about changing everything. And little by little this is happening. Slower than perhaps many of us would like, but in three years we have come a long way. As our Turkish sisters and brothers sang in Tencere Tava Havasi in Taksim Gezi Park, their “sound of pots and pans” reminiscent of the Argentine call to the street with the sound of banging pots and pans; we are going “slowly slowly, as the ground is still wet.”

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