Nico

Friday, 1/20(the 2nd Anniversary of the “Citizens United” decision, Occupy Pittsburgh will hold a permitted  protest  Action against “Citizens United” and Corporate corruption of our government and body politick. We’ll have a permitted rally Friday, 1/20 at  4pm,  in Market Square.

 Then  we’ll got to nearby PPG and posting, ceremoniously and theatrically, a Peoples’ Bill of Indictment for environmental crimes(toxic pools)

\Mdavis as well as a People’s Subpoena for their ” Certificate of Live Birth”, underscoring that they don’t have any, and so, should not have “free speech” rights to unlimited financial contributions, which corrupt our government and body politick.

  Then we can proceed to 625 Liberty Ave., location of gas-fracking, EQT’s Headquarters and do the same there…

Then we can proceed up 6th Ave.,  to financial criminal BNY Mellon and posting, ceremoniously, a Peoples Bill of Indictment for their crimes against the people, as well as a People’s Subpoena for their “Certificate of Live Birth”.

Then, we can proceed to the Federal Courthouse to rally for a “Move To Amend” the Constitution to undo the “Citizens United” decision. ….

 

We’re going to be busy, with a dynamic, vociferous, rather than a static event , so folks are encouraged to arrive  early, promptly, 4pm Market Square, Pittsburgh to protest against Corporate take-over of our government, Corporate corruption and pollution. And for an amendment to overturn the infamous “Citizens United” decision.

Visit the OccupyPittsburgh.org web site. 

From Occupy Pittsburgh:

Quinn Elliott 11:18am Nov 14

hey I’m looking to set up a memorial area or altar for Transgender Day of Remembrance (Sunday 11/20) somewhere at the occupation site. I think I’ll also have a moment of silence/ceremony around noon that day.

If you’d like to help or have resources, contact me and I’ll forward them to Quinn. (If you are already a part of Occupy Pittsburgh’s Marginalized Communities and Allies workgroup, Quinn has their cell number up there for workgroup members.)

Quinn is expecting to have a flyer available by the end of the day, but I wanted to get this out there first. 

#OccupyPgh Proposed Statement of Internal Solidarity and Solidarity with Indigenous Peoples

By Amber Kelsie in OccupyPGH Marginalized Communities and Allies 
Workgroup · Edit Doc · Delete 

This is a living document. Inspired by the the Internal Solidarity 
Statement and Memorandum of Solidarity with Indigenous People put 
forth by Occupy Boston, we the members of Occupy Pittsburgh put forth 
this Statement of Internal Solidarity and Solidarity with Indigenous 
Peoples.   The Occupy Pittsburgh community has the right and 
responsibility to edit this document on an ongoing basis. We welcome 
feedback and new ideas. 

We are the 99%, and our task is to unify the 99%. Unfortunately, we 
live in a society that is racist, sexist, classist, homophobic, and 
ridden with various other forms of oppression.  We recognize that the 
United States was founded upon the attempted extermination of 
indigenous peoples and the colonization of their land, the continued 
and ongoing exploitation of black and brown bodies through the 
machinations of slavery, imperialism, nationalism, the prison- 
industrial complex, and capitalism.  We further recognize that the 
Occupy movement is made possible by the many movements and struggles 
of oppressed people which have preceded it and that continue through 
the present. 

Pittsburgh has been founded upon the extermination, colonization and 
dislocation of the First Nations of Haudensaunee, Lenape, and Shawnee 
peoples from their ancestral lands.  Pittsburgh has been built via an 
economy of labor that has exploited a working class that was then 
discarded when we no longer benefited those in power.  Black and brown 
people continue to suffer in Pittsburgh due to police, gentrification, 
neglect and political invisibility.  Despite these oppressions, 
Pittsburgh has been a vital place for struggle on behalf of our 
communities. 

