May Day Organizers To Hold Press Conference on Police Brutality

Portland – Today, organizers of actions on May Day, members of the legal community and victims of police brutality will speak about the police response. Speakers will include individuals from the Portland Liberation Organizing Council, which liberated a foreclosed home in the morning, and the May Day Coalition, which organized the afternoon march, among others. They will speak in a press conference about the brutality by the Portland Police Bureau and the unity of social justice movements in the face of this attempted repression. Supporting organizations have also issued a statement condemning the May Day police violence, which can be found below.

CONTACT: Kari Koch, (971) 266-0397

WHAT: Press Conference with organizers of May Day actions, legal support for those arrested and beaten and victims of police brutality

WHEN: Friday, May 4th, 2012, 10:30am

WHERE: Justice Center, 1120 Southwest 3rd Avenue

WHO: A broad representation of groups from across the Portland community including those listed below.
Speaking: Marco Mejia, May Day Coalition; Genevieve Goffman, Occupy Portland SpokesCouncil; Jim Canright, ELK – Elk Law Krew; Ahmaju Umi, Black Working Group; Rain Crowe, Portland Liberation Organizing Council (PLOC)

SUPPORTING ORGANIZATIONS:
Portland Liberation Organizing Council (PLOC)
May Day Coalition
Occupy Portland SpokesCouncil
Occupy Portland Livestream - opdxlive.org
Radical Anti-Capitalist Caucus of Occupy Portland (RACC)
ELK – Elk Law Krew
Hella503 Affinity Group
Oregon Jericho
Portland Central America Solidarity Committee (PCASC)
International Socialist Organization
Oregon Progressive Party
Portland Animal Defense League
Portland Action Lab

Contact: Mario Haro, 503-419-7842
Twitter: @OccupyMario

Rally to Support Don Burgess & Occupy The Courts

Portland, OR — On Monday, members of Occupy Portland will gather at the Multnomah County Courthouse at SW 3rd and Salmon to support the 75+ occupiers entering into court hearings this month. A rally is scheduled from 8:30am to 11:30am and will include people of faith, students, anti-police brutality organizers, legal justice advocates and others.

Occupiers charge that peaceful protesters were unjustly arrested and that the legal system is stymieing their rights to a trial by jury. The Portland Occupier (http://www.portlandoccupier.org/) reports that, “Constitutional issues will be questioned and the people’s right to assemble will be up for judgment, with Judge Albrecht presiding” making this series of hearings significant beyond the occupy community.

The rally will show public support for Occupy Portland member Don Burgess who was arrested on the night of Nov 2, 2011 at an anti-police brutality march through downtown. Burgess allegedly engaged aggressively with a police officer but he maintains his innocents, says that there are witnesses to support him, and wants a fair trial.

“Seeing what has happened recently with the Trayvon Martin murder and the reinstatement of the officer who murdered Aaron Campbell, it is not surprising that the only occupier with felony charges is an African-American,” says Mario Haro with Occupy Portland. “We will rally to stand against the police system that unfairly targets people of color in our communities, against police intimidation, and for our right to assemble, to speak and to access a jury trial.”

Rally to Support Don Burgess

https://www.facebook.com/events/237469349676141/

Occupy The Courts

https://www.facebook.com/events/313469238717573/

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This is a non-G.A. endorsed worker solidarity event.

MEDIA CONTACT:    info@newseasonsmarketworkersvoice.org      971-258-1653

Location: 1954 SE Division St., Portland, OR

“A group of workers, now called New Seasons Market Workers’ Voice, have been campaigning for a more democratic workplace for over 3 years now. When management made the decision to fire Ryan they weren’t just getting rid of a 9 and half year committed staff member, they were attempting to silence the voices of their workers.  New Seasons drew that line, now we are responding.“

-Noah Johnson-Greenough, Produce Service Manager for New Seasons Market

PORTLAND, OR — Workers and community supporters have been engaged in an intense week of preparation for tomorrow’s solidarity rally at New Seasons Market, to take place at the Seven Corners store location (1954 SE Division St., 11:00am)  Earlier this week, the New Seasons Market Workers’ Voice campaign received a full endorsement from the Portland chapter of Jobs with Justice, a large coalition of labor unions and pro-worker democracy advocates representing thousands of people in the Portland area.

An official announcement from JwJ states:

“Portland Jobs with Justice is committed to workers’ rights to collective action, democracy in the workplace, and due process. We have endorsed the campaign of New Seasons Market Workers’ Voice and call for the immediate reinstatement of Ryan Gaughan, who we believe was unjustly fired because of his efforts to promote workplace democracy. We encourage others to do likewise.”

Additionally, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) investigation continues into the circumstances surrounding the termination of employee Ryan Gaughan on February 7.  Ryan filed an Unfair Labor Practice charge with the NLRB several days after his termination and, with the support of co-organizers and workers from the company, the NLRB is examining evidence which supports the claim that he was involved in multiple occurrences of workplace concerted activity.  The NSM Workers’ Voice campaign maintains that Ryan was targeted by management and selectively terminated due to his participation in these efforts to address and improve working conditions.

