day 39: no arrests
2011-Nov-15, Tuesday 08:52 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mellowtiggerI was not arrested last night. I was expecting arrest because the Hennepin County commissioners voted (unanimously, I'm told) to prohibit sleeping on the plaza from 10pm-6am beginning November 14th. The OccupyMN website published a call for protesters on that night for #occupyMinneapolis, and some new faces did show up to help promote a stand in solidarity.
Apparently, though, arrest will require a 2-step process: the county following its "rule" and slapping a Trespassing order on somebody, then the police arresting someone for disobeying the law by trespassing. We'll learn the legality of this maneuvering after it finally puts somebody in jail, where a judge will have to rule on this process.
The Occupation here is still not as well attended as I'd hope, but the weather has turned cold and the nights have grown long. Most people are helping offsite, including an occupied home at Monique White's. Such luxury, their Occupation actually has tents and fire!
I came prepared with my usual sleeping bag / body bag combination. It works very well except for the problem with condensation. I still need to find a thin wool blanket to use inside the surface of the body bag so my sleeping bag stays dry. At least the temperature stayed above freezing last night... barely. And there was a steady breeze in the morning too. The body bag works really well in such conditions, though, so I stayed quite warm and comfortable. I kept the Legal hotline number on my arm in case I was arrested, but the night passed uneventfully.
Once I got home, I put the body bag and sleeping bag on the clothes line in the basement. I like to let them air out for a day before using them again. When I find a wool blanket to use, hopefully that wool will be the only thing that gets damp because of the moisture problem.
During the night, the online crowd kept us informed of the eventful night at Occupy Wall Street. Such attempts at eviction make me discouraged. Not discouraged with the Occupation, since it's clear that the trend is for evictions to merely unite the local community and make that Occupation stronger. Instead, I get discouraged in the ability of my government to understand and navigate the current crisis.
I believe that economic conditions will worsen in 2012. In such troubled times, shouldn't government be encouraging peaceful protestors as a "fire wall" that keeps disgruntled citizens from pursuing violent protest? But, no, instead my nation seems determined to eliminate its Occupations, leaving unhappy people without any obvious outlet for their discontent.
Yes, I'm discouraged that my government will find any way to cope with this crisis. I was previously hopeful of the possibilities ahead of us, but now I'm beginning to think that the necessary change will be even more fundamental than I had anticipated.
Apparently, though, arrest will require a 2-step process: the county following its "rule" and slapping a Trespassing order on somebody, then the police arresting someone for disobeying the law by trespassing. We'll learn the legality of this maneuvering after it finally puts somebody in jail, where a judge will have to rule on this process.
The Occupation here is still not as well attended as I'd hope, but the weather has turned cold and the nights have grown long. Most people are helping offsite, including an occupied home at Monique White's. Such luxury, their Occupation actually has tents and fire!
I came prepared with my usual sleeping bag / body bag combination. It works very well except for the problem with condensation. I still need to find a thin wool blanket to use inside the surface of the body bag so my sleeping bag stays dry. At least the temperature stayed above freezing last night... barely. And there was a steady breeze in the morning too. The body bag works really well in such conditions, though, so I stayed quite warm and comfortable. I kept the Legal hotline number on my arm in case I was arrested, but the night passed uneventfully.
Once I got home, I put the body bag and sleeping bag on the clothes line in the basement. I like to let them air out for a day before using them again. When I find a wool blanket to use, hopefully that wool will be the only thing that gets damp because of the moisture problem.During the night, the online crowd kept us informed of the eventful night at Occupy Wall Street. Such attempts at eviction make me discouraged. Not discouraged with the Occupation, since it's clear that the trend is for evictions to merely unite the local community and make that Occupation stronger. Instead, I get discouraged in the ability of my government to understand and navigate the current crisis.
I believe that economic conditions will worsen in 2012. In such troubled times, shouldn't government be encouraging peaceful protestors as a "fire wall" that keeps disgruntled citizens from pursuing violent protest? But, no, instead my nation seems determined to eliminate its Occupations, leaving unhappy people without any obvious outlet for their discontent.
Yes, I'm discouraged that my government will find any way to cope with this crisis. I was previously hopeful of the possibilities ahead of us, but now I'm beginning to think that the necessary change will be even more fundamental than I had anticipated.