by Christina Schüll It was the night of November 14th, and there was a spontaneous late-night march in downtown Portland. Several Occupy camps were evicted by authorities that night, including Occupy Wall Street, Occupy Oakland, and Occupy Zürich. Around 10:30, I was leaving the area around Pioneer Square and noticed some folks had their belongings…
Category: Essays & Letters
Open letter to President Obama
by Vargus Pike Mr President, On January 26th, 2011 a statement was issued by you regarding the ongoing violence perpetrated on the peoples of Egypt by their government under Mubarak. You specifically said, “The people of Egypt have rights that are universal. That includes the right to peaceful assembly and association, the right to free…
Letter to Oakland Mayor Jean Quan
Armed riot cops hunt Occupy with weapons drawn at the YMCA while members work out. by Arlo Stone Dear Mayor Quan, I would like to thank both you and the many police officers you summoned from the greater Oakland metro area for their excellent work this difficult weekend. In particular, the calming, measured presence displayed…
Strange Wisdom
by Zachary Bosart An informative series of chaotic events. It was seeming like the start of another day of perpetual mistakes. Upon awakening at 4 AM, I was supposed to drink coffee and prepare myself for a mandatory work meeting at 6 AM. To get there in time, I would have to grab the first…
Occupy Disillusionment
by Michael Schultz There are some hard truths that we must swallow in order to be free of some of the shared illusions that have infiltrated our subconscious and unconscious minds. In this short essay, I’ll be expressing some of these truths. Once Occupy has fully swallowed these hard truths, they can be spread out…
If a Tree Falls: Including the Many Voices of Occupy Portland
by members of the Livestream Team This week, Occupy Portland’s General Assembly passed a proposal implementing an online system for chat-room participants of the OPDX Livestream channel to voice consensus. The passing of this proposal is an innovative and positive advancement for the greater Occupy Portland community, overcoming fears and objections through working together and…
Racism 101
by Ahjamu Umi Is the Occupy movement racist? The obvious answer is yes, but there are still going to be plenty of people who wouldn’t agree with that assessment. In fact, it’s a pretty safe bet that a significant number of activists within Occupy would argue Occupy isn’t racist. It’s also probably true that many…
How Does Non-Violence Work?
by Lester Macgurdy I’ve made a point to ask Cccupy Portland members this titular question and most of the time the person asked had no idea. On the other hand, regardless of what was usually a complete lack of understanding, a great reliance and support of non-violence was still professed. This is the “I know…
American Nightmare: How The WTO Is Impoverishing The US
by Bruce R. Dennis When this country was founded, it was based on democracy, freedom, and an opportunity to live what eventually became known as the “American Dream”. The direction that our elected leaders have taken us in the last few decades goes away from democracy in favor of corporate domination, with the ultimate goal…
The World War Web Rages as Anonymous Hacks the Intertubes
By: illona trogub A bloodless battle rages over the interweb netterspace. Where once proud but downtrodden citizens picked up their guns and pointed them directly at those who wished them ill, now we see masked avengers who, behind closed doors, fire millions of tiny ping packages at their enemies. Along with publicly releasing the private…