A delegation of supporters will be on hand to deliver a community petition to management containing over 700 signatures which calls for the immediate reinstatement of Ryan Gaughan.  This petition also demands that management at NSM begin meeting with workers in the company to begin negotiations seeking to reform the company’s disciplinary practices.  The online portion of this petition can be found at: http://newseasonsmarketworkersvoice.org/petition/

The New Seasons Market Workers’ Voice campaign calls upon all workers, customers, and community allies to participate in this critical demonstration of solidarity.

More information about the New Seasons Market Workers’ Voice campaign can be found at: newseasonsmarketworkersvoice.org

Occupy Portland announces mass mobilization & direct actions against the
American Legislative Exchange Council

WHAT: Rally and march in downtown Portland to protest the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a conglomerate of corporations and legislators that writes and passes legislation to advance corporate interests. 
The march will visit some of the over 15 social justice, environmental, and anti-capitalist groups that will take non-violent direct actions at ALEC corporations with offices in Portland. Concerned citizens, students, and occupiers in over seventy cities across the nation have responded to a national call from Occupy Portland; this will be the Occupy movement’s largest coordinated action in 2012 to date.

WHEN: Wednesday, February 29th, Rally at 11:30am, March at 1pm

WHERE: March begins at Waterfront Park at SW Naito and SW Ankeny

F29 Breakdown: 

• Umbrellas, drums, and waves oh! my! Be more than a warm body at the march! See below for info
• F29 march details Rally: 11:30AM-1PM at the Waterfront on SW Nato & Ankeny (under the west side of Burnside Bridge), march starts at 1PM!
• Follow @f29pdx for updates on Twitter
• Notes from the legal team…Write down this number: 503-902-5340, National Lawyers Guild/ELK Law Collective Legal Hotline
• If possible, wear yellow and bring an umbrella!

F29 *Open Affinity Groups*  
Arrive promptly at 11:30AM to get involved in the crowd-sourced street theater! We need drummers for the bucket drum core. We need umbrella-holders for the umbrella dance (umbrellas provided!…or bring your own). We need wave participants to crush corporate power. Please come at 11:30AM and get plugged into these groups.

F29 march and action schedule!
Over 70 cities around the world will come together on F29 to shut down ALEC’s corporate members. Join us in Portland, home to dozens of ALEC corporate members, as we shut them down! Come promptly at 11:30 to join the open affinity groups of umbrella action, drum core, and tidal wave to crush corporate power! Wear yellow and bring an umbrella, if possible!

Wednesday February 29th
11:30AM – 1PM Rally at SW Naito and Ankeny
1PM March begins. The march will visit ALEC corporate members where affinity groups are taking direct action to shut them down!

follow #F29, #OPDX, #F29PDX or follow @f29pdx for Twitter updates

Facebook Event http://www.facebook.com/pages/F29-Shut-Down-the-Corporations/169049533194891#!/events/234399339984123/

Legal jargon     503-902-5340  503-902-5340  503-902-5340  503-902-5340  503-902-5340  503-902-5340  503-902-5340  503-902-5340 503-902-5340   503-902-5340
Please arrive on Wednesday with this number written on your body. If you’re arrested/see someone getting arrested, yell your/ask them their full legal name. Report this info to the legal hotline above.

 WHY: The goal of the protest is to see an end to ALEC and the role big corporations have in corrupting our democracy. The American Legislative Exchange Council is seen by protesters as the chosen tool of the 1% and the wealthiest corporations in the world to craft legislation that serves their interests. According to ALEC’s figures, nearly 10% of state laws originate from their efforts, laws that protesters feel have damaged communities, workers, civil liberties, the environment and democracy. The protest represents an effort to focus on corporate power as the root cause of the deep inequalities that the Occupy movement has brought to the surface in recent months.

WHAT IS ALEC: Organizers chose to focus on the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) because of its behind-the-scenes role in crafting pro-corporate legislation, partnering with state legislators to pass these laws, and then profiting directly from those laws – a cycle that exemplifies the dominate role of corporations in our democracy. ALEC is comprised of state and federal government legislators – 14 Oregon state legislators are members – and many of America’s biggest corporations. ALEC is responsible for some of the most contentious legislation at the state level in the last year, including Arizona’s widely criticized Racial Profiling bill (SB1070) and the anti-union Wisconsin Act 10, which stripped public employee unions of collective bargaining last year. Prison and criminal justice legislation from ALEC include mandatory minimum sentences and Three Strikes laws, giving repeat offenders 25 years to life in prison; and “truth-in-sentencing,” which requires inmates to serve most or all of their time without a chance for parole.

WHO: Occupy Portland under the umbrella of the newly formed Portland Action Lab has spearheaded the protests, with participation from the Animal Defense League, Bike Swarm, Cascadia Earth First!, Friends of Peace House, Jobs with Justice, Our School, Portland Central America Solidarity Committee, Rising Tide, We Are Oregon, and others. Over 70 cities and occupations around the country and around the world have signed on to participate.

More information at occupyportland.org/f29,  www.shutdownthecorporations.org and www.portlandactionlab.org

headline/2012/02/21

Get Smart About ALEC #29 (under 2 minutes) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4kWRH0xzk8&feature=related
ALEC workshop by Civil Liberties Defense Center executive director Lauren Regan (50 minutes) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T5as5K5fcYs

* This action was endorsed by the Occupy Portland General Assembly. *