Occupy 4 Prisoners Protest Outside San Quentin Prison

San Quentin - Occupy Oakland joined together with prison reform activists, forming Occupy 4 Prisoners, outside the infamous prison February 20th to protest against the high incarceration and living conditions.prevalent in the facility. Some of their issues involved the strict sentencing, ending solitary confinement, and children being tried as adults.


"I myself experienced more than 14 months of solitary confinement and after only two months my mind began to slip," said Sarah Shourd.  Shourd was one of three people, along with her friends Shane Bauer and Josh Fattal, who were imprisoned for in an Iranian jail in 2009. They have since focused their efforts toward prison reform.



"We have merged the prison rights movement with the Occupy Movement. The 99 percent has to be concerned about the bottom 1 percent," said activist Barbra Becnel said, quoting a message she said came from death row prisoner Kevin Cooper.


Demonstrators also held a moment of silence for Christian Alexander Gomez who died February 2 while on a hunger strike in California's Corcoran State Prison. He was one of the prisoners who staged a wave of hunger strikes in solidarity with other prisoners who united against the isolation unites in Pelican Bay State Prison.

Commentary: Dan Siegel Versus Jean Quan

Someone finally has some sense in Oakland. After the horrible job Jean Quan made in having the police attack the citizens of Oakland several times the city's top civil rights attorney resigned from his job.

Dan Siegel is obviously on the side of Occupy Oakland and looking after its citizens when the city fails to do so. He mentioned several times his disgust with having police take down people's tents, even though it's a peaceful movement by their own admission. He says of the actions the city did makes him "Really disappointed with the city, the most hostile city to the Occupy movement. Where else are they having 600 police officers take down some tents?"

Mayor Quan apparently doesn't care about what he said, as she said they've had times where they disagreed. She called the occupation a “campaign tactic....one that has divided Oakland, a city of the 99%. It's time to work together on the issues of unemplyment, foreclosures, and education cuts. While the camping must end the movement continues.”

Is she crazy? Is she really pretty much saying “Okay children you've had your fun, now go elsewhere”?
She keeps throwing gasoline onto the flames, huh?

Occupy Oakland Staying Defiant Against Police

Oakland, California – A day after a man was shot and killed near the protest site, Oakland's Police Officers' Association demanded the end of Occupy Oakland. The protesters, however, are refusing to follow the orders.

Saying through an open letter "You have sent the world a strong message; now it is time to go home. Your leaving today, peacefully, of your own free will, on the 30th day, will send a message to Oakland that you care about our citizens and respect our city. With last night's homicide, in broad daylight, in the middle of rush hour, Frank Ogawa Plaza is no longer safe. "Please leave peacefully, with your heads held high, so we can get police officers back to work fighting crime in Oakland neighborhoods."

KGO-TV said the man, in his 20s, who protesters identify as "Alex," was killed during an argument between two groups. Protesters say Alex was not staying at the Occupy encampment but he frequently stopped by. 

Protesters answered the letter by saying the shooting is a routine occurrence in the city, followed by accusations officials left the lights around the plaza off after dark for the last two nights.

One protester, Cat Brooks, said “People were being murdered long before the Occupy Oakland encampment happened. If police say that's why they can't do their job, that's laughable."

Lately businesses, saying customers are being driven away, have increased the pressure they're putting on Oakland's city council. One councilman, said to a reporter "I have been very, very vocal about the fact that we cannot allow this to continue, because lives and property losses are what's at stake. We have to end this occupation."

It seems short of the police and businesses however, no other group is coming to the police's aid.  When the occupation was broken up on October 25, it required 14 other law enforcement agencies.  Citing the fact city officials let the protesters back into the plaza however, they are saying the situation is no longer their problem.  Religious leaders, it seems, are supportive of the local Occupy movement, rallying with them the day after the fatal event.