Nearly one year ago a bottom up protest movement erupted in New York City, calling attention to the role of Wall Street in robbing the 99% and wrecking the economy. It was a movement that inspired millions.

But Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a global leader of the 1%, unleashed his ‘private army’ to pepper spray, beat, arrest, imprison and evict us. As we prepare for the one year anniversary of Occupy Wall Street on September 17th, what will his response be this time?

Tell Mayor Bloomberg to respect Occupy’s right to peaceably assemble.

Occupy organizers from all five boroughs and from across the country are striving for a different kind of democracy. One where million$ and billion$ don’t decide who gets elected and who gets arrested. Do you have our back?

If so, tell Mayor Bloomberg, and join us in exercising our right to protest.

Tell the Mayor of Wall Street to put away his violent white shirts, helicopters, guns, chemical agents, jail cells and undercover spying operations.

Occupy is a nonviolent movement. And if Mayor Bloomberg hears all of our voices together and sees our collective power in the streets, we might just make it out of #S17 in one piece.

More ways to help support #OWS On Our One-Year Anniversary

On the weekend of September 17th we are calling all members of the 99% to converge on New York City for three days of celebration, education, and resistance.

And we need your help to make this convergence a truly historic event.

Donate to help support Occupy Wall Street actions on our one year anniversary.

Over the past year we have fundamentally changed the conversation and empowered people to take to the streets in their communities. We pinpointed the proper Villain in the American Nightmare, and displayed how when it comes to the degradation of the American Dream, All Roads Lead to Wall Street.

Yes we changed the conversation, and now we act that much more forthrightly to change the world. Likewise, we are seeking funds to facilitate such large ambitions.

Help provide resources to support our actions on the weekend of September 15-17.

Our previous request for contributions to the OWS May Day Fund was a great success, helping make May Day a large scale spectacle. The funds were utilized to support communications, transportation, food, printing costs, art fabrication, and music production for actions throughout the day, including the pop-up occupation of Bryant Park, the solidarity rally and concert at Union Square, and the Popular Assembly in the financial district.

We are using the same system of resource allocation this time, which we have renamed the Action Resource Fund (ARF). ARF will be raising and distributing funds via the S17 Planning Group, a body convened by the Direct Action Working Group in July.

The most important way you can show your support is by joining us in the streets on #S17. But we also need financial and material resources to spread the word and support actions.

Please contribute if you are able to and help increase the scale of what we can achieve on our anniversary.

After leaving the Spectra Pipeline Blast Zone, the Occupy Guitarmy will lead a musical march through the village to Foley Square. At Foley Square there will be a giant celebration for and by Occupy Wall Street, including an educational and community-oriented Occupy Town Square and a concert, which will feature Tom Morello, Jello Biafra, Das Racist, Rebel Diaz, Michelle Shocked, and many others.

Occupy Guitarmy will open the concert will a massive sing-along version of “Wall Street, Your Kingdom Must Come Down” leading into “Frack You.” We will end the concert with a massive singalong and guest verses of “Which Side Are You On?”

Bring your instruments, noisemakers, and voices.

12-1pm March leaves from Specra to Foley Square

1pm-6pm Occupy Town Square at Foley Square (Center Street and Worth Street)

For more information on what this is about, see the Committee Against Political Repression!

Thursday, September 13th

Seattle, WA: Rally outside the hearing at noon in front of the Federal Court House (700 Stewart St). In the event that a contempt hearing is held that day, please be prepared to come inside the courthouse for to support the resisters. You’ll need photo ID and court-appropriate clothes. Don’t bring anything you wouldn’t be able to get past metal detectors and security guards.

RSVP on Facebook

Grand juries are closed to the public, but contempt hearings are not!

We believe that the Assistant US Attorney overseeing this grand jury has already granted immunity for at least one, if not both of the subpeanuts for September 13th. That means it’s likely they’ll be taken straight from the grand jury room to a contempt hearing, then whisked off to jail for up to the duration of the investigation. If you’re coming to Seattle already that day for the solidarity demo, please be prepared to go inside to pack the courtroom for any contempt hearings that may happen. You’ll need photo ID and court-appropriate clothes. Let’s show Leah and the rest of the subpeanuts that we’re with them, every step of the way!!

Vigil from Noon on the September 13th till noon on September 14th.

Portland, OR: Rally in front of the Federal Court House (1000 SW 3rd Ave, at Salmon) at 12:30pm until 3:30. We will be giving live updates from Seattle.

Minneapolis, MN: Rally in front of Minneapolis City Hall (350 S 5th Street) from noon to 1 pm.

Everywhere: National Fax in Day to Support Grand Jury Resistors

Ramarley Graham Vigil To Be Held At Bronx Criminal Courthouse Occupy Guitarmy To Occupy Courthouse On Eve Of NYPD Trial

This Thursday, September 13, Occupy Guitarmy will join the family of Ramarley Graham at the start of the trial of the NYPD officer charged with the killing of their son. The courthouse will be the site of a large group of social justice activists including Stop Stop & Frisk, Take Back The Bronx and hip hop group Rebel Diaz.

