Video From Arrests at Occupy STL

I tried out UStream on my relatively new Android phone today. Here's some video of the arrests of the St. Louis Occupiers after Slay decided he wouldn't let them stay in the part anymore (for reasons that so far are still not entirely clear).





It really was pretty tame, in its own way. In contrast to a lot of other peaceful protests I've been at, the police were not wearing riot gear. And while there was a small group of people who wanted to antagonize the police, they were greatly outnumbered and didn't really have much influence on how things went down.

Former St. Louis Police Officer To Make Statement In Support of OccupySTL

Press advisory:

Occupy Police Stands in Solidarity With Occupy St. Louis

Former St. Louis County Police Officer to Make

Public Statement of Support While Denouncing Brutality

What: A Public Speech delivered by a former St. Louis Officer, directed to both officers and citizens of St. Louis. Topics covered in short will be: The officers history with St Louis Police, brutal tactics used against protesters by some departments, and what can result from it, including the officers own firsthand experience with police brutality. Oakland PD's open letter to the citizens of Oakland where they openly state "We are part of the 99%" Bad department leadership in a time when true leaders are needed, and finally Occupy Police's mission and position in the Occupy movement, which in less than 10 words is that "Police are part of the 99% too" and communities across the nation are needing them to stand openly with the rest of the 99, now more than ever -

Goal: To call out Mayor Slay and put an end to the planned raid @3 - To let it be widely known that officers are part of the 99% and that they don not have to obey commands put forth by unstable leaders who represent the interests of the 1% and not that of the common man or woman. Lastly to let it be widely known that Occupy Police supports officers and entire departments who protect their communities without the use of brute force or violence.

When: Today, Friday November 11th at 2pm sharp - Before the impending raid @ 3pm

Where: The corner of Market and 7th on the stage at Kiener Plaza in St. Louis

-Occupy Police Team & Officers of the 99

KMOX reported on this development earlier today.

Jeff Rainford Demonizes Occupy STL in Anticipation of Kicking Them Out of Kiener Plaza

In case you haven't noticed, Occupy St. Louis has been camping out in Kiener Plaza since the beginning of the movement. Kiener Plaza has an official curfew of 10 PM, so technically occupying the park after 10 is illegal. The members of Occupy St. Louis believe that their First Amendment rights entail that they should be able to occupy public space, and they disagree with the curfew. This is what civil disobedience is: explicitly violating laws that you disagree with but being willing to gracefully accept the consequences of breaking the law as a way of raising awareness. Thus, I respect Occupy St. Louis's decision to stay in the Plaza.

On the other hand, I can understand why city officials might be conflicted about enforcing the rule. I'm sure they feel that it's their job to enforce the laws whether they agree with the laws or not, and this is not not an unreasonable position. In fact, you might argue that democracy wouldn't work unless police and public officials respect laws they don't agree with. Of course, as with anything, this is not a black and white issue, and there's a substantial grey area that allows for some wiggle room. My preference would be that city officials look for a way of working with the occupiers to find a compromise that allows them to continue staying in the plaza.

However, while I can understand the city's decision to enforce their laws (even if I disagree with them), what is absolutely not cool is their attempt to use overcharged rhetoric to try to demonize the occupiers. And this is precisely what Mayor Slay's Chief of Staff Jeff Rainford has done:

Jeff Rainford, Slay's chief of staff, said the camps are getting unruly, the plaza is beginning to smell like urine, and a few were recently arrested for public intoxication.

For anyone who's visited the plaza, the idea that it's "unruly" is ridiculous. They have an explicit policy against drugs and alcohol. And as far as the organizers know, the only "public urination" was from people who weren't occupiers (after all, the occupiers actually have to live there). So Rainford is trying to wage a nasty PR war against the group, which I assume he thinks will make it easier for them to remove the group without causing a controversy. It's too bad he can't just stick to the facts and say they want to enforce the curfew, rather than resorting to tea party-like smears.