As the Occupy Pittsburgh community, we will consciously and urgently 
work on dismantling these systems of oppression in our movement.  We 
are working on creating a community where everyone’s rights are 
respected, protected, and treated equally. We are working to 
acknowledge and incorporate a diversity of tactics which requires that 
we place those who have been in this struggle at the forefront of our 
movement.  We all have different levels of privilege that we strive to 
acknowledge and educate ourselves about in order to ensure that these 
privileges are not used to oppress others. We want to have an 
inclusive atmosphere of ideas in which we do not police each other’s 
thoughts, but we have absolutely no tolerance for oppressive or 
intimidating words or actions. We respect the need for a diversity of 
tactics and actively seek the involvement of the First Nations, people 
of color, women, LGBTQ people, and others in the development of our 
movement. If a conflict arises it should, if possible, be settled 
through democratic discussion or debate. 

We do not welcome any of the following in our community: 

    White supremacy or separatism (racism against people of all 
colors) 
    Patriarchy (sexism) 
    Ageism 
    Discrimination based on ability 
    Homophobia or heteronormativity 
    Transphobia 
    Anti-Arab sentiment 
    Anti-Jewish sentiment 
    Religious intolerance or intolerance of nonreligious people 
    Islamaphobia 
    Class oppression (classism) 
    Cultural intolerance 
    Discrimination based on immigration status 
    Discrimination based on experiences with the justice system 
    Disregard for indigenous rights 
    Weight-based discrimination 

#occupypgh Proposed MCAA Statement of Safety Concerns

This is a living document on specific safety concerns for marginalized individuals.  It has been put together from concerns and resources compiled by the members of the Marginalized Communities and Allies Group in conjunction with the POC working group, but has not been voted on within the group.

In the interests of time (13 hours to go), I am posting it for all affected individuals to consider necessary safety measures.  please review and add your own comments.

Proposed MCAA Statement of Safety Concerns

This movement disavows violence, if someone attempts to disrupt your life or your gathering in this way call it out, get support from likeminded people, surround and disavow if possible.

Maintain awareness of inappropriate actions around you, and be mindful of the safety of your fellow marchers, protestors and occupiers.

POC are at a greater risk for arrest and police brutality

LGBTQA individuals are also at a greater risk for police brutality and abuse.

Women are always at an increased risk of assault during events and by police and in jails.

Individuals with mobility issues and other health concerns are at a greater risk for unintentional harm

Anyone represented here is at a greater risk for harassment by participants, counter-protesters and police

Anyone represented here may be in danger for a variety of reasons if they are arrested and spend time in jail.

1. When ppl are arrested, the bystanders usually repeatedly chant, “Let Them Go.” For POC targeting, bystanders should use the “race card” to their advantage by shouting, “why are you arresting a black man” or maybe “stop your racism”.   It’s simply another tactic, but its one that acknowledges the reality POC face each and every day.

2. For queer folks, especially those who cannot pass as straight, and trans folks, jail can be a very dangerous place and cops can be very abusive in  multiple ways. Misgendering, homophobia, transphobia, assault, and other  things have been reported quite a bit at ACJ and with Pittsburgh COs and  police. Transgender people are at a high risk of sexual/physical/emotional assault once in jail, if the police realize the person they’re dealing with is trans.

We’ve had decent luck calling ACJ over and over (and over and over… we filled up their answering machine) when a friend of mine, a nursing mother, was arrested and held for four days without cause. We managed to get her a breast pump. A similar strategy would probably work to get people the correct food, medication, maybe even to get them moved to a gender-appropriate block.

3. For differently abled people, physical accessibility needs, medications, food, etc may be needed to enter events and upon arrest. For neuroatypical  people, medication needs, extra counseling needs, and so on are relevant.

If you have a medical or neurological issue that isn’t obvious just from looking at you (sometimes they are called “invisible” disabilities) it might be good to carry an alert card or bracelet on you in case of the worse case scenarios, even if you don’t in your day to day life.

For example, if you are an Autistic person there are cards that are written in case of a police encounter so if you become disoriented or over stimulated, they know (or at least have been informed, even if they  ignore it) that your behavior is disability related, not you being  difficult. Other Neuroatypical people may wish to consider similar steps.

