Occupy Sacramento marches on banksters

Occupy Sacramento held, in concert with Occupy groups around the country, a "Bank Transfer Day/ Move Your Money Rally and March" starting at 11:30 AM at Cesar Chavez Park today.

Hundreds marched and many closed their bank accounts at nearby Wells Fargo, Bank of America, Chase and other "banksters."

Occupy Sacramento, in a news release, also stated its intention to stay in Chavez Park after a curfew it deems unconstitutional even though a Federal judge said Thursday he wouldn't issue a temporary restraining order to stop the arrests.

"We are not surprised, and we are not demoralized," said Cres Vellucci, a legal team member with Occupy Sacramento and vice-chair of the Sacramento Chapter of the ACLU. 'It's very unusual to win a TRO in the first place. We can still have our day in court later. Cesar Chavez Park is a people's park, and the Bill of Rights is not moot even if the city says so."

To date, there have been 82 arrests at the park since Oct. 6. Anti-war Mom Cindy Sheehan and 29 other Occupy Sacramento defendants were arraigned Thursday and a Dec. 13 trial date was set. Defense lawyers are calling it the "First Wave." Another 30 or so defendants – known as the "Second Wave" are scheduled for the same trial-setting arraignment Nov. 16.

All defendants are demanding a speedy jury trial, which is their right, on misdemeanor charges of curfew violations in Cesar Chavez Park. Despite the nonviolent nature of the violation and arrest, each defendant faces 6 month in jail and a $1,000 fine.

On Wednesday, many activists from Occupy Sacramento marched on the Port of Oakland with tens of thousands of others to shut down the facility during the first General Strike in the U.S. since 1946. Karen Bernal, the chair of the Progressive Caucus of the California Democratic Party (whose certification is currently in limbo), attended the General Strike after her arraignment that morning with her husband, Bill, and daughter, Zoe.

During the march to the port in the evening, Bernal was enthralled by the huge turnout, diversity of the crowd and effectiveness in shutting down the port.

"This is one of the most liberating experiences I can ever remember," Bernal told me. "The 1% has a lot to be afraid of. If every city could see what happened here, there's no stopping us."

The protest drew thousands from Bay Area labor unions, along with a good number of parents with children. For example, Emma Fuentes marched to the port with her two young boys, including one in a stroller.

As the protesters marched down the streets of west Oakland from Oscar Grant Square at 14th and Broadway, some residents cheered the protesters from their porches and held up their own signs supporting the march.