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    New Shows from Occupy Boston TV

    Two brand new episodes of Occupy Boston Live, produced by and  featuring Occupy Boston Activists!

    This week’s shows include Cherie K. from Housing Crisis Working Group and Ben and Nicole of the Street Working Group.

    Cherie K. visits Occupy Boston Live to discuss the critical work of Housing Crisis Working Group of Occupy Boston.

    Nicole and Ben visit Occupy Boston Live and talk about the Street Working Group of Occupy Boston.

    Occupy Boston TV is a working group of Occupy Boston that produces talk shows on a variety of topics related to Occupy Boston. Occupy Boston TV is also in the process of making a couple of short documentaries related to the Occupy Movement, and is in the process of writing short street theater/action related videos which they plan to produce this winter. Currently there is not a regular scheduled Work Group meeting, but Occupy Boston TV can be contacted through www.wiki.occupyboston.org or through our group: http://groups.occupyboston.org/wg/ob-tv.

    Anyone is welcome to join Occupy Boston TV. No previous television experience is necessary, and training and resources are provided. Occupy Boston TV is taping their next show on January 14th from 3-5pm at Brookline Access TV; for more info on participating in that show, email j@occupyboston.org

    For Occupy Live Studio TV shows and more videos visit Occupy Boston’s Youtube channel.

    Occupy Boston TV shows can also be downloaded from Occupy Boston at www.pegmedia.org for airing on local cable stations.

    Updated Information Regarding Proposals from GA on Jan 8, 2012

    In the interest of transparency for Occupy Boston, the Occupy Boston Media Working Group would like to acknowledge that another proposal, Sexual Assault Awareness also known as the Safety Proposal regarding Level 3 Sex Offenders, was blocked last night — and hence tabled by the General Assembly — immediately prior to the passage of the proposal, New Resolution Against Sexual Misconduct, that passed.

    This was the fourth General Assembly committed to discussing the Safety Proposal regarding Level 3 Sex Offenders. Last night’s proposal, like the other discussions at GA, have been live-tweeted and transcribed by a minute-taker. Last night’s GA was not livestreamed.

    After two blocks for the Sexual Assault Awareness proposal, that the GA found not compliant with the definition of a block, the General Assembly sustained a third block. Eighteen people joined it and the Sexual Assault Awareness Proposal was declared tabled.

    At that moment, the proposers and supporters, including members of the Women’s Caucus and of the Media Working Group, voiced their loss of faith in the decision of the General Assembly by interrupting the GA process with mic-checks and without sanction from the facilitators and then walked out.

    The walkout consisted of approximately at least 25 people in protest, including members of the Women’s Caucus and of the Media Working Group, the notetaker, 3 livetweeters and others to express solidarity from the GA, which had 93 people at the GA and 87 people voting as reported by FWG of Occupy Boston, before the walk out. Therefore, more than a quarter of the GA participants walked out in protest.

    General Assembly continued, including the participation of other members of the Media working group and Women’s caucus who did not walk out, with some people voicing solidarity with those who left and others voicing their concerns with the walkout. Two working groups that were scheduled to propose asked that the GA first consider an individual proposal regarding sexual misconduct (New Resolution Against Sexual Misconduct). This was the only the proposal that passed on January 8, 2012.
    Full notes for the GA up to and including the walkout are available here http://www.scribd.com/doc/77606108/OccupyBoston-GA-Minutes-1-8-2011

    The notes from the second half of the GA can be found here and there have been questioned raised by some about the objectivity of the second note-taker and in addition to the notes, a “Storify” of Tweets from the post-walkout GA and responses to the GA tweets is being compiled.

    It has come to the attention of many individuals within Occupy Boston that the individual who blocked the Sexual Assault Awareness Proposal had not declared his representation of a group that he founded, called Reform Sex Offender Laws — this action that may be considered a breach of the Occupy Boston Statement of Autonomy and of an ad-hoc agreement in emails with the Facilitation Working Group.

    In response to last night’s GA, a Community Wellness meeting will be held to discuss the situation and is scheduled for today, at 4:30pm at E5.

    As with all tabled proposals, proposals can be brought back in front of the GA and there is discussion that a proposal addressing the concerns related to Sexual Assault Awareness and another Safety Proposal regarding Level 3 Sex Offenders may be brought to the GA in the future.

    Edited 1/10/2012 in order to clarify and add new information

    Edited 1/11/2012 in order to clarify and notes from 2nd note-taker

    Addition: This original post and the edits was written as requested from members of Occupy Boston to the media working group from information provided by several members of different working groups within Occupy Boston that were present at the GA. The blog poster of this post is not the sole author of the information.

     

    Occupy Boston Digs In For a Winter Full of Actions and Action Planning

    On Monday, January 9, 2012 at 6:00 PM, the Occupy Boston Direct Action Working Group will host Occupy Boston’s weekly Community Gathering at the Cathedral Church of St. Paul, 138 Tremont Street in Boston. The evening will introduce attendees to the basics of nonviolent direct action, an essential component of the growing Occupy movement’s activist strategy.


    Occupy Boston’s Community Gatherings are held every Monday evening and are open to the public. The intention of these Community Gatherings is to build and strengthen the Occupy Boston community through ongoing dialogues, presentations, workshops, and facilitated conversations, in order to build a resilient, wide-spread and inclusive social movement.

