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Subscribe to RSSThe Occupy Wall Street movement is organizing a nationwide strike on May 1st, the International Workers Day. Panelists on "Up With Chris Hayes" discuss the history of worker strikes in the United States, their subsequent decline, and how Occupy plans to revive labor protests.
May Day protests may disrupt the morning commute in major U.S. cities Tuesday as labor, immigration and Occupy activists rally support on the international workers' holiday.
Demonstrations, strikes and acts of civil disobedience are being planned around the country, including the most visible organizing effort by anti-Wall Street groups since Occupy encampments came down in the fall.
While protesters are backing away from a call to block San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge, bridge district ferry workers said they'll strike Tuesday morning to shut down ferry service, which brings commuters from Marin County to the city. Ferry workers have been in contract negotiations for a year and have been working without a contract since July 2011 in a dispute over health care coverage, the Inlandboatmen's Union said.
A coalition of bridge and bus workers said they will honor the picket line, which may target an area near the bridge's toll plaza. Occupy activists from San Francisco and Oakland are expected to join the rally.
"We ask supporters to stand with us at strike picket lines on May Day and to keep the bridge open," said Alex Tonisson, an organizer and co-chair of the Golden Gate Bridge Labor Coalition.
Police say they are working with other area law enforcement agencies and have a plan in place for potential disruptions. They would not discuss specifics.
Across the bay in Oakland, where police and Occupy protesters have often clashed, officers are preparing for a long day as hundreds of "General Strike" signs have sprouted across town.
In New York City, where the first Occupy camp was set up and where large protests brought some of the earliest attention — and mass arrests — to the movement, leaders plan a variety of events, including picketing, a march through Manhattan and other "creative disruptions against the corporations who rule our city."
Organizers have called for protesters to block one or more bridges or tunnels connecting Manhattan, the city's economic engine, to New Jersey and other parts of the city.
The Occupy movement began in September with a small camp in a lower Manhattan plaza that quickly grew to include hundreds of protesters using the tent city as their home base. More than 700 people were arrested Oct. 1 as they tried to cross the Brooklyn Bridge.
The city broke the camp up in November, citing sanitary and other concerns, but the movement has held smaller events and protests periodically since then.
Elsewhere on the West Coast, Occupy Seattle has called for people to rally at a park near downtown Tuesday. Mayor Mike McGinn has warned residents there could be traffic delays and has said city officials have evidence — including graffiti and posters — that some groups plan to "commit violence, damage property and disrupt peaceful free speech activity."
In Los Angeles, demonstrators are planning to take to the streets to champion immigrant rights.
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I expect the occupiers to get out of hand and for them to succeed in their objective, which is to cause total mayhem even if it takes civil disobedience. I say that police should build tent cities make arrest of all who protest unlawfully.
we have the greatest military on the planet, and one reason is you will never hear anyone say, "every man for himself" the country used to be that way, but not anymore, greed is king.
The problem is lack of character and morality, greed is just a symptom.
What is character and morality and where can I purchase some?
I hope they block my road. I'm just lazy.
It will all come to and end when our Commie president is voted out in November. This is all created by him, Soros, Ayers, Dorn and the rest of the Commie influences. Some of you say Communism is dead?? Your dear Union leader Richard Trumka is a Communist. He got Socialist of the year in some countries, and he has said himself he is a communist. All unions support Socialism and Communism whether you know or like it or not. Do your homework! I'd take Bush back in a heartbeat. The ecomomy wasn't nowhere near this bad and gas was $1.87 in my town just as he left office. As soon as Obama came in and said he was putting restrictions on drilling and refinery in our country, the prices went up up up, and look at it now!!! Some of you people are sooooo stupid.
You people are something else blaming the
rich, what idiots try going after the politicians that sold you out! You voted
for these Congressman and Senators "repubs & dems" and then you
wonder why things are so completely jacked-up and warped? People are just brain
lazy and would rather spend endless hour in deep mental masturbation and
looking for an easy target "the giant rich corporation" when in fact:
it is in the job description of these privite Corps to travel to Washington and make
every effort to sway, entice, and bribe any public officials they can using
powerful lobbyist groups to get what’s good for the corporation. But ultimately
who took the oath of office? The politician’s!
