At the last General Assembly of 2011, Occupy Oakland decided to take over a large vacant building with the purpose of putting it to the use of the people of Oakland. The Move-In Assembly met twice a week to plan the move in. The new social center was intended to be launched with a two day Oakland Rise Up Festival packed with speakers, workshops and performances.

Occupy Oakland met as planned at Oscar Grant Plaza at 1pm on Saturday, January 28th and marched to the building that was to be reclaimed for the movement. The Move-In Assembly explained previously: "Occupy Oakland has a demonstrated need for such a space. We have served tens of thousands of meals without charge, provided a place for thousands of people to sleep free from police repression, planned and carried out actions in which tens of thousands of people have participated. Most importantly, unlike a charity, Occupy Oakland provides people with the opportunity to get involved and determine the direction of the movement. It is open to the initiative of everyone."

As the intended target for occupation came into sight, the abandoned Henry J. Kaiser Convention Center, Oakland police formed lines of riot police armed with projectile weapons and tear gas on perimeter streets and around the building. Tear gas was fired at marchers in front of the convention center, and again in large amounts along with projectiles around the corner at 10th and Oak streets. Marchers headed back to Oscar Grant plaza to recover from the police attacks and then a new march headed through downtown Oakland, presumably to find an alternative building to claim as community space. Police kettled marchers in the Uptown Apartments park on Telegraph, and then again on Broadway in front of the YMCA. At the YMCA, hundreds were arrested, including several independent journalists. Many of those not kettled then marched back to the plaza where a small group took a flag from inside of City Hall and burned it on the steps in front of the building to protest the mass arrest still on-going on Broadway.

Reports, Photos, Audio, and Video: Oakland Police MisUsing Their Video Cameras | Activists and Anarchists Speak for Themselves at Occupy Oakland | The Battle of Oakland - Mini Documentary on Jan 28 | Anonymous vrs. The City of Oakland | Support of Occupy Oakland by Santa Cruz's Homeless United for Friendship & Freedom | Communique from Occupy Oakland's Move-In Assembly re: J28 | Letter to Mayor Quan from Occupy Portland | Occupy London Statement in Support of Occupy Oakland | Occupy Santa Rosa Statement of Solidarity with OO | Occupy Oakland Move-In Day - The Return to Oscar Grant Plaza, 1/28/12: photos | Occupy Oakland Hosting Forum on Police Actions; CPRB Forum Cancelled | Convergence Against State Repression of Occupy Oakland | Contact the Independent Monitor re OPD Riot on January 28, 2012 | A Call To Oakland's Non-Violent Movement: We Must Lead By Example | #J28: A Day of Community, a Day of Violence | Occupy Oakland Move-In Day - 19th Street and YMCA Kettles: photos | Occupy Oakland press conference re: J28 police violence | Press Release: Occupy Oakland Denounces Police Violence and City Lies | Militancy and Counter-Insurgency: Occupy Oakland and State Repression | One of many open letters to Mayor Jean Quan from Occupy Wall Street | Photos from J28 Move-in Day (Plan B) -- 2/2 | Photos from J28 Move-in Day (Plan A) -- 1/2 | Jailed for Marching in Oakland: What it means for you and your children | YMCA, Autism, & Why Mental Health IS an Issue for Occupy | Nationwide Support for Occupy Oakland; Solidarity Demonstrations in Dozens of Cities | If you have been arrested at Occupy Oakland, please read the following | more jan 28 pix | Occupy Oakland Move-In Day - Battle on Oak Street, 1/28/12: photos | Occupy Oakland is Dead | OPD's finest men | #OccupyOakland Rise Up #J28 Festival Weekend | Occupy Oakland Move-In Day - Henry J Plan A, 1/28/12: photos | Oakland Photography Documentation | a letter from some friends in Oakland | Occupy Chicago Stands with Oakland! | What really happened at Occupy Oakland on Saturday January 28

Event Announcements: Occupy Oakland Move-In Day Frequently Asked Questions | Occupy Oakland Move-In Day Mural on San Pablo Ave | Oakland Rise Up Festival schedule | Occupy Oakland Move-In Day and Rise Up Festival Press Conference: video & photos | Letter to the Mayor, OPD and City Council on Occupy Oakland's Move-in Day | Occupy Oakland Press Release | Event Announcement | Posters and Handbills | Call for Supplies

See Also: Chris Hedges and Krystof Lopaur of Occupy Oakland debate black bloc, militancy and tactics | Organized Non-violent Civil Disobedience vs. OWS | New Zine for Printing: 'Beyond A Critique of Non-Violence' | The Struggle for Leadership Within “Leaderless” Occupy | Occupy Love in Oakland Part Two | Occupy Love in Oakland | Never have sex with police, especially from Oakland | UCB Occupation | Inside Out | Occupy Oakland: An Urban Exhibition and an Inside Out Group Action | Anonymous vrs. The City of Oakland | Oakland Community Policing Advisory Board Member Rankles Anonymous | Fuck the Police 7 | Hedging Our Bets on the Black Bloc: the Impotence of Mere Liberalism | Who is "Stand For Oakland"? - an info brief | Oakland police supports counterinsurgency group to oppose Occupy Oakland | February 4th Fuck The Police March | Fuck The Police 6 | OPD gets free facial recognition/video enhancement software to target Occupy Oakland | aquapy craft confiscated | Oakland Council to Make Deeper Cuts to Vital City Services | Aquapy Oakland forces Media Bay Photographer into Lake Merritt | Former Police Officer Kelly O’Haire Unacceptable as Oakland's Police Review Board Head | OccupyOaklandMoveInDay.org | OccupyOakland.org | Unpacking Homelessness by Hyphenated-Republic

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