"Occupy" Protestors Shut Down Oakland Port - Cost workers 2 days wages - counterproductive?

[scientific method]

'Occupy' Protesters Say They Will Continue Port Blockades, Protests

Published December 13, 2011

| Associated Press

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OAKLAND, Calif. – Heady with their successful attempts to block trucks and curb business at busy ports up and down the West Coast, some Occupy Wall Street protesters plan to continue their blockades and keep staging similar protests despite requests to stop because they're hurting wage earners.

Thousands of demonstrators forced shipping terminals in Oakland, Calif., Portland, Ore., and Longview, Wash., to halt parts of their operations Monday.

At least one outside observer who has followed political movements for decades said the port blockades were an indicator of the disruptive activities likely to continue for months and right until next year's presidential elections.

The movement, which sprang up this fall against what it sees as corporate greed and economic inequality, focused on the ports as the "economic engines for the elite." It comes weeks after police raids cleared out most of their tent camps.

Protesters are most upset by two West Coast companies: port operator SSA Marine and grain exporter EGT. Investment banking giant Goldman Sachs Group Inc. owns a major stake in SSA Marine and has been a frequent target of protesters.

Demonstrators say they are standing up for workers against the port companies, which have had recent high-profile clashes with union workers. Longshoremen in Longview, for example, have had a longstanding dispute with EGT, which employs workers from a different union to staff its terminal. The longshoremen's union says the jobs rightfully belong to them.

In Oakland, some 1,000 protesters vowed to at the port overnight, but the crowd had shrunk to around 150 by 9:30 p.m. Monday, the San Francisco Chronicle reported Tuesday.

While the protests attracted far fewer people than the 10,000 who turned out Nov. 2 to shut down Oakland's port, organizers declared victory and promised more demonstrations.

"Mission accomplished," said protest organizer Boots Riley.

Mike King, another Occupy Oakland organizer, said demonstrators had voted to remain at the port until at least 3 a.m. Tuesday to block any sudden shifts of longshoremen to offload the three ships that were neglected Monday.

KGO-TV reported that the 3 a.m. shift was canceled because of the demonstrators, who at least later in the morning, were no longer at the port.

Two people were arrested in Oakland during morning protests for impeding traffic after ignoring orders to clear a gate, said interim Police Chief Howard Jordan.

Oakland Mayor Jean Quan pleaded with the occupiers to go home and allow the longshoremen and truckers get on with their livelihoods.

"People have to think about the consequences," she said. "People have to think about who they are hurting. They are saying, `We want to get the attention of the ruling class.' Well, I think the ruling class is probably laughing, and people in this city will be crying this Christmas. It's really got to stop."

Police in Seattle used "flash-bang" percussion grenades to disperse protesters who blocked an entrance to a Port of Seattle and 11 demonstrators were arrested.

Officers moved in Monday evening after Occupy Seattle protesters tried to set up a makeshift barrier near the entrances to two terminals, using scraps of wood and aluminum debris.

Police Detective Jeff Kappel said demonstrators blocked traffic and hurled flares, bags of paint and other debris at officers and police horses. He said one officer was treated by medics after a bag of paint hit his face.

In Portland, a couple hundred protesters blocked semitrailers from making deliveries at two major terminals.

Security concerns were raised when police found two people in camouflage clothing with a gun, sword and walkie-talkies who said they were doing reconnaissance.

In Alaska, Occupy Anchorage protesters showed solidarity with their West Coast counterparts by focusing on port issues, though they took a different tack in Alaska's largest city.

Rather than try to shut down the port -- which is only open two days a week and Monday was not one of them -- protesters assembled to highlight what they said was mismanagement and the proposed expansion of the Port of Anchorage, which handles most goods consumed by Alaskans.

Todd Gitlin, a sociologist at Columbia University and an authority on social movements, said the Occupy movement is highly ambitious and would continue to expand and diversify. He has said that the 1960s anti-war movement grew gradually for years until bursting onto the world stage during the election year of 1968.

"I would assume that the action today is going to be representative of what's going to be happening from now on," Gitlin said. "There will be more of a tendency toward militant disruptive activity. There's going to be a number of coordinated actions and this is going to go on for months."

Some port officials lament the loss of pay for longshoremen and truck drivers, who are not among the nation's wealthy elite -- and protesters would say are among the 99 percent.

"Today's disruptions have been costly to port workers and their families in terms of lost wages and shifts," Port of Oakland spokeswoman Marilyn Sandifur. She noted that the Oakland seaport is the fifth busiest container port in the United States and intended to open as usual Tuesday morning.

Gitlin said while the Occupy Wall Street movement is not as focused as the 1960s protests against the Vietnam War, it is in many ways more ambitious.

"The goal of the anti-war movement could be agreed upon by everyone who took part in it," he said. "There was a convergence. This is a long and deep process to fight against the power of the wealthy. That was a huge social convulsion that involved millions of people; this present movement has that potential, but it will be a long time before we know how far it goes."

Some longshoremen supported the Occupy Oakland protesters, even though they lost a day's wages. But some of the truck drivers who had to wait in long lines as protesters blocked gates said the demonstrators were harming the very people they were trying to help.

"This is joke. What are they protesting?" said Christian Vega, who sat in his truck carrying a load of recycled paper. He said the delay was costing him $600. "It only hurts me and the other drivers.

"We have jobs and families to support and feed," he said. "Most of them don't."

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us...t-down-west-coast-ports/

 

[shogun]

Doesn't seem like they care if their protest prevents other people from working or losing their jobs.
I saw on the news yesterday that a cafe in New York closed down because it was blocked from all the barricades and business was slow.  It was already struggling so it might've closed eventually anyway.

