May Day, May Day!!! Occupy Albany...

May 1, 2012,  Albany, New York

                                                                           

May Day!!!  Day one of the 2012 season of occupying in Albany.  61 degrees, overcast, breezy, and the ground still quite wet and soggy in spots after a fairly steady rain last night.  After an almost non-existent opening day parade scheduled to begin at 12 noon, the afternoon rally and "teach in" beginning around 1 pm in Academy Park was also poorly attended.  Maybe 150 Occupiers, and and almost equal number of state and local police (I exaggerate, but not by much) and members of the press hoping for some action.  They were sorely disappointed, as were the rally organizers who had hoped for a larger and more enthusiastic turn out.  Fair weather anarchists???  Short attention span???  Apathy???  Hope this is not a barometer of things to come and that the warm weather will bring out the crowds as they have been reported to have turned out in other cities.  There does not seem to be the sense of inner city urban desperation here as elsewhere, and the turn out from the suburban "activists" was sparse.  Maybe if it was a Saturday...  Disinterest set in quickly and "the center did not hold" in spite of fervent calls to action by facilitators.  Photographically, it was a slow day as well.

                                                                         

                                David

                               George

                               A guy from the gay and lesbian group

Came home for a while for lunch, and will return to Academy Park for the hoped for big rally at 5 pm.   Everything is in place for a real protest. Will report back then.

Then:
Got back to the park at about 5:50.  58 degrees, overcast and there was a darkness of the spirit in the air.  Same 150 or less people were there.  Fewer cops and reporters.  Even they realized the air was out of the balloon.  Hung around for a few hours, till I couldn't take it any more and went home.  Got the feeling that this might be a last gasp for the Occupy Albany people.  Wasn't even thinking about them any more till I turned on the local news showing live shots of the last stragglers being arrested for refusing to leave the park after the 11:00 curfew.  A pathetic display of negative attention seeking behavior as PR stunt.   Civil disobedience for its own sake, or rather as a last gasp of relevance, an unmistakable sign of capitulation.  They were lucky that the local media had nothing better to do at the moment and aided and abetted the "movement" in perpetrating the perception that they went out with a bang rather than a whimper.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  Hope the coming of warm weather and summer vacation will bring out the fair weather friends of Occupy, and prove me wrong.

                                                                     

                                                                     Sadly,  Pablo

Occupy Albany!!! D Day in America ...

Dateline Albany, New York   December 22, 2011  Day 68 of the Occupation...

An unseasonably warm first day of winter up here in Albany.  47 degrees and partly to mostly cloudy today.  Great weather for a massacre.  Yesterday it was in the high 30s and it rained for much of the day.  An unpleasant day to be Occupying, I'm sure, creating an ambivalence that might have made the Occupiers glad to be put out of their misery.  Since I just got back from Florida, after helping out with my ailing old father for the past 3 weeks, this was my first opportunity to visit the Occupy encampment in a while.  Not much new to see except for a few new signs, a lot less tents and few expectations.

And this guy named Gene, who was making his sign...

Today was an auspicious day to return because the city had gotten a court order permitting them to evacuate Academy Park on December 22 and close down the movement.  Since things had been going reasonably agreeably and peacefully  on both sides, many people  did not take this order all that seriously, especially since it meant dispossessing people just 3 days before Christmas and would be a PR disaster for the city (so they were saying), so there was little preparation for the impending invasion and police action.  Big mistake!!!  The police never like to miss the chance to kick ass and take names, so why should today be any different.  It wasn't...   

I got down to the park at about 12:30,  and was greeted by a quiet and much diminished presence.  Fewer tents and fewer people still.  Some new faces and some of the stalwarts.  Took a couple of pictures, talked to 3 or 4 Occupiers and was thinking of leaving, when much to our surprise, at 1:59 Deputy Police Chief Schultz materialized on the scene

 accompanied by what appeared to be an Armani clad, tassel shod city attorney, entering the park and announcing the court order stating that if the Occupation did not cease and desist within the next hour, proceedings would begin by the Department of General Services, with armed tactical support by the storm troopers of the Albany Police department, to dismantle the encampment.  Surprise!!! surprise!!! to those youngsters who missed the 60's and obviously didn't follow my advice to read the manual.

That said, it all came down real fast and real mean after that, with a menacing police presence descending rapidly on the park on horseback armed with tear gas and clubs hoping for necessary  provocation, followed by a phalanx of neon vested Department of General Services goons eager to wreak havoc on the remaining Occupiers.

Municipally endorsed modern day cossack.  You could feel their aggressive energy in the air and see their drooling appetite for state sanctioned destruction and thuggery.  It  reeked of that 1960's feeling of us against them, the hippies vs the police.  The only difference is that with shrinking state and municipal budgets, the people that are doing the trashing and pillaging today could easily be among the unemployed and disenfranchised of tomorrow and may be under the boot themselves as they themselves stand bewildered and uncomprehending in a motley crowd on the street wondering out loud, chanting, screaming, howling, what became of their livelihood and their portion of the "American Dream".  But in the end, confused by romney-esque rhetoric they don't understand, and addled by drink, they will slink home, drunk and angry, beat their wives and children, and blame the alien hordes that stole their jobs.  Will they wake up and see the truth, or roll out of bed hungover and ready to goose step and  don the brown shirt of fascism?????  What do you think???