     
    While some might expect Occupy Boston to hibernate during the winter, this event will demonstrate that the spirit of nonviolent direct action continues to burn brightly.  Even in the cold, Occupy Boston has engaged in a number of creative and effective actions, including joining this weekend with dozens of Northeast Occupy groups to Occupy the New Hampshire Primary.
     
    At Monday’s Community Gathering, participants will learn about a number of concepts that belong to a rich tradition of activism of which Occupy Boston is proud to be a part of.  Topics covered will include what constitutes an action, basic direct action techniques, and the importance of “security culture” in communities whose members engage in sensitive activities.  
     

    Participants will also learn about the “affinity group” model for activist organization. Attendees will see first hand how successful affinity groups are as close-knit as families, and they will be given the knowledge and encouragement they need to start forming their own affinity groups.  Quality time, training, and small-scale actions will strengthen the bonds between us, and those bonds will empower us to speak truth to power louder than ever come spring. We are the 99%, and creative nonviolent direct action will help ensure that our voices are heard.

    This event is free and all are welcome to attend. For more information about this event, please email occupybostonmedia@gmail.com or visit https://www.occupyboston.org

    Occupy Boston to Join Occupy NH and Occupy Maine on Converging on NH GOP Primary Elections!

    Occupy NH invites you to “Occupy the Presidential Primary”

    Events are starting in Manchester, NH @ 889 Elm Street, Veterans Park on January 5, 2012 @ 5pm and Ending on January 10, 2012 @ 9pm

    Occupy Boston is here to show solidarity with Occupy New Hampshire and Occupy Maine in demonstrating against the politicians who bail out large scale banks without any accommodation to people who have lost their homes. We are occupying because politicians assist companies who move jobs offshore and are protesting against special rights for businesses and the ultra-rich who in turn are allowed to give unlimited campaign contributions to politicians as though corporate money were representative of public speech.

    We are here because there is a rich few that control most of the wealth and means to create wealth, and we will not be idle while the top 1% of Americans have more money and assets than the bottom 40% of this country. We are here to demonstrate for our own domestic issues and are in solidarity with all of our sisters and brothers occupying in over 110 countries in over 3,000 cities and recognize that this is a global movement that transcends the borders of nations.

    We are against politicians of any party who deny people whether for their race, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, ability, or class equal access to resources or their rights to work. We are against racial profiling, discriminatory firings, deportations and detentions.

    We are against the fact that in 36 states you can be fired from your job for being perceived as being lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender, and most of the politicians running this election would like to increase that number. We are in solidarity with immigrant workers and families who look to improve their lives in this country and are against fear and hate mongering and the people who wish to malign immigrants for the pitfalls of our economy.

    We are against the idea that money equals speech. We are united against a political system where corporate lobbyists who represent only the interest of the business or industry they are in. We are against politicians who only serve their financiers. We are against political bribery. Money does not equal speech, corporations are not human beings and all human beings are equal! We are here to promote a democracy that is truly by, of and for the people and to advance a new era of economic and social equality! We are the 99%

    There will be non-stop events, debates, street theater, music and entertainment, teach-ins, workshops, events for children and young adults and dialogue among all people.

    This weekend, Occupy Boston will join dozens of Northeast Occupy groups in Manchester, NH to show the national and international media that we are part of the American political debate.  Republican presidential candidates will debate in a room at St. Anselm College on Saturday night, Jan. 7, but our voices will be heard loud and clear outside.   Occupy Boston will provide an embodiment of the “elephant in the room,” displaying the questions and statements that the politicians and media are trying to avoid.

    On Friday, January 6, Occupy Boston will bring a life-sized plywood, media-equipped, livestreaming elephant, which we’ll decorate with all the questions and statements that the candidates should address.  This elephant has gotten too large to ignore!    We’ll decorate it on Friday night, as part of Occupy New Hampshire’s kickoff celebration, and then we’ll bring it along to the debates the next day.  (We’re assuming they won’t actually let us bring the elephant *into* the room with the candidates, so we’ll park it outside with everyone else to welcome the candidates to St. Anselm College.)

    On Saturday, the elephant will join Operation Pride, marching to Victory Park as a response to hateful speech and campaigning of many of the Presidential candidates.

    On Tuesday, January 10, from 3-6 p.m., we’ll follow it up with a Love Police flash mob, to drive the message home.

    Come to Manchester Friday evening from 6:30-8:30 p.m. to launch the elephant, or Saturday through Tuesday to help create this celebration and statement of our determination to change the complacence of politics as usual.  Carpooling and bus-sharing can be arranged on the Discussion tab of http://wiki.occupyboston.org/wiki/Occupy_NH_Primary,_OB.   The current schedule is available at http://occupynh.org/primary/ andhttp://www.facebook.com/events/124596234321440/

    Meet Ariadne Ross, Occupy Boston Women’s Caucus Member

    An interview done on the on the eve of 2012, Occupy Boston Women’s Caucus Member Ariadne Ross reflects on the need for and likelihood of major societal change from the Occupy Movement. This piece was produced by David L.  of Occupy Boston’s Media Working Group.

    Contact us

    Occupy Boston Media <Media@occupyboston.org> • <Info@occupyboston.org> • @Occupy_Boston