An Occupy Portland organizer who has been designated the group’s police liaison says it’s too close to call right now whether the larger group behind the protest planned to start this Thursday will formally seek city approval for the demonstration—including a march to Pioneer Courthouse Square.
The Portland Police Bureau, taking the initiative in what could become a public relations battle over the protests, issued a statement last night strongly encouraging the group to obtain a permit. But the matter won’t be settled until tonight, says organizer Viani Rivier, when Occupy Portland’s general assembly, with some 200-300 people expected to show up, meets at Waterfront Park at the foot of SW Ankeny. As for how the group will decide?
“There’s a 50 percent chance that will happen,” Rivier says. “It’s a direct democracy. We give everybody input and go from there. The organizers are not the leaders. We’re not pushing any centrist agenda. We’re calling for a collaborative agenda to emerge out of consensus.”
The group, however, is taking relations with the police very seriously. Last night, in the dry oasis beneath the Burnside Bridge, attorney Kenneth Kreuscher led a workshop called “Know Your Rights,” telling participants to be respectful and eschew violence but also to be wary of talking with police officers who can be “tricky.” He also told participants how to manage any contact with cops if they can’t avoid it in the first place—shut up, demand an attorney, and loudly refuse to consent to a search.
One uniformed officer was on hand to watch the event, Lieutenant John Brooks of East Precinct. “I’m sort of a liaison,” Brooks told me when I introduced myself, adding that the bureau, as he put it, wants to make sure the protesters can express themselves peacefully. I wouldn’t be surprised if there weren’t a few non-uniformed officers also quietly watching in the crowd.
Rivier says she’s been in touch with Officer Scott Johnson to talk about Occupy Portland’s potentially complicated relationship with police officers.
“He’s concerned about the 1 or 2 percent out of the crowd that may be more driven to express themselves violentely—and we are, too,” she says.
Rivier says the organizers have asked for volunteers among the group to join peacebuilding and safety committees, with classes and videos offered on how to keep cool. And there may be a dozen or more volunteers who will wear “identifiable” clothing and help internally manage crime or violence.
“The main thrust is peace in each step,” she says. “Even so we’re prepared to deal with and educate and really crate bridges for people.”
Here’s the cops’ full statement from last night:
Initial efforts are aimed at assisting the group in obtaining a permit for the event. The permit provides for a coordinated set of guidelines. The guidelines spell out the route, authorizing event participants to lawfully be in the street and it is designed to ensure the safe flow of all traffic in the downtown core. Experience has show that working with organizers on obtaining a permit makes the event more collaborative which increases the overall success of the event for everyone.
We are committed to vigorously pursuing the goal of allowing participants to express their view which is there free speech right. Our overall objective is to take all appropriate action to help make this event happen in a way that is safe for participants and the general public alike. We look forward to continuing the dialogue with ‘Occupy Portland’ to ensure a safe event for everyone.
Rivier says Occupy Portland means it when they use the word “occupy,” though.
“I know that this isn’t just a protest march. It’s much bigger. We’re about a movement,” she says. “We’re not going home at 2 o’clock. Portland will be occupied. That is our vision. That’s what we’re going to do. We are unstoppable.”
So did I miss the part about what it is exactly they’re protesting?
@Marley95 – According to the FAQ on their website…nothing specific.
I’m sure this is gonna do one heck of alot good though, right?
Our resident teabaggers, right on quo with the smear campaign.
its a spontaneous movement to show general displeasure with the current corporate-run consumer society in the US. mostly about wealth redistribution, you know, cause the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer at an exponentially increasing rate. the biggest banks in the world stole all our tax money. people didn’t really like that one. plus, it would be pretty nice if corporations had to pay taxes and we stopped giving them tons of tax money too. anyway, people just sort of realized that the richest 1% can’t really control the rest of us if we refuse and organize. simple as that. unless you’re a multi-millionaire, this is for you!
I started a website so that the people going to these protests can make demands and vote on the demands of others. It’s at http://www.occupyanddemand.org. I hope that this platform will be used to better reflect the collective will of Occupy protesters, and start to answer the outside question, “Why are people protesting?”
As of this posting the web site for Occupy Portland has been brought down with server overload. I believe this is called a denial of service attack. It had posted that a false press release had been faxed to the Portland Police from Burnaby, BC about today’s event. The fax number can be traced to the postal services section of a Shoppers Drug Mart at 4050 Hastings St, Burnaby, BC, Canada. If someone new the exact time the fax was sent to PPD the store might have video of the person.