With the police presence in place and hungry for blood of any Occupier naive enough to believe that  good will continued on the part of a frustrated city government was sorely mistaken!!!  The invasion began...

Under police protection, they made quick work of it, and despite protestations and pledges to lay their lives down for the cause, the whole thing ended a little after 4:00 with a whimper not a bang, which was just as well for these mostly 20 somethings.  The police did show an initial restraint in the face of an onslaught of profanity laced verbal provocation, turning the other cheek and not responding at all.  An apparently welcome change from the blood lust exhibited by the police in the  60's.  This "benevolence" was no doubt  helped along by the presence of TV cameras from 5 or 6 local stations and a very progressive new police chief and DA who up to this point had shown a surprising degree of tolerance.   And believe me, there was this one guy (the one with the hat and red sign) who tried his level best, short of physical contact to provoke a police reaction.  But as the evening fell the mood got ugly the jack boot police thugs on horseback and foot got busy and began to savage the crowds with pepper spray, night sticks, and profanity, later claiming that this "crowd control" was necessary to protect the Occupiers from greater harm.  In the end, there was nothing but a swirl of frantic activity...

And in the end, there were only garbage trucks to haul away the evidence of this once vibrant village.  

Since the Occupiers failed to have a meaningful exit strategy in place (or did they? we shall see...), it ended as it did.  The energy was gone at that point and the city did them a favor.  They got tons of press, and they will be able to return next spring rested and ready.

                                                                  Pablo

Occupy Albany!!! Day 32....

Dateline Albany, NY,  November 22, 2011

Day 32 of the occupation of Academy Park.  JFK was killed 48 years ago today.  Cold last night, 32 degrees and 39 this afternoon.  Overcast and gloomy with a good chance of cold rain mixed with snow tonight.  The mood and energy level at base camp are starting to go south with the weather.  The last hurrah for the season should have been the "Day of Action" on November 17.  It would have been a perfect way to cap off the season of protest and a fitting coda for next year.

The issues will still be there, but even more urgent and the numbers will surge.  As Neil Young said "Its better to burn out than to fade away", which is what appears to be happening in terms of steadily diminishing numbers and energy level.  If we just wither with the weather, that will be just what the city counted on and they win the hand.  If we wait them out cold, shivering, sick and diminished,  it is a Pyrrhic victory leaving the troops dispirited and lacking momentum.  Grasping at straws with the mock attempts at being arrested for trespassing on state property ploy is a sad cry for help and attention.  Regroup...return in the spring...renewed, rested and ready...

Things are starting to have the feel of a ghost town, yesterday's news.

Len, the newest arrival at base camp says he is a trucker from Texas who came in last night because his truck broke down while he was making a delivery and he is awaiting repairs.  His cap indicates that he is a union man.  

It is time to pack the tents for now, but "not go gentle into that good night".  

                                                                   Pablo 

Addendum...Day 33.

Cold hard rain last night as predicted.  Still raining on and off today, 11/23, temp in the mid 40's.  On my way downtown today I passed base camp not expecting to see much, and indeed there was not much to see except a group of 25 or 30 damp and soggy Occupiers being organized by Colin with his megaphone exhorting the group on to chant their mantra's of discontent, and hoist their signs, all for one lone TV camera man.   There was no one else there watching or seemingly caring at this point.  But no one watching TV will know this, if it is even aired.  At this point the Occupiers are becoming old news.  If this posting is sounding less supportive than it should, that is because it is.  Rather than stepping back, and rethinking their next gambit, they have at least one thing in common with George Bush, no exit strategy.  They are now treading water and resorting to lame PR scams like the silly attention seeking civil disobedience of trespassing (wow) and demonstrations for no one by a lone TV man.   Are they watching what's going on in Egypt to see people putting their lives on the line for the cause.  Sorry I didn't have my camera, but you get the photo.  It's getting lame and tired.

Following their very successful opening salvo, it is time for a clear exit strategy for the season, at least that's what I think.

                                                                    Pablo  

Occupy Albany!!! Day 27

Dateline Albany, N.Y.  November 17, 2011

Back from assignment and pleasantly surprised to see the Occupiers still here and going strong.  It rained a bit last night and today it is overcast and presently 42 degrees.  Mother Nature had held her breath as long as possible, but the inevitable wrath of late autumn is soon to be upon us and them.

Today is day 27 of the Occupy Albany movement, and across the state it is the "Day of Action" with a march and rally here,  in NYC,  LA,  Chicago, and across the country.  As opposed to being met by police in riot gear like NYC and Oakland, where the police themselves provoked the violence they were primed and eager to subdue, the Occupiers here in Albany have been met with benign neglect in hopes that they would just go away.  So far status quo from both sides.   

