16 November 2011

Are Mayors Across The Country Coordinating To Uproot The Occupations?

Was Mayor Jean Quan working in a group of 18 cities to evict occupiers?

Across the country, a number of mayors have ordered their police forces to move in and uproot 99 Percenters occupying town squares, parks, and other public spaces to call attention to income inequality and other social problems. In recent weeks, we've seen evictions in cities ranging from Oakland to Portland to New York City.

Now, evidence has emerged that these mayors may be coordinating their evictions of protesters. Speaking on a BBC radio show, Oakland Mayor Jean Quan says she was recently on a conference call with 18 cities dealing with 99 Percent occupations and that they were discussing how to handle the situation:

QUAN: I was recently on a conference call of 18 cities across the country who had the same situation where what had started as a political movement and political encampment ended up being an encampment of the people who started them.

The radio show The Takeaway captured the exchange in the following clip (skip to 5:30):

"We have said from day one that our fight is not with you, but rather with banks, irresponsible corporations, and a corrupt federal government," said one Occupy Portland spokesperson, addressing government authorities in Portland. It appears now that mayors and city governments may be coordinating nationwide to deal with the occupations, and one would hope that they are not collaborating to crack down on free speech.

Also look at how many of this mayors are members of Bloomberg's anti-gun propaganda group Mayors Against Illegal Guns. At least Quan is fractious enough to give us insight to this collaborative effort to undermind First Amendment rights. 




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