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Occupy Activist Facing 7 Years: ‘Promoter Of Non-Violence’

April 8, 2014 Jon Swaine, www.theguardian.com ,
An Occupy Wall Street activist charged with assaulting a police officer is a “promoter of non-violence” who wandered into a tussle with law enforcement while celebrating St Patrick’s Day, her lawyers plan to argue in court this week. Jury selection began on Monday morning in the trial of Cecily McMillan, who denies assaulting Officer Grantley Bovell as he arrested protesters from the anti-capitalist movement in New York’s Zuccotti Park on 17 March 2012. “An innocent woman is being accused of something that could send her to prison for seven years,” McMillan’s attorney, Martin Stolar, told reporters outside the state supreme courtroom in lower Manhattan. “She was leaving the park pursuant to the police department’s orders when she was brutally assaulted by a police officer and subsequently accused of assaulting that police officer.” McMillan told a small group of supporters: “Thank you for being here today.”

Cecily McMillan Trial Update, Judge Rules Against Defense

April 7, 2014 Staff, www.justiceforcecily.com , ,
Cecily McMillan, accompanied by approximately 50 supporters, was back in court April 7th for pre-trial motions. Judge Zweibel upheld hisprevious decision on motion 50-4(a), denying access again to Officer Grantley Bovell’s personnel files, on the grounds that this previous history of excessive force and corruption are not relevant to the case at hand. The DA argued that none of these cases were substantiated due to the recommendation from the internal affairs bureau, an arm of the NYPD. Approximately 50 supporters showed up to court this morning. Many were wearing a pink hand over their right breast, signifying solidarity with Cecily, who was sexually assaulted in this exact manner by Officer Bovell the night of M17. Judge Zweibel ordered that these signs of solidarity would be forbidden in the court room, as the claim of sexual assault is "unsubstantiated."

Cecily McMillan Felony Trial Begins Today

April 7, 2014 Staff, www.popularresistance.org , ,
After two years of delays, the trial of Occupy Wall Street activist Cecily McMillan will begin in Manhattan Criminal Court, Monday April 7th at 9:30am, 100 Centre St. – Room1116 Part 41. In a notorious high profile incident Ms. McMillan, a New School University graduate student, was arrested, sexually assaulted and beaten into a seizure by police on March 17, 2012. Turning a blind eye to obvious police misconduct, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance is prosecuting McMillan; she faces a 2nd degree felony assault charge with a possible seven (7) year prison sentence. This is one of the last unresolved Occupy Wall Street-related criminal cases. Before court begins Justice for Cecily will hold a press conference at 9am Monday April 7th outside 100 Centre St.; Cecily McMillan and her attorney Martin R. Stolar will discuss the case. DA Vance has adamantly insisted on harsh treatment – a felony prosecution – for McMillan while ignoring NYPD wrongdoing.

Will Wave Of Action Become Nightmare For The 1%?

April 6, 2014 Jerry, www.writtenoffamerica.com , ,
What will prove to be either the last gasp of the Occupy Movement, or its Renaissance as a social powerhouse, will lie in the success and its embrace of a highly-publicized #WaveOfAction which launches a major 90-day program of protest and resistance on April 4. The Wave begins, symbolically, on the date of the assassination of Martin Luther King and ends, symbolically, on July the 4th. It will run from the date of the death of a dream that will not die to the date of the birth of a vision which has yet to be fulfilled. So, what is the purpose of this ambitious campaign, who is behind it, and what can we expect of it – and of ourselves? The purpose is stated on its website and is quite clear. We are a Movement of Movements

Occupy Sandy And The Future Of Socialism

April 6, 2014 Sam Knight, www.truth-out.org ,
At St. Margaret Mary's Church in the Midland Beach neighborhood of Staten Island, Matthew 5:3 adorns the back of the congregation, declaring the poor blessed in spirit, "for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." The locals, however, seemed to think that Her Majesty's Spirit was plagued by pangs of torturous anxiety roughly two weeks after Superstorm Sandy - donations of clothing and blankets flooded the church's pews. But whatever one makes of the promise of posthumous bliss as a reward for pious poverty, the scene portrayed a less controversial tenet of Christianity - being one's brother's keeper. The impromptu relief effort at the church and beyond - as in every crisis - quashed the notions that humans are inherently selfish and that they believe profit-maximizing produces the optimal social outcome.

