News

Occupy Berkeley consolidates camp, supports Oakland

November 2, 2011 3:00 pm by Tracey Taylor

Site of Occupy Berkeley protest at the corner of Shattuck and Center Streets. Photo: Michael Roberts

The group of Occupy Berkeley protestors who had made their base the space in front of Bank of America on Shattuck and Center Streets has left that location to join the Occupy Berkeley encampment at MLK Park, according to a sign left at the Shattuck site.

Citizen reporter Michael Roberts is concerned about the detritus they have left behind, which includes flags, a chair, table and litter.

“While I support many of the aims of the Occupy Wall Street movement, I’m truly disappointed in the local Occupy Berkeley protestors who, according to a sign, have moved from their spot at Shattuck Avenue and Center Street in front of the Bank of America to the park at Center and Martin Luther King Jr.,” he said.

“They left behind a ton of garbage at Shattuck and Center, handing a nice little PR victory to their detractors. Shouldn’t people who advocate responsible business and government show a bit of responsibility themselves by cleaning up after themselves?”

Many Occupy Berkeley protestors are going to Oakland today to join in the Occupy Oakland demonstrations that are taking place there. A story in today’s Chronicle looks at why Oakland has stolen Berkeley’s thunder in the rabble-rousing department around this particular movement.

There are a reported 1,000-plus protestors in the streets of Oakland today, picketing banks and marching. A number of local businesses have closed. Mass gatherings and strike rallies with open mics have been planned at 14th & Broadway at 9:00am, 12:00pm, and 5:00pm. At the time of writing, police presence has been minimal and the demonstrations have been peaceful.

Many local media are following the Occupy Oakland events closely, including the Chronicle, the Bay Citizen, KQED News,  and Oakland Local.

Related:
BPD lent support to OPD at Occupy Oakland demonstration [10.26.11]
All quiet at Occupy Berkeley camp at MLK Park [10.26.11]
Berkeley joins 900 cities to condemn corporate greed [10.16.11] 

15 Comments

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  • Bruce Love

    Did Michael Roberts walk the couple of blocks to the camp to ask WTF was up or simply surmise that no clean-up was forthcoming?

  • http://berkeleyside.com Tracey Taylor

    Michael’s point was that the group could have cleaned up before they left the site, not departed with a possible view to returning to clean up.

  • Bruce Love

    I’m not sure from Michael’s account what the status of the B of A state actually is — whether it is essentially abandoned as you suggest or whether something else is going on there.   I’ve bothered to ask via email some people who might know but visiting the camp is probably the fastest way to find out.

  • Joan

    The city cleans up after Cal students every year when they decamp from dorms and apartments.

  • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_UTAORC2LANQF2ONEFJYXBSITTA bingo

    Classy exit, occupiers.  That’s how you garner respect for your perspective.

  • http://www.flickr.com/parksdh D. H. Parks

    There’s a certain poignancy to treating the public square the same way the bankers treated the economy.

  • libraterian

    Thank God there are wide oceans and a blistering desert separating us from real poverty. Otherwise everyone of the 99% would be strung up with the 1%. We’ve never had it so good and we certainly won’t ever again.

  • http://twitter.com/tereneta Tim Ereneta

    Free flags. Free detritus. I’m just sayin’.

  • Trueblue

    If they had any guts they would be protesting in SF’s business district then broke ass Oakland.

  • libraterian

    Ah…just the type of problem to fascinate some!

    Is this a huge pile of garbage with future political purpose?

    Or, is this a huge pile of garbage?

    Emails to a few well placed garbage wonks should yield the 411!

  • libraterian

    Occupy Ourselves needs to revise a phrase from the Bush administration’s education policy:”No crap left behind”

  • Anonymous

    the pallet won’t be there very long because there are thieves combing the cities stealing pallets from loading docks all over the bay area…but this one is probably stolen anyway…is it called stealing if one is taking something from someone who stole it in the first place?

  • Guest

    So why don’t you go visit it yourself? Do you ever leave your house?

  • EBGuy
  • Guest

    That had nothing to do with Occupy Oakland and everything to do with non-occupiers moving their money away from big banks and to credit unions instead.