The Occupations are in disarray. What comes next???

[Uncle Sinister]

I'm one of the Occupiers (in Portland). Not 24/7, not a camper, and not a part of the spokes-council. But I've been there, in good weather and bad. I've been there when it was peaceful and fun. I've been there when it was scary and tense. I've been there when it was boring and irritating. I've been there when it felt apocalyptic. (Kleig lights and sound cannons, yo?)

I've kept my boots on the ground for about 80 out of the past 96 hours. I've stuck my foot in my mouth.

But enough 'mea culpa' stuff.

I know that most cities got shut down over the past few days. We need to coordinate (at least a bit). The first phase of the Occupation is over, and the second phase is undecided.

Personally, I think the local Portland Occupation needs to do a few things.

#1: Quit trying to Occupy parks. It was brilliant short-term, but it's not sustainable, and is generating huge public hostility.

#2: Secure a building. The Occupation does not necessarily need campsites, it DOES need water, electricity, phone and internet conections, and bathrooms. We can rent a building, or we can Occupy a vacant. Renting would be easier, and there is still about $10K in the kitty.

#3: Focus on rolling/mobile Occupations. Our strength is in our fluidity.

#4: Love each other. Know that the person on the other side of the gate/fence/wall/camera is probably not your enemy. Kindness counts.

[Fire Walk With Me]

1. Flash mob protests at banks...and march tomorrow in solidarity!

[cliffordu]

3. Yep....

Flash mob on one day, march on the next.

Keep them guessing and the press involved.

Taking and holding ground only works when you have superior numbers.

Occupy does not.

A guerilla movement is what is needed.

Use social media, keep moving, take the message to the 'net.

[FirstLight]

9. I think so...

and if we can find warehouses, abandoned stripmalls, etc to occupy indoors in the meantime, that could be cool...(lord knows there's planty of empty commercial spaces everywhere)
i seriously worry about everyone out there in the weather...

[aquart]

2. Thank you for your concern.

I haven't noticed any disarray.

[Uncle Sinister]

4. Either you have not been there at all, or you saw only a very small part...

The Occupations have been smashed around the country. The gloves have come off and it's all "iron -fist" now.

That does NOT mean I think the cops are stupid, or ignorant of the media.

They will play the waiting game, for now. But trust me, I've seen it in their eyes. Hundreds of PDX cops want nothing more than an excuse to start busting heads.

We resolutely will not give them one.

[Amonester]

8. I hope nobody ever thought this was going to be 'easy' and painless.

Han-han... what, the 1% and their paid goon$ where just going to fold and say, yes sire... we wanna save the planet too, so here, we will share our ill-acquired wealth starting as of now...

Han-han. (Unfortunately, that's the way these thingies go. Always been that way.)

[Uncle Sinister]

12. we will not give up easily. /nt

[pinboy3niner]

5. The only ones I've seen talking about 'disarray' are Faux News and the like

Occupiers are talking about how much they've been re-energized by the latest assaults on them.

If you're an Occupier, why aren't you bringing your suggestions to a GA?

[Exultant Democracy]

6. This most recent assault is all the more justification to continue. n/t

[FirstLight]

7. portland got hit hard

and after that three day siege and losing their "place" it has been disconcerting. I have watched the GA's livestream recently, and can see the shift in cohesiveness...so the OP is not being a detractor for using that term...
it is helpful when a group or tribe live together, it makes you a more cohesive unit, eating, taking turns with water, etc...

[Uncle Sinister]

10. I have, and will. I am only one small voice, among thousands. But I maintain...

That Occupy Portland is in complete disarray at the moment, without game-plan or infrastructure.

It's sad, but it's the boots-on-the-ground truth.

If you don't see it, you are an impostor (or possibly deluded).

You certainly don't show any evidence of involvement with the Occupation, so excuse me if I don't give your opinion much weight.

[pinboy3niner]

14. "If you don't see it, you are an impostor (or possibly deluded)"

Interesting that you resort to the RW tactic of personal attack.

Occupy PDX still seems to be going strong...

Evicted Occupiers in Portland and Seattle regroup, become mobile
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/nationnow/2011/11/occupy-seattle-occupy-portland.html

[girl_interrupted]

11. I can't speak for Portland

I can only speak for what I see in NY, and after the General Assembly last night, no one is thinking of leaving, quitting or giving up. No disarray at all. Everyone returned to the Park. There was no mood of despair, what so ever. Everyone was happy to be back with one another. Regrouping? Absolutely. There will be a march on Thursday. Bloomberg may have won this battle, but he hasn't won the war. People are committed.

And please take note of something....of all the Occupy sites, even after they have gotten chased out, they return, if not in the same place, somewhere else nearby.

Perhaps you should take your suggestions directly to the Portland Occupy site, because each city is different. Some may have more resources easily available than others. Maybe you could help the people there implement them. I'm sure they would appreciate any help they can get.

[SoDesuKa]

13. Public Hostility

Public hostility is the result of the right wing public relations campaign against the Occupy movement. It's time to be more proactive with the media, even confrontational. There are a lot of lawyers in the movement, and they've done a good job in asserting citizens' rights. But I think media-savvy people within the movement can demand a better press than the movement has been getting.

That said, I don't know how much effort has already gone into this. I know that a lot of corporate public relations consists of press-monitoring. If your client isn't getting a fair shake, make a phone call! This is from Digby:

. . . All over the country people are hearing that the Occupiers are animals who are masturbating in public and shitting in the streets. The local news is luridly portraying the protests as hotbeds of crime infested with lunatics and drug addicts.

That stuff isn't disseminated just for kicks. It's done to poison the minds of the public before they have a chance to identify with the protesters.

I know that liberals don't want to see this in those culture war terms, but there are a whole lot of others who can't see these things any other way.

http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/

[Uncle Sinister]

15. They have tried to portray Portland in that light, and have failed utterly...

We have remained peaceful. We have remained civil. We have not attacked police or property or people.

I'm not claiming it has been a perfect movement, not even claiming I 100% support Occupy Portland. I'm not sure where our Occupation goes from here, I'm not sure anyone else is, either.

Oh well.