May Day or International Worker's Day was originated by the Communists Party to Celebrate Workers Rights. Unfortunately as the way most left-wing movements end up, it's been taken over by anarchist and fascist and usually ends up in violent protests. This year should be no different if not worse with all of these foolish 99% nuts running around with nothing better to do than tear things up and waste taxpayers money. It would be in their best interest if they would limit themselves to Austin, because we don't play these games anywhere else.
the whole of human history when has something not bad happened? I think every day of the 365 that make a year has been marked in history as something we object to.
Why Did Portland Police Use Paramilitary …
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/04/19/1084671/-The-Buck-Stops-UCD-Police-Chief-Resigns-Over-Illegal-and-Insane-Pepper-Spray-Actions
Chris Hedges Occupy the Courts NY Jan … 1:35 talks about lawsuit being filed against Obama
Fault Lines - History of an occupation
The Occupy Revolution Has Begun Occup…
my hope is this country can return to unity.
Return? When was this country ever united.
You @!$%#ing commies won't be happy until your living in mother Russia v2.0 well guess what....it didn't work so well for them you @!$%#ing liberal @!$%#ing morons. Please, if you hate AMerica so damn much leave the @!$%#ing country!
Yeah, that's right you tell those @!$%#ing commies what the deal is.
You can tell who the RepublicanPukes and tea-bager are...sick MF
you can tell who the infants are as well.
Yeah and you can tell who the mature responsible adults are as well. (Ha see I told that guy)
May Day is a communist holiday.
It is.
the whole of human history when has something not bad happened? I think every day of the 365 that make a year has been marked in history as something we object to.
Here's an idea, why don't you all get really angry at each other about something you can not change. That's been working out well so far, so please, flame on...
I like working for rich people. The more profitable they are the more profitable I am. What's so hard to understand about that? I occupy my office every day to do my part.
call in the national guard, declare martial law!
Pl257, you don't even want martial law!
Outlaw Occupy: US set to strangle protest…
Why Did Portland Police Use Paramilitary …
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/04/19/1084671/-The-Buck-Stops-UCD-Police-Chief-Resigns-Over-Illegal-and-Insane-Pepper-Spray-Actions
Chris Hedges Occupy the Courts NY Jan … 1:35 talks about lawsuit being filed against Obama
Fault Lines - History of an occupation
The Occupy Revolution Has Begun Occup…
I'm all for peaceful, lawful protests, but when you start blocking roads, interferring with others, then you have crossed the line. Making people late for work is NOT going to endear you to them. As with OWS, I fully understand your message, but it is lost in confrontational protests.
I agree, good post!
For those of you who have it in for corporations, may I ask why you buy the products they sell or services they offer? How many of you have iPhones, Smartphones, the latest technology? How many of you have retirement accounts with a company such as Fidelity, Vanguard, Axa, ING? How many of you put money in a bank? How many of you go grocery shopping?
As for the OWS crowd, is it really a good thing to punish people who have a job? What about the single dad/mom who has to work in order to support his/her family? Is it fair to them to keep them from their job, even if they do work in one of those dreaded corporations? Keep in mind that not everyone that works in a corporation makes a lot of money. And, many cannot afford any down time, especially from people deliberately intent on making the lives of others difficult in order to make a point.
I have no objections whatsoever to making one's sentiments known; protest away, I say. I draw the line when those sentiments are accompanied by actions that negatively impacts others.
The Republicans' goals are to elimination Rights for
everyone but the rich. Those of you that continue to vote that way will
eventually find out that you too will be affected by their actions.
For the record majority of the debt accumulated was the result
of the war, which was enacted under the Bush Administration. Regardless of who
is in office, we will not pay down the national debt anytime soon, especially when big business refuse to put people back to work. One cannot count solely on the small business owners because they operate on the basis of unfair hiring practices and offers very little benefits. So, unless people are
honest with themselves, make ethical decisions by doing what is right for this
country; we will not get any better. Eventually we will find ourselves (as a
nation) vulnerable to others.
And you forgot to say even though you hinted around that it's Bush's fault. Obama ran for president knowing what our debt was and also knowing we were at war. We are still at war and our debt has nearly tripled, but it's still Bush's fault right?