On February 2, Ramarley Graham, an 18-year-old Bronx resident, was followed home from a local convenience store, shot and killed by officer Richard Haste inside his own home. The community was outraged at this brutal and unnecessary act, and Ramarlay’s story has now been linked to the large number of victims of police brutality in the city. Many prominent communities, from city councilmen (Jumaane Williams) to religious leaders (Rev. Al Sharpton) have spoken on behalf of Graham and against the policies of the NYPD.

Bronx Courthouse Occupied

On the eve of the trial the Occupy Guitarmy will lead a group of activists from Union Square on an eight mile march to the Bronx Criminal Courthouse (215 E 161st St.) where they will perform a “sleepful protest” outside the court’s doors.

The Occupy group wishes to highlight the confluence of policing problems evident in the tragedy of Ramarley Graham: an out of control surveillance state, lack of proper police training, racial profiling, unlawful entry, and unwarranted use of lethal force. These are endemic problems within the NYPD’s failed drug enforcement and Stop & Frisk policies.

Wednesday
March leaves Union Square Wed, Sept 12, 3pm
March arrives Bronx Courthouse 215 E 161st Street at 7pm
Songs and Occupation into the night

Thursday
9am, Bronx Criminal Court (215 E 161st Street)
1pm: Vigil for Reynaldo Cuevas, a man shot by a police officer while he escaping the scene of an armed robbery. At Aneurys Deli Grocery at 1299 Franklin Ave.

The Occupy Guitarmy is a musical street action project of the OWS Music Working Group. The leaderless, multi-instrumental group plays and sings in support of workers and for actions supporting economic, environmental, or social justice. The group’s two most recent actions were a trans-Manhattan march in support of the Russian musicians and political prisoners Pussy Riot, and a 99 mile march from Philadelphia to NYC to celebrate the 100th birthday of Woody Guthrie.

For more information, please see www.guitarmy.org @owsmusicgroup @owsguitarmy

Contact: music@nycga.net
Goldi 917-382-9868

via Occupy Seattle:

When – Mon, September 17, 6pm – 10pm
Where – Westlake 400 Pine (map)

Occupy changed the conversation.

It placed greed front and center in the public debate. In solidarity with #OWS and Occupy’s 1 year anniversary, let’s bring it back to it’s roots.

Join us. Sept. 17th at 6PM in Westlake Park.

“Right now, with every dollar we spend, we give corporations more and more influence over our politics. Over our healthcare, our government, our society, and our future. With every dollar we give them more and more influence over our daily lives.

We think this is wrong. Money isn’t speech. And it definitely shouldn’t be a corporate megaphone with which to corrupt our system of government, bribe our politicians, and buy special treatment.

Our actions as consumers continue to fuel this problem. Without change, we will continue to live in a system that forces us to sell our voices, and in effect to buy our own silence. We must take responsibility for the part we continue to play. We must change as much as we expect change.

We’ve been taught to sell out our own voices. We’ve been taught to be consumers rather than fully alive human beings. We’ve been taught to be silenced. And that that silence is the hidden price we must all pay for being consumers.

Buying their goods shouldn’t mean selling our voices. Buying their goods shouldn’t mean selling ourselves. We feel it’s time people started drawing attention to the silencing power of money as speech. As consumers, as voters, as citizens, as a society, as people, and as human beings, we can all agree, money shouldn’t talk.

Together let us reclaim our voices with silence.”

This is a silent flash march into the shopping areas of the downtown core. Once there, we will be silently walking / flooding into several actual shopping centers & stores. We’ll also be meeting up at certain times to regroup and hold brief 1/2 hour silent vigils.

Small printed versions of the above statement for you to hand out will also be available if someone wishes to engage you in positive dialog about this action or wants a more information about the action and you do not wish to break your silence.

• 6:00pm – Meet at Westlake park. Please bring a dollar bill with you. We’ll have some tape & spirit gum on hand. If you can bring some extra to share, even better.

• 6:30pm – Silent flash march begins. Details of the exact schedule and timings for the march to follow. We will also have small cheat-sheets available with a map and the times for the silent vigils.

In keeping with the message of the dollars tapped over our mouths, a silent flash march means remaining as quiet as possible. Please no chanting, singing, talking, drums, etc. We make our point by making eye contact with as many of the people we pass as possible and holding it just a little too long. For that reason also, please do not bring signs to hold or flags to wave. If you’re planning on entering shops, you might want to leave the Occupy labeled gear at home. It may tip off some businesses that have “banned” occupy gear and prevent you from moving freely.

Not only will our silence be a powerful statement, it will hopefully also be the key to our ability to enter those spaces that we might otherwise have to avoid.

See you there!!! Please invite your friends even if you can’t make it!