This article's factual accuracy may be compromised due to out-of-date information.(March 2013) |
Occupy Baltimore | |
---|---|
Part of the "Occupy" protests | |
Date | October 4, 2011 |
Location | |
Methods | Demonstration, occupation, protest, street protesters |
Occupy Baltimore was a collaboration that included peaceful protests and demonstrations. Occupy Baltimore began on October 4, 2011, in Baltimore, Maryland, in McKeldin Square near the Inner Harbor area of Downtown Baltimore. It is one of the many Occupy movements around the United States and worldwide, inspired by Occupy Wall Street.
The protesters were evicted from McKeldin Square on December 13, 2011.
The occupation of McKeldin Square began on October 4, 2011. This came after a meeting held on October 2 by 150 people at a different location. Those holding the meeting requested that a Baltimore Sun reporter leave. [1]
Organizers from the beginning did not have a single ideology. [2] Various messages have been voiced by protesters. These include:
On November 20, 2011, the Occupy Baltimore general assembly approved a more comprehensive statement explaining its message. [6] The statement expressed solidarity with the larger Occupy movement and thanks to various Baltimore unions for their letter of support. It also specifically defended the right of demonstrators to an ongoing encampment at McKeldin Fountains:
On November 15, protesters interrupted a speech given by Karl Rove on the Johns Hopkins University campus. They stated that Rove had "occupied" Iraq and Afghanistan. [7]
On November 17, 2011, protesters marched on the Howard Street Bridge. [8] The bridge was chosen by the protesters because they said it was a symbol of the city's decaying infrastructure and the need to get Americans back to work. [9]
As part of Occupy Our Homes, Occupy Baltimore has begun a project of defending homes threatened with foreclosure.
Their first case was a house on West Lombard Street whose residents were threatened with eviction by Deutsche Bank. The group joined with residents of the neighborhood to physically defend the house from foreclosure by the sheriff. They guarded the house during the two-hour window in which the eviction was announced to occur. [10]
The sheriff arrived unannounced the next day, along with a presumed representative of Deutsche Bank who refused to identify herself or talk to the homeowner. Locks on the house were change and all property inside was confiscated. [11]
Starting January 16, 2012, Occupy Baltimore launched a protest of Maryland's planned youth jail in Baltimore City. As part of their "Schools Not Jails Occupation" campaign, Occupy Baltimore activists entered a fenced site (owned by the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services) and began to build a red-painted plywood structure to represent schoolhouse. After negotiating with the activists in a bid to get them to leave, Maryland State Police arrested six people for trespass, and dismantled the building. [12]
Members of the media complain that they were kept well away from the site of arrests. [13]
On January 20, 2012, protesters demonstrated at the War Memorial near Baltimore's City Hall. They jumped rope, hula-hooped, and juggled in support of Baltimore's endangered recreation centers. They brought a large prop: a piece of plywood painted to look like the front of a cartoon rec center. Before they could bring the "rec center" to the site of the demonstration, they were stopped by a police officer backed by a SWAT team. Claiming that the protesters were blocking traffic, police confiscated the sign and threw it in a dumpster. Representatives from the ACLU suggest that the police's actions may have violated the demonstrators' first amendment rights. [14]
In January 2012, the Baltimore Sun obtained a set of emails received and by the mayor's office. [15] These emails suggested private collusion between business owners and the city on the topic of Occupy Baltimore. These emails include:
The emails also revealed that the city incurred no extra expenses associated with the ongoing encampment. The Sun also noted that the mayor received many emails from students and community leaders supporting the movement. The paper also points out that the city withheld a number of emails, including those referring to police strategy and to the decisions leading up to eviction.
On October 25, City Hall declared the encampment was illegal on the basis that McKeldin Square is not a campground. The city stated that anyone is free to protest at the location, but not to camp overnight. Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake said each illegal act would be handled on a "case-by-case basis." [16] the city stated that they wanted to avoid a violent confrontation. [17]
The ACLU has defended the movement as constitutionally protected free speech. [17]
Toward the end of November, the movement applied for a 6-month permit to occupy McKeldin Square and to set up 4 large and up to 40 personal tents. The city denied the permit on the basis that permits are not issued for more than 5 days or 150 people. [18]
Protesters blamed Baltimore Police for forcing the cancellation of a November 12 concert by the band Celebration. The concert was cancelled over safety concerns. [19]
On November 2, the city cut off power to the occupiers at McKeldin Square, citing safety concerns. The protesters had been using the electrical outlets at the square for their basic needs, including heating food and charging cell phones and laptops. The protesters said this would not stop them. [20] Protesters responded by setting up solar panels and by attempting to set up a bicycle-based power generator.