NYPD Arrests Veterans Protesting At Vietnam War Memorial

April 5, 2014 Renee Lewis, www.america.aljazeera.com , ,
Three military veterans were arrested at New York City’s Vietnam Memorial after taking part in a protest that activists said was part of an attempted revival of the Occupy movement, a push that began Friday with events planned worldwide. About 100 protesters at the New York memorial shouted “shame” and “no justice, no peace” as police loaded the three veterans and two other protesters into the back of a van. Activists said they had planned to read the names of fallen U.S. soldiers at the memorial in lower Manhattan, but police said the park had closed at 10 p.m. so the public was not allowed to be there. The rally was organized by Veterans for Peace (VFP), a nonprofit organization that says it is dedicated to educating the public about the costs of war.

NYPD Officer Embroiled In Assault Trial Sued By Another Occupier

April 5, 2014 Jon Swaine, www.theguardian.com ,
A New York police officer whose allegation of assault against an Occupy Wall Street activist could send her to prison for seven years is being sued by another Occupy campaigner, who alleges that the officer injured him on the same day. Officer Grantley Bovell alleges that Cecily McMillan intentionally elbowed him in the face as he was arresting one of the dozens of protesters from the anti-capitalist movement who were seized at Zuccotti Park in lower Manhattan on 17 March 2012. McMillan, 25, claims she swung her arm only after Bovell grabbed one of her breasts from behind. She denies a charge of felony assault. Her much-delayed trial, the last in a series of Occupy prosecutions, is due to begin at the state supreme courthouse in Manhattan on Monday.

Trial For Occupy Activist Cecily McMillan Begins Monday

April 4, 2014 the sparrow project, www.sparrowmedia.net , ,
After two years of delays, trial will begin for Occupy Wall Street activist Cecily McMillan. Set for this Monday, April 7th at 9:30am at 100 Centre St Room 1116 Part 41, Cecily’s case marks the last ongoing Occupy trial. On March 17th, 2012 Cecily was sexually assaulted by a plainclothes NYPD officer and then beaten unconscious by police when she attempted to leave a gathering marking the 6 month anniversary of the inception of Occupy Wall Street. In the wake of this attack she endured, Cecily faces a charge of 2nd degree assault on a police officer. The heavy-hand of Cecily’s prosecuting attorney has led some activists to speculate that her political organizing within Occupy Wall Street plays a role in the prosecutor’s unwavering position. Others attribute the city’s stance to an unwillingness to admit guilt in the grotesque display of police misconduct on the night of Cecily’s arrest. Cecily’s firm commitment to nonviolence makes these charges even more absurd.

Feds Settle Two Occupy Protest Cases in D.C.

April 4, 2014 Zoe Tillman, www.nationallawjournal.com
The federal government will pay thousands of dollars to settle two lawsuits challenging the arrests of protesters affiliated with the Occupy movement. The government on Thursday agreed to pay $4,000 to Fitzgerald Scott, who sued following his arrest for wearing an "Occupy Everywhere" jacket inside the U.S. Supreme Court. In an unrelated case, the government also agreed to pay $10,000 to Anthony Michael Patterson, who claimed he was unconstitutionally arrested for using profanity. Scott was appealing the July 2013 dismissal of his lawsuit by a federal trial judge in Washington. On Thursday, the parties notified the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit they had reached a settlement and agreed to dismiss the case. Court papers didn't include details on the settlement, but Scott's lawyer, Washington solo practitioner Jeffrey Light, confirmed the amount. Scott was arrested for unlawful entry under District of Columbia law, Light said, but the charge was based on federal law that governs expressive activity at the high court.

Homeland Security Study Praises Occupy Sandy…

April 3, 2014 Thomas Hintze, www.truth-out.org , ,
A new study titled "The Resilient Social Network" praises Occupy Sandy, the fluid, grass-roots relief network that emerged following the devastation of Superstorm Sandy. The report offers comprehensive analysis of Occupy Sandy's "Success Drivers" and juxtaposes its findings with the "Limitations of Traditional Relief Efforts," characterizing the work of conventional responders like the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and The Red Cross, and providing recommendations for the way these organizations can improve their efforts in the future. Sounds great, right? There's just one problem: the study was conducted for the Department of Homeland Security. The late journalist Michael Hastings covered the involvement of Homeland Security in monitoring Occupy Wall Street, a Rolling Stone story that he broke in conjunction with Wikileaks in February 2012.