That's a pathetic lie. It is democrats that have forced you to buy insurance whether you like it or not. It is democrats that want to control what you eat, what you drink, what you drive, where you live, etc., not republicans.
Republicans want to give you the right to choose union representation or not, democrats want to force you to join and pay dues to support causes you don't agree with. Republicans want to give you the option of investing some of your retirement funds so greedy politicians can't get their hands on it, democrats want access to ALL your money so they can take it all and stick you with IOU's.
Anarchy won't get my vote.
It's getting clearer to me why people are out in the streets. Just taking the time to listen helps me develop understanding and compassion for their story, and what has been done to them. Now even the youth are getting out in the streets http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1kf016Xosk
The youth are naive and easily swayed by propaganda. That's how Obama got elected. They wised up two years later when they graduated with no jobs.
You got to admire liberal spin, they lie and repeat the lie on every post of every blog.
99% vs 1%= a whole bunch of dumb a^^es that believe it.
Given 1% are rich, most actors actresses are rich and liberal, but you don't see them giving their money away to every homeless person they meet. Sure they will spend their time telling you to do it, but they don't.
55% of the socalled 99% are hardworking, careful planning folks who are doing just fine and would like to do better when times change in Nov..
25% of the 99% are retired folks who did the planning and saving and now enjoying retirement. Sure they would like to do a little more but they know after Nov. things will get better for them.
So lets see, I think that leaves 20% of the 99% that are unhappy, and that falls inline with the welfare and freeloaders on the govt dole. They can spin it anyway they want, they just can't make the numbers work.
Just another sign of our times. The class war is not an illusion. Many good hard working people are out of jobs and would much rather be working than protesting.
Sadly, those who have, seem to have little compassion for those who have not.
Just because a small percentage of lazy deadbeats have the time to join in the cause, do not let the real message get lost.
The governments time has been spent entertaining wars and corporate interests for to long and it has destroyed the middle class, while dividing our county in to two classes.
When it gets worse, and it will, many of you that scoff at their attemt to peacfully demonstrate for sound reasons, may find out you're not middle class anymore, and may understand where many of them are now.
Ok, I'll let you heartless ones call me names now for defending american citizens using their constitutional rights..
With your support, soon none of us will have them anymore. Thanks
Sunshine, you can't be hardworking and out of a job at the same time. OOPS, my bad you are a liberal, no clue to an oxymoron statement, LOL
Hey smart guy, you can be working hard at finding a job raising a family or whatever whilst being unemployed. FAIL! (epic)
I WANT TO SEE ROMNEYS 2011 TAXES! I will never vote for someone who does not care about
the middle and lower income families. It is impossible for everyone to be rich! LET’s
see those taxes RoMNEY! What is Romney trying to hide??? Maybe he is trying to hide a few wives...
Why .... ??
Are you missing a few .... ??
Good evening Bigben, nice to see you on board tonight.
Ben, I dont have any.
There is a way to even things out. Give the workers in the company a piece of the pie. This makes them part owners. If the company does well, then so does the workers etc. The boss's might not make as much, but they would still do very well and the company as a hole would inprove. Any way there are solutions, we just all have to work together to fix things. So instead of fighting try loving, every one would be happier.
I WANT TO SEE ROMNEYS 2011 TAXES! I will never vote for someone who does not care about
the middle and lower income families. It is impossible for everyone to be rich! LET’s
see those taxes RoMNEY! What is Romney trying to hide??? Maybe he is trying to hide a few wives...
The number of people in poverty has increased under Obama and the amount of middle class families has decreased. We have less people in the American workforce now, than at any other time in the past three decades. Romney has a proven background and history of job creation. Obama has a proven background in Constitutional Law and how to manipulate it.
The Republicans really hate the Occupy movement ......... WHY ?
Because most are lazy, self serving and have never worked hard at anything a day in their life, but expect to live like royalty at the expense of someone else.
They disrupt and terrorize the very people they claim to represent. They want to kill capitalism, the very force that made us the greatest country in the world, and replace it with socialism, the system that is destroying the EU.
Show me the proof...
I think some are legit protesters who view themselves like the counter-culture of the 60's and early 70's.
Others are anarchist communist loons.
We'll see... legitimate protesters won't stand with protesters hell bent on civil disobedience.