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OPD, Protester Communications Not Promising
Following a slew of lawsuits and national media attention, Chief Richard Word announced a revision of OPD’s Crowd Control Policy, stressing “We will do everything we can to communicate with protest leaders prior to planned, future protests.” So far, communication regarding April 7 have not been promising.
Lack of Communication Between OPD, Protesters Not Promising
By Liam O’Donoghue
On April 7, community group Pueblo and Direct Action to Stop the War (DASW) will lead a march from Oakland Police Headquarters to the docks to protest alleged war profiteers and multinational shipping companies Stevedoring Services of America and American Presidents Line. Last year’s dock protest resulted in 25 arrests and dozens of injuries when police fired tear gas, stinger grenades and rubber bullets into the non-violent crowd of 700 protesters and ILWU workers and rammed them with motorcycles in what remains the most violent conflict between police and protesters since the dawn of the war. Following a slew of lawsuits and national media attention, Chief Richard Word announced a revision of OPD’s Crowd Control Policy, stressing “We will do everything we can to communicate with protest leaders prior to planned, future protests.” So far, communication regarding April 7 have not been promising.
On March 21, protest organizers Jackie Thomason and Liz Perlman sent a letter detailing their intentions to Chief Word, the City Council, Mayor Jerry Brown and several other city officials. On March 25, Cap. Rod Yee, the commanding officer involved with this and last year’s protest, denied awareness of this letter and said that attempts to reach Pueblo and DASW through the groups' websites by himself, Sgt. Rob Stewart, the lead negotiator, and Council member Jean Quan have been unsuccessful. They refused to disclose which protesters they had tried to reach directly. “That’s impossible,” said Thomason, whose phone number appeared on the letter “I’ve checked my e-mail and my phone messages, and there has been no contact from the police or the City.”
Despite changes in OPD Crowd Control Policy, including suspension of the B.U.M.P. (Basic Utilization of Motorcycle Push) technique, restricted use of bean bag rounds, elimination of the wooden dowel, establishment of police protest liaisons, numbered police helmets (for easy identification), and increased crowd control training, Liz Perlman remains skeptical. “They said the same thing last year,” Perlman said, when informed by The Guardian of Yee’s mention of non-communication. “I can’t believe they put Yee in charge again, but if he wanted to contact us, we’re not hard to find.”
Jack Heyman, a business agent for ILWU and one of the “Oakland 25” facing misdemeanor charges ranging from resisting arrest to creating a public nuisance stemming from last year’s protest is also unconvinced. Heyman, whose case has been postponed until April 22 on a technicality, said, “The Rider’s lawsuit should have been enough to change police accountability procedures, but if they do modify their behavior, it’s only because of the pending litigation against The City.”
Heyman believes that CATIC’s (California Anti-Terrorism Information Center) warning to the OPD regarding possible protester violence prior to last year’s protest contributed to the ensuing brutality. According to Attorney General spokesperson Hallye Jordan, the Criminal Intelligence Bureau, created to facilitate communication between law enforcement groups, has since been restructured, so that non-violent, community pickets no longer fall under the jurisdiction of CATIC. So at least the state no longer views groups whose stated purpose is to “express our legally protected First Amendment right to express opposition to the war,” as terrorists.
By Liam O’Donoghue
On April 7, community group Pueblo and Direct Action to Stop the War (DASW) will lead a march from Oakland Police Headquarters to the docks to protest alleged war profiteers and multinational shipping companies Stevedoring Services of America and American Presidents Line. Last year’s dock protest resulted in 25 arrests and dozens of injuries when police fired tear gas, stinger grenades and rubber bullets into the non-violent crowd of 700 protesters and ILWU workers and rammed them with motorcycles in what remains the most violent conflict between police and protesters since the dawn of the war. Following a slew of lawsuits and national media attention, Chief Richard Word announced a revision of OPD’s Crowd Control Policy, stressing “We will do everything we can to communicate with protest leaders prior to planned, future protests.” So far, communication regarding April 7 have not been promising.
On March 21, protest organizers Jackie Thomason and Liz Perlman sent a letter detailing their intentions to Chief Word, the City Council, Mayor Jerry Brown and several other city officials. On March 25, Cap. Rod Yee, the commanding officer involved with this and last year’s protest, denied awareness of this letter and said that attempts to reach Pueblo and DASW through the groups' websites by himself, Sgt. Rob Stewart, the lead negotiator, and Council member Jean Quan have been unsuccessful. They refused to disclose which protesters they had tried to reach directly. “That’s impossible,” said Thomason, whose phone number appeared on the letter “I’ve checked my e-mail and my phone messages, and there has been no contact from the police or the City.”
Despite changes in OPD Crowd Control Policy, including suspension of the B.U.M.P. (Basic Utilization of Motorcycle Push) technique, restricted use of bean bag rounds, elimination of the wooden dowel, establishment of police protest liaisons, numbered police helmets (for easy identification), and increased crowd control training, Liz Perlman remains skeptical. “They said the same thing last year,” Perlman said, when informed by The Guardian of Yee’s mention of non-communication. “I can’t believe they put Yee in charge again, but if he wanted to contact us, we’re not hard to find.”
Jack Heyman, a business agent for ILWU and one of the “Oakland 25” facing misdemeanor charges ranging from resisting arrest to creating a public nuisance stemming from last year’s protest is also unconvinced. Heyman, whose case has been postponed until April 22 on a technicality, said, “The Rider’s lawsuit should have been enough to change police accountability procedures, but if they do modify their behavior, it’s only because of the pending litigation against The City.”
