Press Release: Worcester General Assembly consenses on Move of Occupation from Quinsigamond Lake Park to Worcester Common
NOVEMBER 5, 2011
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Media Group of Occupy Worcester (media@occupyworcester.com)
Worcester General Assembly Consenses on Move of Occupation from Quinsigamond Lake Park to Worcester Common
Worcester, MA, November 5, 2011—Occupy Worcester first attempted to set up an occupation at Worcester Common on October 16 and were met by a large police presence who redirected the occupation to Quinsigamond State Park. The occupation has remained peacefully encamped despite snow, rain, and the difficult logistical challenges of being miles from the center of the city.
A plan was approved by consensus today—November 5, 2011—to occupy Worcester’s Common, located behind City Hall. It was felt by the General Assembly that Quinsigamond Lake Park has been an excellent boot camp in preparation for taking the Common; however, the Lake Ave location has significant challenges of visibility and accessibility that have prevented more Worcesterites from joining the movement. Occupy Worcester feels that relocating to the historic Common will be better for outreach, organization, communication, and inter-Worcester solidarity.
Mayor Joseph O’Brien was in attendance at today’s General Assembly, and he told the people that City Manager Michael V. O’Brien does not support occupation of the Common and that anyone who camps will be arrested.
Gathering will start in Worcester Common at 7:30, with occupation officially set to commence at 8 pm.
The people of Worcester requests the support of Occupy Boston, Occupy Providence, Occupy Hartford, Occupy Springfield, and all peoples of New England in this action.
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Occupy Worcester is an organization of Worcester-area residents in solidarity with the Occupy Wall Street movement. For more information, visit http://www.occupyworcester.com.
[UPDATE: Please monitor Occupy Worcester’s Twitter feed and livestream for updates and live video throughout the night.]
One Response to “Press Release: Worcester General Assembly Consenses on Move of Occupation from Quinsigamond Lake Park to Worcester Common”
I attended last night’s Occupy Worcester and witnessed the discussion, preparation, implementation that resulted in the 18 arrests. A small contingent opted to risk arrest by joining together as ‘Occupiers’ of the Worcester Common. The park behind Worcester City Hall is identified by a bronze plaque as Worcester Common. A ‘common’ in my dictionary means “a public open area used in a municipality.” It is not merely a public park. If you were to go back in U.S. history, you would find that town commons were available to those with no real estate to graze their animals. Does is mean that people have who need a place to voice their rights of free speech concerning their views on current issues concerning the transformation of this nation, such as “99%” or the special powers that powerful corporations and banks have appropriated for themselves? That the Occupy Wall Street has, as a social movement, chosen tent encampments as a way to symbolize the grievances of the 99%, is a minor point: does this action threaten public order in any way except in its esthetics? Freedom of assembly does not mean ‘freedom of assembly by well-dressed people’ or freedom of assembly by ‘the upper classes’ or ‘the police’. And freedom of speech is allowed in all its non-violent forms. The Worcester City Manager is calling the shots, and he is not an elected official: this is a very serious problem which must be addressed through a re-writing of his contract with Worcester.