On Friday, October 28, a woman claimed she had been sexually assaulted in her tent and robbed of $1800 cash. She said she could not go home because the attackers had taken her bills and knew where she lived. A 38-year-old man was taken into custody, though no evidence of a sexual assault was found. [21]
On December 5, a woman was allegedly stabbed by another woman in a fight over not taking care of her cat. A 23-year-old woman was arrested as the prime suspect in the incident, marking the first protest-related arrest. [22]
On December 13, 2011, the Occupy Baltimore protesters were evicted from McKeldin Square at 3:15 AM. Police arrived in riot gear, closed off surrounding streets, and allowed protesters to retrieve their personal belongings prior to departure. The protesters left peacefully. There were no arrests. Of the 40 people who departed, 18 accepted shelter services the city offered on the spot. [23]
The protesters planned to hold a meeting regarding their next plans, and vowed to continue. [24]
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Occupy Los Angeles is one of the many occupy movements in the United States, following the original Occupy Wall Street (OWS) protest. Participants of Occupy L.A. first met at Pershing Square on September 23, 2011. Activists came to consensus to occupy public space in solidarity with the growing movement. Occupiers first marched in Los Angeles on September 24, 2011. They next protested a fundraiser being held in Hollywood at the House of Blues for President Obama. Participants met at Pershing Square every subsequent night to plan out the logistics of an occupation set to begin on October 1, 2011. After debating potential locations around Los Angeles, people decided on the lawns around City Hall. Tents first manifested on October 1, 2011 on the grounds of Los Angeles City Hall.
The following is a timeline of Occupy Wall Street (OWS), a protest which began on September 17, 2011 on Wall Street, the financial district of New York City and included the occupation of Zuccotti Park, where protesters established a permanent encampment. The Occupy movement splintered after NYC Mayor Bloomberg had police raid the encampment in Zuccotti Park on November 15, 2011. The timeline here is limited to this particular protest during this approximate time-frame.
Occupy Portland was a collaboration that began on October 6, 2011 in downtown Portland, Oregon as a protest and demonstration against economic inequality worldwide. The movement was inspired by the Occupy Wall Street movement that began in New York City on September 17, 2011.
Occupy Atlanta has included protests and demonstrations. Occupy Atlanta began on October 6, 2011 in Woodruff Park, located in downtown Atlanta, Georgia. As part of the Occupy movement, it is inspired by Occupy Wall Street which began in New York City on September 17.
Occupy Boston was a collective of protesters that settled on September 30, 2011 in Boston, Massachusetts, on Dewey Square in the Financial District opposite the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. It is related to the Occupy Wall Street movement that began in New York City on September 17, 2011.
Occupy Buffalo was a collaboration that included a peaceful protest and demonstrations which began on October 1, 2011, in Buffalo, New York, in Niagara Square, the nexus of downtown Buffalo opposite the Buffalo City Hall. It is related to the Occupy Wall Street movement that began in New York City on September 17, and called for economic equity, accountability among politicians and ending lobbyist influence of politicians. Protesters camped overnight in Niagara Square as part of the demonstration.
Occupy Canada was a collective of peaceful protests and demonstrations that were part of the larger Occupy Together movement which first manifested in the financial district of New York City with Occupy Wall Street, and subsequently spread to over 900 cities around the world.
Occupy Oakland refers to a collaboration and series of demonstrations in Oakland, California, that started in October 2011. As part of the Occupy movement, protestors have staged occupations, most notably at Frank H. Ogawa Plaza in front of Oakland City Hall.
Occupy D.C. was an occupation of public space in Washington, D.C. based at McPherson Square and connected to the Occupy movements that sprung up across the United States in Fall 2011. The group had been demonstrating in McPherson Square since October 1, 2011, and in Freedom Plaza since October 6. Despite crackdowns on other Occupy projects across the country, federal authorities claimed on November 15 that they have no plans to clear McPherson Square Park. The National Park Service decided against eviction after meeting with activists and discussing health and safety conditions.
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The following is a timeline of Occupy Oakland which began on Monday, October 10, 2011, as an occupation of Frank H. Ogawa Plaza located in front of Oakland City Hall in downtown Oakland, and is an ongoing demonstration. It is allied with Occupy Wall Street, which began in New York City on September 17, 2011, and is one of several "Occupy" protest sites in the San Francisco Bay Area. Other sites include Occupy San Francisco and Occupy San Jose.
McKeldin Square is an area of Downtown Baltimore, located near the Inner Harbor at the corners of Pratt and Light Streets.
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Occupy Charlottesville was a social movement in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, that began on October 15, 2011, in solidarity with Occupy Wall Street and the rest of the Occupy movement. The downtown Lee Park encampment was taken down on November 30, 2011, when 18 members of the movement were arrested and charged with trespassing. The group failed to establish a campsite after the eviction, although they continued to hold their 'General Assemblies' and participate in targeted actions for several months thereafter. The group's protests target social and economic injustice both locally and nationally.
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