 This being the state capitol, there are busloads of contingents from Buffalo, Rochester, and a variety of other upstate cities converging in solidarity of cause.  Looks like three or four hundred people ready to march.  The crowd was mixed across all demographics, but over all seemed younger and more reminiscent of the 60's.  Just need a few thousand more people, a bit more insanity, weed, et voila.  Given time I'm sure this will develop.  The issues are existentially valid, life threatening, and address the vast social and political inequities that threaten to push us over the cliff with only the extremes of society, the chronically poor and the very rich, not noticing any change.   For them it will be life as usual.

But today, it is the vast middle ground that is awakening from their existential slumber to see a changed landscape no longer hospitable to nurture the dreams and aspirations planted by them during the better years of the now past American century.

The rally began in Lafayette Park across from the capitol,  to the cynical amusement of that sneering son of privilege and  entitlement fortunate enough to be born into the right family, Gov. Andrew Cuomo.  I saw him joking about todays proceedings on TV, in that angry, unpleasant manner that seems to be his trademark.  What does he have to be angry about?

This is a guy named Colin who seemed to be the organizer du jour.  He was good.  His stuff was right out of the 1960's protester's playbook.  Chapter 1, Peaceful Demonstration.  Not sure if he has gotten to the later chapters on Kent State and the like yet.  But why dampen the enthusiasm of the movement so early in the game.  Once begun though, revolution will become serious business.  "Tin soldiers and Nixon coming, we're finally on our own", and all that.  Corporations will not take these threats to their bottom lines lightly, and through their proxy congress/legislatures/para-military police forces will test that old adage about needing the blood of patriots to nourish the tree of liberty.

And the crowds were ready to be organized for the march...

The sad answer, Christian, is that there is no love and there never was, but back in the 60's, a good demonstration and peace rally was a great place to find love, but I'm not sure that's what you are thinking of at the moment.

Linda, introduced as the organizer for the Albany Occupiers addresses the crowd..

She was kinda nice, and there was no need to ask her what her sign was...

An elder statesman of the movement.  Looks like a holdover from the 1960's who's been living in the fast lane a bit too long.

And this bloated, befuddled looking guy who seemed (and I'm sure felt) completely out of place at the rally is Bill Lambdon, a TV reporter for a local station, channel 13.  Couldn't the station have had the imagination to send a younger, hipper member of the staff who could have worked the crowd instead of  just standing there looking like he wished he could be anyplace else?

And a quick amble back to base camp prior to departing indicated that the village was intact and evolving.  Will keep you posted on the Occupy Albany Movement here in upstate New York.  

                                                                 Pablo

Occupy Albany!!!

Dateline Albany, N.Y.....  November 10, 2011...

During an unseasonably warm October and November, it is another beautiful day, sunny with temps again in the mid 60's.  Mother nature has certainly been on the side of the Occupiers and with good reason.  The greedy, corporate 1%, whom the Occupiers are railing against are destroying her planet,  smothering her, slowly poisoning her to death, and driving her children into extinction.  We have developed the technology to destroy the planet, and are doing a damn good job of using it and they won't stand for it any more.  If all the smart ass corporations, with the full support and backing of the United States congress, had not exported all of the jobs and manufacturing to countries that have no child labor laws or environmental regulations to negatively impact their bottom line, these good people would have meaningful work and a bright future and would not need to Occupy!!!

 Here, in the shadow of city hall, and the state capitol buildings, the Occupy Albany movement enters its 26th day having begun on October 15 in response to the Occupy Wall Street movement in NYC and various other cities with the desperate hope of taking back their country, the country that has been sold out from under them.  Few people take them seriously, but it is their sense of disenfranchisement and loss of hope that gives them the strength and fervor that are the seeds of revolution.  This may be a small and vaguely focused start, but the anger is real and the issues will become more pronounced as desperation increases. The seeds of taking to the streets have been planted.  Soon you Occupiers will be labeled a threat to homeland security and the dogs will be unleashed.

And there is a whole cast of characters, young, old, employed, unemployed, disenfranchised and homeless, united together in common cause...  There's Ed from Cohoes, who can't find work these days, manning the front lines alone...

And Ed with friends at one point or other during the Occupation...

And Eric who says he's been here since day one...

Jimmy who just showed up just yesterday and is gone.  I think he does that a lot...

And Ken, the guy to the left who had a lot to say about a lot of things while eating the pizza that was just delivered.  Going on about LBJ of all people he continued choking and talking.  He said his father says he will probably die choking on a piece of steak.  I had to walk away so I would not be party to any self inflicted damage on Ken' part.

There are lots of others who I have not gotten to talk to yet, but most people seem to know why they are

there.  They are not sure they know how they will know when and if they have won, and exactly what winning will look like, but they seem to be having a fine time doing it in the process, and I have once again become something of a photojournalist sans film, developing and the dreaded deadlines.  But no Gaye Applebaum to write the text and share the experience, which was part of the fun.  Have an assignment to complete in Cleveland.  Leaving tomorrow and won't be back till the 15th.  Will check in then.

                                                                      Pablo