November 19, 2011
It’s been quite a week at Zuccotti Park and for the Occupy Wall Street movement. Tuesday Mayor Bloomberg ordered the park to be emptied out by cops and hundreds of people got arrested and beaten up in the process, including journalists and photographers with press credentials trying to cover what was going on. Police helicopters prevented media helicopters from filming police removing, arresting and beating people. I don’t know about you, but it makes me a little nervous when reporters start getting arrested for doing their jobs. Can you say, “Police State?” Mayor Bloomberg said at a press conference that journalists were barred from covering the police raid on the park, "to protect members of the press." Huh? Protect them from what? Doing their jobs? There was a lot of protests on Thursday and a march across the Brooklyn Bridge. Goggla has some great photos from Thursday at her blog: The Gog Log.
The park has reopened, but you can’t bring in sleeping bags or tents and I think you have to go through a security check. I thought it would be interesting to go down and take some photos tonight.
Here we are, a block away from Zuccotti Park.
Wow, it looks like a different place and it looks like it's closed.
There's barricades all around the perimeter of the park.
I found an entrance into the park, but so far all I see are security guards inside.
It's kind of spooky in here.
I think this is where the kitchen area was. It's kind of hard to tell.
There appears to be people down at the far end of the park, let's go check it out.
There's about fifty people gathered here at the far end of the park.
The kitchen has been reduced to one small table with cartons of juice and some bags of chips.
People are taking turns reading poetry and ideas.
The ironic backdrop to this is the Bank of America building looming behind them.
The People's Library has been started again after Bloomberg and his goons reportedly destroyed over 5,000 books from the library that had been here at the park. Even if they didn't want to give the books back, couldn't they have donated them to homeless shelters or libraries? When you start destroying books and jailing journalists with press credentials, it makes you wonder what kind of direction we're headed in.
There's not a lot of signage down here tonight, but Fabio had one he was happy to pose with. He wants to bring the idea of privilege into the protest and he agreed to bring one more thing into it as well...
Gumby! Whatever your feelings are on Occupy Wall Street, you can't deny that it's brought up discussions and an awareness that wasn't here before. It's going to be interesting to see what happens in the upcoming weeks. Goodnight everybody and see you tomorrow after dark.
Further reading: Hufffington Post, NY Times and NY Daily News.
(Surprise link...click on it...I dare you!)
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Bonus Photo By Gene Rubbico!
Gene sent in this photo last night with the following caption: "Mural of a condom machine above the toilet, in the men's room, at Mum's, in Federal Hill, Baltimore." Cool, thanks for the photo, Gene!
21 Comments
Reader Comments (21)
Censorship ends in logical completeness when nobody is allowed to read any books except the books that nobody reads.
George Bernard Shaw
rr
Photo by Gene was cool,,,"The mongoose flies" and "Porn O Plenty". Those lights on the ground at the park are awesome, though on acid it could be a bit dangerous, you think?
I wonder what will happen with the OWS movement now ? I still say they should all converge on DC and demand that the SEC actually do it's job and jail some people. The SEC also needs to separate itself from Wall Street. All of the bankers and SEC people are interchangeable - and just jump between both places -- and that is a large reason nothing gets done. It's a joke -- and if that changed -- it would help things just a little bit.
Huh, I guess the revolution really won't be televised.
Occupy Wall Street Knows Not What It Does
Google the Wikipedia page on 'The Bonus Army' , a truly hideous and shameful event in American history. World War 1 veterans shot down demonstrating for the benefits they earned back in the 1930's. Let's hope Bloomberg doesn't resort to something like that....
Gene, I find your choice of periodical suspect in this instance .
csp, that was Google's fault ..... but it is ironic :)
@rr: Great quote!
@Al: Those lights weren't on when the park was occupied and last even stone sober it was weird walking around them.
@GENE: The whole SEC mess is part of what they're protesting.
@Biff: Not if Bloomberg has his way. Pretty sad when they block reporting of the news.
@GENE: Another fine example of fair and balanced reporting from Bloomberg news! I wonder if they banned their own people from covering the removal of people, press and books last Tuesday?
@Jaws: At this point nothing Bloomberg does would surprise me!
@csp: Ha ha ha!
Great post today Daddio.
Sad to see the park now after the last time.
Shit like this only fuels my cynicism and distrust to those in charge.
You know my feelings about 'Authority'.
But the fucking books gone?
'FarenHeil 451'.
Good to see Gumby in the crowd.
@"Boris:" Thanks, Daddio! What shocks and scares me is that more people aren't outraged that Bloomberg barred press from covering this and arrested those that defied his orders. And they threw away books. I know this isn't the end, I think because of his actions he just fueled part II to take place soon. "'FarenHeil 451'." Ha ha ha! Exactlyodo, Quasimodo (to quote John Prine.)
Bloomberg is a bucket of dung. Viva OWS! Mayors across the US are using a police state mentality for our own "safety" who was hurt at Zuccotti Park? The egos of those pulling the strings, and you know they aren't going to stand for that.
@Peoria: That's it exactly! Thanks for chiming in, I'll see you in a bout a month!
posted a quote earlier (which i would do every day but i don't need another letter of reprimand in my folder) 'cause i didn't want to get sniped by GENE...Al on Acid-book title, play, movie, ah hell it was worth a comment...the police action appears to have taken place around the globe...what is almost damn even more frightening is the bill movin' through the corporate congress Protect IP/SOPA hey lets make censorship a law...
Censorship is advertising paid by the government.
Federico Fellini
I believe in censorship. I made a fortune out of it.
Mae West
rr
█ █ █ █ █ █ █ the █ █ █ █ █ Patriot █ █ █ █ █ █ it seems that █ █ █ █ █ █ █ is very █ █ █ █ █ █ but
█ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ Protect IP █ █ █ █ █ █ completely.
what I really respected about the movement is watching everyone taking it to heart - speaking their mind, shouting what meant something to THEM. this unites us as human beings.
and it forces thought...
A few days ago, I saw a man, dressed in a suit, standing on the street corner, in the rain - with a huge sign reading "end the tax cuts for hedge funds" (greenwich is the hedge fund capital of the world) this "free thinking" is undoubtably inspired by OWS.
this might not have been noticed in NYC, but here, in Greenwich fucking Connecticut... people are taking note.
@rr: I hear you on the sopa bill, fuck censorship and thanks for the two extra great quotes!
@csp: The F.B.I. now has you in its files!
@Green Monkey: Nice to hear that the word is spreading to Connecticut and beyond, that's what's so important about it.
Gumby is an activist!!!!!!
@Melanie: Gumby occupies Wall Street and doesn't fear evil Bloomberg!
The fact that journalists and photographers have become targets is an outrage. Here's an account of a local photographer who was arrested at Duarte Square last Wednesday:
http://www.thelodownny.com/leslog/2011/11/local-photographer-arrested-at-occupy-wall-street-vigil-vows-to-fight-city-hall.html
I was there, but the police pushed all witnesses away before arresting several journalists who were covering the story. The protest itself was peaceful - no one was violent.
After Thursday's giant march, I was disappointed (but not surprised) at the lack of media coverage. There were THOUSANDS of people at Foley Square. I've never seen any crowd that big in the city and I'm still not sure how many were there. I've heard anywhere from 10,000 to 30,000. Bloomberg's response? He dismissed the gathering as an "excuse for labor unions to complain, or something."
He is trying to dismiss this movement as a passing tantrum, which it isn't. Destroying books and going after reporters just shows how afraid he is.
@Goggla: That's a scary story and I agree that a lot of this is being swept under the rug. Thanks for sending the link!