 

[scientific method]

In many cities, they are going beyond 1st amendment rights to just being annoying, disruptive, and in more and more cases breaking the law. It has even spread to OKC. They are "occupying" the area around Chesapeake Energy Arena trying to prevent people from supporting the Thunder and get the team kicked out of town "hey dude, if we stop supporting them since they wont let us into the practice facility we payed for, they'll have to leave and go to Kansas or something. Fight the power!" <-- somewhat paraphrased but that's the sentiment. There were also occupiers trying to physically prevent people from shopping at chain stores during the holidays. The whole thing has gotten tired fast.

 

[e3lal]

In my city, we have spent like near $1 million on security for them.  Could have been spent much better.  

 

[TheGodFresco]

these people are idiots

 

[dayoyoman]

Despite what mainstream media has been reporting on the port shutdown, many rank and file members of the ILWU did in fact support the blockade. Most of the union workers were paid that day.

http://cleanandsafeports....ers-on-occupy-the-ports/

AN OPEN LETTER FROM AMERICA’S PORT TRUCK DRIVERS ON OCCUPY THE PORTS
We are the front-line workers who haul container rigs full of imported and exported goods to and from the docks and warehouses every day.

We have been elected by committees of our co-workers at the Ports of Los Angeles, Long Beach, Oakland, Seattle, Tacoma, New York and New Jersey to tell our collective story. We have accepted the honor to speak up for our brothers and sisters about our working conditions despite the risk of retaliation we face. One of us is a mother, the rest of us fathers. Between the five of us we have 11children and one more baby on the way. We have a combined 46 years of experience driving cargo from our shores for America’s stores.

We are inspired that a non-violent democratic movement that insists on basic economic fairness is capturing the hearts and minds of so many working people. Thank you “99 Percenters

 

[bayyrd]

This movement has turned into nothng but a hipster movement now

 

[dayoyoman]

Hardly just 'hipsters'

 

[strawberry milkshakes]

proletariat vs proletariat

Somewhere this very moment, on a ski resort, probably out of the country, a "wallstreet banker" is in a four star cabin with his family by a fireplace flipping through a DuPont registry.

 

[dmbrhs]

In Seattle folks broke into a shipyard and stole materials to make a blockade on the street so traffic couldn't get through. Cops tried to tear it down and people started throwing bricks and paint-filled lightbulbs at cops. That's not a protest. That's just causing trouble. Get all these hooligans off the street.

 

[plumber e 20]

i can understand what these people are "occupying" for, but theyre only hurting other by not allowing them to work.
If they really wanted to make an impact, they should "occupy" their mayors/governors offices....hell, go to wall street.
Obviously the economy is bad, but theyre making things worse for people that DO have jobs?
What has really been accomplished by these rallys? A few banks closing for a day? Stopping others from working? Government making more money from arresting some of these morons?
Id be pissed if someone stopped me from making money.

 

[bob lobblaw]

Originally Posted by dayoyoman

Despite what mainstream media has been reporting on the port shutdown, many rank and file members of the ILWU did in fact support the blockade. Most of the union workers were paid that day.

http://cleanandsafeports....ers-on-occupy-the-ports/

My mom works at the port and lost 2 shifts because of them. Didn't get paid either

 

[thorrocksjs]

This movement is essential to the next major social and political reform.We need to create a reform bill that requires a raise in minimum wage, retail work reform,a requirement that major companies manufacture goods in America, a return to the gold standard and union for retail employees.

 

[fromthatown]

Originally Posted by dayoyoman

Hardly just 'hipsters'

I know both of those guys, and they are very intelligent people. I'm a ILWU Local 10 member, and let me tell you, it's BEAUTIFUL to see the occupiers think and make this movement happen. I missed work on Monday because of the blockade, but US, Longshoremans, will NEVER cross a picket line. Whether we believe in the movement or not, ILWU believes the working class definitely has a right to assemble and voice their grievances. See, what the media fails to tell tell you is that these 1 percenters ARE hurt by this. These big shipping companies, and corporations have to pay an average onf50k to 100k an hour to dock at the Port of Oakland. Mayor Quan definitely doesn't want her corporate buddies and democrats pals to be monetarily affected by this movement, so they are trying to be slick about it, and say only the truckers are hurting. Remember, this work is going no where. We all have to make a sacrifice in order for this to be successful. If EVERY Port in America had a shutdown like this for a day. You know how much money it would cost these corporations and shipping companies, let alone merchandise not getting out on time to consumers????? It costs workers a day of pay, but it cost the companies and corporations WAY more. Do your thang, occupiers, you are backing up work and creating more work for the longshoreman. But that's not what this is about. Nothing hurts more to these Greedy corporations and companies more than getting into their pockets. As a Longshoreman, we see how the level of Greed these companies try to get over on the working class, day to day. Just remember whether you're getting yours in the private sector or public sector, this movement will benefit us all, if it is successful. An injury to one is an injury to all.

 

[mrbrown]

People vs People?

If they keep at it.... non occupiers are gonna start laying the smackdown on these frail fellas

 

[mr delorean]

Originally Posted by ThorrocksJs

This movement is essential to the next major social and political reform.We need to create a reform bill that requires a raise in minimum wage, retail work reform,a requirement that major companies manufacture goods in America, a return to the gold standard and union for retail employees.

no one actually believes this until they put their money where their mouth is and vote for third party candidates.  democrats and republicans have been the cause of the problem and neither party is ever going to be part of a solution.  from where i sit, it appears a large portion of this movement is being bankrolled by the unions and one particular party.  so, until they get serious i consider it the same kind of bad joke we saw with the tea party movement.