If you are on life sustaining medications, you should have some on you in a labeled from the pharmacy bottle. You should also have a safe person who has a copy of your script papers/an extra bottle and transportation in case you lose your medication in the process of an arrest. Tmight not let someone bring the pills in, but they are obligated to get a script filled.

If you have major health concerns, make sure you have a back up person who knows your doctor’s contact info and so forth.

If you are denied your medication while in jail, please contact your civil rights law organization.

Here is the PA code section about healthcare and medication in Jails in PA:

http://www.pacode.com/secure/data/037/chapter95/chap95toc.html#95.232.

PLEASE NOTE: The Allegheny County Jail has a KNOWN problem with getting people their medications in a timely fashion, and the health care there is such that it is one of the top 12 deadliest jails because of it.

Also, for people who treat themselves with tinctures or herbal medicine, might be a good idea to have that stuff on you. There is a slim to none chance of getting it in jail, but to have it as soon as you get out is good.

In some cases, especially when in custody, keeping a mental difference quiet may be the right choice to avoid further mistreatment.  If you have the privilege of doing so due to the nature of your mental difference, please weigh your options. For other people who do not share this they may need to choose to disclose their mental state, but there should definitely be support on the outside to ensure they are being treated properly.

If your rights are denied or you are targeted because of disability- particularly Mental Health disability- the Disability Rights  Network of PA might be a good place to have in your contacts list. (412) 391-5225, drnpa-pgh@drnpa.org   They do have a focus in one of their initiatives for those in jail, particularly those with MH issues.

 4. For people with specific dietary needs (health, ethical, religious, etc) getting proper food in jail (vegan, kosher, etc) is an issue.

gripe

codeman38:

allies-person:

The transportation information page on the Autreat webpage is really hard to understand.  All I want is a straightforward explanation of what, exactly, I need to do to get to point A to point B.  And the current page for railway travel is…not exactly that.

Seconding that. I also found it confusing— partly because it doesn’t account for the fact that flights from different places arrive at different times in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia! The “arrive at” times are absolutely nothing like the flights from Atlanta.

Edited to add: May post something about this to the Autreat list when my brain’s a bit less scrambly.

Edited again to add: Another thing that makes it confusing for me: nowhere on the page, even on the entire transportation site, are the dates of the conference even mentioned. Unless I’m missing it, even the registration form doesn’t list the actual dates. (It is mentioned on the main Autreat site… which, of course, is not at all linked on the transportation page. And I still have no idea whether I’d need to arrive on Sunday or Monday if I did have the funds to attend.)

Edit #3: Just to put this into perspective, to show why this is confusing: The arrival time listed on that page for Pittsburgh is 4:10 AM, with the train caught at 7:20 AM. The earliest flight from Atlanta arrives at 9:10 AM.

Edit #4: Ah, I see what they’re trying to do there— the suggested arrival time is the minimum that would give you sufficient leeway to get your bags and get to the train station; in many cases, as one bit of text on the page explains, you’d need to arrive the night before. But this… isn’t immediately apparent from the explanation, at least with my screwy autie sense of time.

The dorms aren’t open till monday though?

Pittsburgh- Philly Line is the train that hits Johnstown. Unfortunately, there’s only that one 7:30a train to johnstown.

There are, however, TWO greyhound buses going through johnstown. The Pittsburgh train station is literally right across the street from the greyhound. The buses leave Pittsburgh at 9:00AM and 11:45AM respectively. The travel time is roughly a bit under 2 and a half hours.

I normally don’t ride the Local- that is, the ones that go to Johnstown. I usually take the one that is the Express to Harrisburg, which has a rest stop but that’s it, when I’ve taken the bus. 

ANYONE: The Pittsburgh airport is about a half hour (19ish miles) drive from the Greyhound/Amtrak stations. You will need to get a taxi or a shuttle in between the two. Some of the Taxi drivers will take you more round bout if they can get away with it, as a warning. Super Shuttle works, but might take more time because they generally have more than one passenger or stop that they make. 

edit: er. I’m saying this as a relative local, not because any of this is either a must or a but you must come to autreat or anything.