The veterans speak up, Oakland PD are fed up, property managers are ticked and Santa Rosa City Hall is basically a state park: Ferry
Building shenanigans aside, things are happening around the various Bay Area occupy camps. Here they are in a convenient roundup form.
In San Francisco, the latest group to throw their collective weight behind the movement are the Veterans. Oakland had the support of the vets first, of course, that's how Iraq war vet Scott Olsen found himself in the line of fire. But in the wake of Olsen's injury, the group "Occupy Veterans" was formed in Dallas to bring vets together with their local Occupy movements. In San Francisco, one lady member of Iraq Veterans Against the War and a friend of Olsen's described the difference between occupying Iraq and "Occupying" San Francisco: "I feel like I’m defending the First Amendment of the Constitution. I didn’t feel like it in Iraq, but here I’m defending the freedom to speak. It makes me feel alive." [SFEx]
Meanwhile, in Santa Rosa, the City Council voted to approve camping permits for the occupiers in their sleepy North Bay town. Now every camper looking to set up a tent (there are currently around 60), must individually apply for a permit, which they'll have to renew every 15 days. Effectively, they've turned the lawn in front of Santa Rosa's city hall in to a public campground like any other state park. [CBS5]
Over in Oakland, the police union has hit their breaking point. In an open letter the Oakland POA, which represents 645 officers wrote, "We understand and sympathize with your message" and "we respect your right to peaceful protest" but "we are also sworn to protect the citizens of Oakland" and the city is now "in a state of emergency." The letter pointed out that police officers are also part of the 99% and called last night's murder near Ogawa Plaza, "unacceptable." [BCN/SFAppeal]
In Berkeley, student-occupiers at Occupy Cal are organizing a strike for next Tuesday as a reaction to the violence on Sproul Plaza earlier this week. Organizers are encouraging professors to cancel classes and students to walk out next Tuesday. [DailyCal] [Chron]
Back on Justin Herman Plaza, the 23-year-old protester from SoCal who was arrested for showing off his handgun has managed to get himself in to even more trouble. After being cited and released for the pistol, San Fernando Valley resident Jonathan Waknine returned to the plaza where he described the perceived injustice to a Rec & Parks ranger, explaining, "I have an AK-47 at home, and I will come back tomorrow. It will be loaded when I come back - try to get it." The RPD employee promptly reported him to the cops who arrested him on felony suspicion of threatening a public employee. [Chron]
In the Examiner's second anti-Occupy piece today, another local business group has stepped forward to complain about the camp. The Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA, if you please), shot off a letter last Friday demanding action from the Mayor, explaining, "The right to public assembly and ‘free speech’ is NOT a license for such irresponsible, uncivil, unhealthy behavior — and it must not be tolerated." BOMA represents roughly 72 million square feet of office space in the San Francisco, San Mateo, Marin and Sonoma counties, in case you were wondering. [SFEx]