What's The Truth Behind the 'Occupy' Eureka's Story?

It takes so much to unravel the consequences of misinformation, once it's made public.

(EUREKA, CA) - It is seeming easy to fall into vilifying another, especially if one appears to be homeless and unkempt and we haven't bothered to get close enough to understand and appreciate them for who they are (or may even suffer from) before making up our minds. It's part of our upbringing in America... to avoid close encounters of these kinds with those who seem bizarre, or say, having different appearances... not dressed as we are... part of what happens in having our lives daily conditioned by teachings, which form our cultures prejudices and misconceptions.

Two Times Standard reporter several year ago chose to pose and live as homeless for a few days and their whole perspective changed.

As much as we at 'Occupy support homeless causes and watch out for their welfare at the courthouse, none of the disturbances caused by 1 or 2 on drugs or mentally ill, confronting folks entering or leaving the building have ever been part of our work. We do our utmost to intervene and end these and other conflicts. But this is not what local government and police reports say, even as they know full well who is responsible.

We chose the courthouse for this campaign, because it represents the seat of local control and sits at the crossroads for thousands passing every day. We followed in the Spirit of 'Occupy Wall Street in doing so 24/7, not knowing what this would mean.

Background helps so much, before making any summaries. We've run smack into the workings of human nature here, in that a segment of public perception has been distorted and inflamed by almost total misinformation of What 'Occupy Eureka is doing, precisely at the moment when the substance of why we're here has got to be absolutely clear.

Nothing, but more of
"We The People"
participating and working together now
will bring healing we must have in these crucial times.

The Tunisian protests constituted the most dramatic present day nationwide non violent rising up of its people against the corruption, malice and greed of its government, resulting in police use of force against demonstrators, yet the people prevailed and their government was replaced within 28 days. The sordid truth of that regime, supported by this government, was exposed by those same set of official leaks put out by Bradley Manning. But human nature and the immensity of the U.S. government with its variety of military might and tools have been used to undermine 'Occupy protest here and taken its toll on the movement, while it's been further thwarted here by those locally who are willing to believe government and its police forces and their public lies, their misrepresentations, which have undermined public perception here.

A recent Northcoast Journal article subtitle states; "Courthouse Camp Crumbles". What does that mean, for it is almost as undermining, in words, (for those who read such a report) as police who have illegally raided in darkness to destroy our protests, brutalizing some activists, tearing apart these non violent direct action camps, stealing hundreds of pieces of equipment over these past 3 months, despite our numerous arrests and charges being thrown out in court? Why this huge disparity in the truth that continues being reported?

Oft repeated police allegations in press releases vilify our presence, lie about the charges (proven false by numerous videos and pictures (beyond being recently exonerated in court) always intimating that the numerous calls they have had to answer and costs to the department were somehow the fault of peace activists and all of this reporting picked up by local press.

As we have said, even their own police cameras, focused on us in the courtyard 24/7 will vindicate who has been offensive, who has broken up conflicts, who continuously and daily cleans and maintains this shared public space.

The minute officials knew we were using the courthouse water spigot to wash dishes and daily clean the area, it was turned off. They turned down our immediate requests to allow us to obtain porta potties at our own expense, while simultaneously calling our camp unhygienic and telling us to leave. The prisoner visiting area rest rooms were finally closed to anyone without ID's, and sometimes are just closed to us altogether; urgently needed prescribed medicines not allowed to one activist jailed after being beaten by police in one raid.

As to the allegations of our danger to the community and the reason for their raids. Where were the explosives and if that was their reason for raiding, why never bothering to search before dumping all personal gear across the street on their first raid Nov. 7th. . . obviously of no importance to them at all, as was being rid of us. Now we hear of some rocks mentioned, as if they too apply to this movement. Is this kind of scenario to follow us despite the huge urgency of our real concerns ?

Why we asked district attorney Gallegos, did he not elect to simply approach us with search warrants, which would have quickly cleared that matter. Why choosing to use force to eliminate and criminalizing activists unless it was part of governments orchestrated strategies against this protest and peace activists?

Local law enforcement knows quite what's going on in their own courtyard, knows who is responsible for any of those allegations against protestors, which have brought harsh criticism by a few. . even divisiveness being expressed by some who support work for change yet tend to believe police reports, before the truth can surface. Police chief Merle Harpum knows the truth, even as articles quotes him as saying how ugly this protest has become,...saying he favored it at the beginning, but this is simply not believable by the county correspondence we received right from the beginning, after some outbursts from drunk and mentally ill already directed at people entering and leaving the building.

Such misinformation and exploiting of our efforts are absolutely part of why we continue protesting against local government, as surely as we must its counterparts in Washington.