Judge Allows Occupy Lawsuit Alleging Police Offered Pot

April 2, 2014 David Hanners, www.twincities.com , ,
Cops who asked "Occupy" protesters to smoke pot so police could see how they behaved should have known that what they were doing was unconstitutional, a federal judge has ruled. U.S. District Judge John Tunheim said a lawsuit brought by two protesters could continue against three named officers and two identified only as John Doe 1 and John Doe 2. In his ruling Monday, the judge said the part of the suit that involved four other plaintiffs against a host of other law officers and their departments should be dismissed because they hadn't stated a claim that was specific enough. The judge left the door open for action on those claims, though, saying the dismissed plaintiffs could add more specific allegations and file an amended complaint.

Waves of Nationwide Actions Planned at Key Historic Moment

March 30, 2014 Kevin Zeese and Margaret Flowers, www.alternet.org , , , , ,
A wave is an apt metaphor for a popular movement as movements do not grow in a consistent upward line, but grow and recede in waves of action. We certainly saw this with the current social movement that has roots which run more than a decade deep and had a nationwide “Take Off” with the wave of occupy encampments that rose up, coast-to-coast together. Popular Resistance grew out of many conversations and meetings with people in the Occupy movement from across the country as well as people involved in other social justice campaigns. We seek to provide the movement for social, economic and environmental justice with daily news and resources, as well as to help us see that we are a movement of movements. We support decentralized, bottom-up approaches to movement development as we see in the #WaveOfAction and the Global Climate Convergence. As the popular movement intentionally escalates its actions, we will be in position to highlight these crises and to quickly escalate further if events occur that create an opportunity for rapid growth. These are times that demand each of us to step up and do more. The opportunities for rapid growth of the social movement created by the dysfunction of the rule- by-money-government are increasing in ways we can only imagine.

Sentences Upheld For Ohio Bridge Bomb Plotters

March 30, 2014 Andrew Welsh-Huggins, www.AP.org , ,
An informant who secretly recorded conversations helped FBI agents foil a bomb plot where an undercover agent supplied the would-be bridge-bombers with fake plastic explosives, authorities have said. A federal appeals court Friday upheld the sentences of four men in the case, including the addition of extra time because of the terrorism factor. The court also said Akron federal judge David Dowd correctly added time to the sentence of defendant Douglas Wright as the group's leader. The ruling by a panel of three judges unanimously upheld the 11 ½-year sentence for Wright, of Indianapolis; the more than 9-year sentence of Brandon Baxter, of suburban Cleveland; and the 8-year sentence of Connor Stevens, of Berea. The panel ruled 2-1 to uphold the 6-year sentence of Anthony Hayne, of Cleveland.

Austerity Is Crap: A Brief History of the ‘#USM Future’ Protest Movement

March 28, 2014 Dennis Trainor Jr, www.PopularResistance.org , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
For this round of cuts and consolidations, a solidarity between students and faculty had been well established, and grew and flourished under the recognition that we had shared goals in preserving the University of Maine System, not only for their jobs, or for our quality of education, but for the broader benefit of society that a liberal arts education provides, in allowing all working class people to lift themselves up into an intellectual realm that had until only recently in human history been reserved for priests and nobility. A vote of no confidence was issued forth from the Faculty Senate, and Selma Botman resigned, only to be replaced by President Theo Kalikow, who has continued forth advancing the austerity agenda on the University of Southern Maine. Selma Botman, while vacating the seat of the President, was allowed by administrators to continued to draw her salary for the duration of her term, and was in fact hired back as a consultant, and paid an additional $300,000 to write a paper, putting her annual earnings well into the realm of the top 1%. As though to thumb their noses at the student protestors, Administrators gave themselves a raise of $20,000 and upwards.

Occupy Activist Cecily McMillan Is On Trial

March 28, 2014 Betsy Kim, www.thevillager.com , ,
In a potential blow to the case of Occupy Wall Street protester Cecily McMillan, State Supreme Court Justice Ronald Zweibel last week refused to allow review of the personnel file of Grantley Bovell, the officer involved in her arrest. The 25-year-old New School graduate student is charged with felony assault of a police officer, stemming from the six-month anniversary of the O.W.S. protests in Zuccotti Park. If convicted in a trial scheduled for April 7, McMillan could face up to seven years in prison. Photos following her arrest indicate she was severely bruised, including above her right breast. Speaking on March 17, Attorney Martin Stolar, of the National Lawyers Guild’s New York City chapter, who is representing McMillan, said that Officer Bovell grabbed McMillan’s right breast from behind, and that, in response, McMillan threw up her elbow, hitting his cheekbone.
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