Heyman believes that CATIC’s (California Anti-Terrorism Information Center) warning to the OPD regarding possible protester violence prior to last year’s protest contributed to the ensuing brutality. According to Attorney General spokesperson Hallye Jordan, the Criminal Intelligence Bureau, created to facilitate communication between law enforcement groups, has since been restructured, so that non-violent, community pickets no longer fall under the jurisdiction of CATIC. So at least the state no longer views groups whose stated purpose is to “express our legally protected First Amendment right to express opposition to the war,” as terrorists.
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An Open Letter to Police Chief Word and Oakland City Officials:
(letter was sent on Monday March 22nd)
On April 7th of last year, several hundred of us gathered at the Port of Oakland to voice our opposition to the U.S. war against Iraq and to focus specific attention on the excessive war profits being garnered by companies such as Stevedoring Services of America. Our nonviolent community pickets at the gates of APL and SSA were met by unprecedented violence on the part of the Oakland police. The police attack, which left dozens of protesters, longshore workers and bystanders injured, was reported internationally, further tarnishing Oakland's image, already damaged by the Riders trial. A year later, we are still waiting for the City of Oakland to hold its Police Department responsible for this reckless display of force.
This April 7th we will return to the docks in what we fully intend to be a nonviolent community picket. We will protest the SSA's profiteering from the U.S. occupation of Iraq and we will protest the police brutality which continues to plague the lives of Oakland residents. SSA is known for its union-busting strategies in Iraq, here in the US, as well as in Bangladesh, where it has proposed to build a $500 million containerized terminal in the city of Chittagong
We fully expect that the repressive tactics which were used against us last April 7th will not be repeated. Last December, in a press announcement immediately preceding the Citizen's Police Review Board Hearing on the subject, Chief Word announced a number of changes to the Oakland Police Department¹s Crowd Control Policy. They included:
³€ The establishment of police protest liaisons, trained by practiced protestors, to be on-site during the protest to meet with protest leaders and advise of an intended police action or to relay any police requests.
€ The numbering of police officer helmets in an effort to easily identify officers involved in any police action.
€ The elimination of the wooden dowel from the Oakland Police department arsenal.
€ The suspension of motorcycle B.U.M.P. (Basic Utilization of Motorcycle Push) technique.
€ Restricting the use of flexible baton (bean bag) rounds.
€ All officers will be trained on the new crowd control policy.²
While we understand that the OPD's Crowd Control Policy is still in
formation and will not be complete without community review, we expect that these interim measures outlined by Chief Word will be followed by all officers assigned to upcoming protests and public events.
Beyond this, we would like to encourage a more profound rethinking of the very term "Crowd Control." This April 7th we will, again, exercise our legally protected First Amendment right to express our opposition to the war. A nonviolent crowd does not need to be controlled by the police. In the interests of public safety, we hope that Chief Word will focus, instead, on controlling his own officers.
If you have any questions about our expectations of the City in this matter, please contact Jackie Thomason at 510-(phone # included in original letter to Word and City Officials).
For Peace,
Liz Perlman
Direct Action to Stop War (DASW)
Gwen Hardy
People United for a Better Oakland (PUEBLO)
(letter was sent on Monday March 22nd)
On April 7th of last year, several hundred of us gathered at the Port of Oakland to voice our opposition to the U.S. war against Iraq and to focus specific attention on the excessive war profits being garnered by companies such as Stevedoring Services of America. Our nonviolent community pickets at the gates of APL and SSA were met by unprecedented violence on the part of the Oakland police. The police attack, which left dozens of protesters, longshore workers and bystanders injured, was reported internationally, further tarnishing Oakland's image, already damaged by the Riders trial. A year later, we are still waiting for the City of Oakland to hold its Police Department responsible for this reckless display of force.
This April 7th we will return to the docks in what we fully intend to be a nonviolent community picket. We will protest the SSA's profiteering from the U.S. occupation of Iraq and we will protest the police brutality which continues to plague the lives of Oakland residents. SSA is known for its union-busting strategies in Iraq, here in the US, as well as in Bangladesh, where it has proposed to build a $500 million containerized terminal in the city of Chittagong
We fully expect that the repressive tactics which were used against us last April 7th will not be repeated. Last December, in a press announcement immediately preceding the Citizen's Police Review Board Hearing on the subject, Chief Word announced a number of changes to the Oakland Police Department¹s Crowd Control Policy. They included:
³€ The establishment of police protest liaisons, trained by practiced protestors, to be on-site during the protest to meet with protest leaders and advise of an intended police action or to relay any police requests.
€ The numbering of police officer helmets in an effort to easily identify officers involved in any police action.
€ The elimination of the wooden dowel from the Oakland Police department arsenal.
€ The suspension of motorcycle B.U.M.P. (Basic Utilization of Motorcycle Push) technique.
€ Restricting the use of flexible baton (bean bag) rounds.
€ All officers will be trained on the new crowd control policy.²
While we understand that the OPD's Crowd Control Policy is still in
formation and will not be complete without community review, we expect that these interim measures outlined by Chief Word will be followed by all officers assigned to upcoming protests and public events.
Beyond this, we would like to encourage a more profound rethinking of the very term "Crowd Control." This April 7th we will, again, exercise our legally protected First Amendment right to express our opposition to the war. A nonviolent crowd does not need to be controlled by the police. In the interests of public safety, we hope that Chief Word will focus, instead, on controlling his own officers.
If you have any questions about our expectations of the City in this matter, please contact Jackie Thomason at 510-(phone # included in original letter to Word and City Officials).
For Peace,
Liz Perlman
Direct Action to Stop War (DASW)
Gwen Hardy
People United for a Better Oakland (PUEBLO)
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