On the other hand despite difficulties with dealing with certain homeless, the goodwill and friendship are intact too, for we understand their problems, understand their outbursts, knowing they're far removed from the comforts of home, all of what they own of clothes and sleeping gear heaped on benches, many essentially refugees on the front door of this government, as surely as 3rd worlder's dispossessed by this governments endless wars of exploitations, making immigrants of 5 million alone, in the illegal Iraqi war.

It's why we continue to urge for real answers by setting aside, at least some space in Eureka for homeless sleeping and camping, without having them face harassment, arrests, ticketing, beatings or worse and destruction of their worldly goods.

It takes so much to unravel the consequences of misinformation, once it's made public.

In the Journals reporting, what is more projected, say, is someone jumping up to gain their attention and 'getting it'. But this totally ignores the urgency imposed upon Americans and literally the whole human race, which 'Occupy is attempting to make clear in bringing millions to their feet behind this great movement. It calls for us to act collectively to avoid these devastating consequences.

As strange, say, as would be a report on a theater performance and coming away with a story of someone in the lobby disrupting, as if being part of what happened on stage, even newsworthy enough to make it appear as if the performance itself was less important and even made more insignificant by such an occurrence.

What do we make of the continued daily encouragement shown by so many who drive by, the hundreds who have signed up to receive our reports, research studies and calls to action, those many who write back and/or wanting to be friends on Facebook.

Virtually thousands seem to 'get the message' and know why they bother to support and feel inclusion is sorely needed. They did so as soon as this movement emerged, because they already knew why this corporate run and corrupted government with its fatally flawed policies could no longer be allowed to lead. Those hundreds who have brought home cooked meals, coffee and sweets, loads of other snacks and beverages, equipment, flags and other useful gifts, the thousands who have honked and do so every day, the thumbs up, the Peace signs, the waves, the smiles, the fists pumping, the yells or stopping long enough in their work day to say "keep it up!", the young, so responsive, seeing we mean to stand up to this tyranny.

Of utmost importance is how 'Occupy Eureka is home to a wide variety of the most opinionated, diverse, committed people, the regulars working shifts mounting to well over a thousand hours and also organizing events, reflecting all kinds of backgrounds, trainings, passions, directions and visions, but inclusive, because "it's got to be" to meet the urgency of our times! Eureka's campaign events have all been part of a packaged message, while stressing one crucial issue ...then moving on to another, because of the heap and grossness of too many to sum up quickly.

There's no time left for bickering over differences ....as if our chatting and putting particular spins to these times is worthy in face of this military industrial complexes 24/7 incursions into our lives, happy to have us so diverted, while it proceeds with its slow, methodical elimination of everything we hold dear. "Oh', we say, "Its only a little more.". . . not remembering the insidiousness of these generations of its gross and accumulated effects!

Berkeley campus in the 60's rising up over the administrations refusal to allow tabling! That's all it took back then... when thousands surrounded police who were prepared to take away their organizers ." Odious times" they called it as Clark Kerr, then Chancellor spoke naively in wondering why such a fuss when, after all, students were there being prepared to be spokes in the wheels of corporations.

Obama signs the National Defense Authorization Act saying he doesn't agree with certain parts, but it's so-called law now, to be used against us, defying and further burying the Constitution.

The most controversial provisions for Use of Military Force (AUMF) and detention provisions is to indefinitely hold U.S. citizens arrested on American soil on suspicion of being terrorists. The FBI has already has raided, broken into homes and offices of anti-war and international solidarity activist, taken their equipment, cell phones, computers and paper records.

Our freedoms under the First Amendment and Civil Rights are almost gone, what's left under attack by further methods in use by government. We've got to come to grips with this truth, re; indefinite detention, warrant-less searches, secret evidence* war crimes* assassination of U.S. citizens, secret courts, immunity from judicial review, continual monitoring of citizens, our freedoms being eroded, extraordinary rendition, transfers to torture prisons...all of it.

+ Loss of funding to sustain our many human services and higher education + Labor unions and joining their workers in pursuing their needs

Extremely complex times makes it necessary for the 'Occupy movement to be savvy about the entire, incomprehensible hell of this death wish of consumption fantasy we have allowed ourselves to be chained with. No matter how absurd it sounds, we've run out of options and must deal with the totality of such reality!

It means changing the whole dynamic in going directly to the sources, the abusers and our deterioration under domination of corrupted, hoarding corporate/ government with their objectives worldwide. The rich robbing and eliminating the poor and "yes" it's right here in Humboldt too!

It's a huge "Wake Up Call"... "finally" able to 'see our huge losses', see our own diminishing humanity,...like as... having been drugged, under the influence..........and finally resolved to shake the addiction!