January 20 Occupy Wall St West News


Thanks for an Amazing Day of Actions!
Thanks to everyone who contributed to such an amazing day of Occupy Wall St West actions yesterday, January 20, 2012. Onward!


Ways to Support Cathedral Hill Hotel Occupiers
8:33pm — Please join your fellow Occupy SF activists by showing up for a Housewarming party at the Cathedral Hill Hotel, 1101 Van Ness Ave., San Francisco, CA 94109. Please come prepared!


Cathedral Hill Hotel Occupied
8:10pm — More than a hundred protestors have occupied the Cathedral Hill Hotel and are celebrating. Occupy SF General Assembly on the roof of the hotel. Occupy SF secured a vacant hotel to point out the injustice of homelessness while there is a vacant hotel. California Pacific Medical Center (CPMC) plans to demolish the building to construct a new hospital and apparently has no plans to treat Medicare patients and the 99% who can’t afford skyrocketing medical costs.


Daytime View of Cathedral Hill Hotel
A daytime view of the 600-unit Cathedral Hill Hotel.


Sticker Pick
Spotted on bank ATM: “A protest a day keeps the corporations away.”


Protestors Occupy Cathedral Hill Hotel at Franklin and Geary
7:47pm — Protestors occupy Cathedral Hill Hotel at Franklin and Geary, which has been vacant and closed for years, although slated for conversion into a California Pacific Medical Center hospital. Protestors hung a banner which reads “People’s Food Bank of America”.


Black Bloc Smashes Windows
7:18pm — Black Bloc protestors smashed at least one window at Bentley luxury car store in violation of Occupy Wall St West action agreement which requires Occupy SF GA and/or Occupy SF Action Council consensus for use of property destruction at today’s actions.


Cops Pepper Spray Twelve People, Beat Protestors
UPDATE 8:00pm — Occupy medics have treated the people who were pepper sprayed. 7:13pm — Riot cops have apparently sprayed at least twelve people with pepper spray and are beating protestors at Van Ness and Geary. Police reinforcements are arriving.


Riot Police Protecting Van Ness and Geary
7:04pm — The march arrived to a phalanx of a hundred or more police near the target site. A row of riot cops with barricades behind them are blocking the entire road and thousands of protestors are shouting “Cops go home!”.


March Rallies at Bank of America
6:11pm — Speaker gives a shout out to all the groups represented at the day’s actions. Lots of people turned out for a windy, rainy day.


Wells Shutters Third Bank
6:02pm — Wells Fargo boarded up a third bank at 1 Montgomery St (at Post).


Protestors at Bank of America Unlock With Great Success!
6:00pm — Occupy SF protestors who locked down to shut down the Bank of America headquarters at 345 Montgomery Street unlocked after bank hours to declare their action an amazing success.

Owly Images


Mass March Rejoins Protestors Locked Down for 9 Hours at BofA HQ
5:55pm — Occupy SF protestors marched from Bradley Manning (Justin Herman) Plaza to the Bank of America to rejoin protestors engaged in civil disobedience to shut down the bank for the last nine hours.


Police Occupy Bus, Marchers Flood California Street
5:51pm UPDATE Occubus De-arrested! 5:29m — Police stopped the Occupy Oakland Mobile Party Bus and searched it, then tried to stop and maybe tow the bus and charge the driver with a violation for a missing rear tail-light. The police may cite and detain those on the bus. Occupy SF marchers surrounded the police and the bus to demand that the police go home, then continued down California Street.


Hyatt Fountain Erupts in Support of Occupy
4:52pm — The anti-labor practices of the Hyatt apparently caused the fountain at the Grand Hyatt at Union Square to spontaneously erupt in rabid bubbles that overwhelmed the hotel’s steps. For over 2 1/2 years, Hyatt workers have fought for fair contracts and workers at all three San Francisco Hyatts have called for boycotts of their own hotels.


Storm the Fortress!
4:37pm — Protestors occupied Fortress Investments today to demand a halt to predatory equity scams where landlords and banks buy apartment buildings intending to remove rent-controlled units from the market so they can replace them with market-rate tenants. Fortress is demolishing over 1,500 rent-controlled apartments in Parkmerced and has evicted hundreds of tenants. The protestors marched around the building and a fake bike messenger snuck in the building to deliver a demand letter to Fortress CEO Daniel Mudd telling him to stop demolition of rent-controlled apartments and halt evictions of tenants.


20+ Arrests So Far!
4:37pm — According to Occupy Legal, so far at this point in time, the police have arrested a total of approximately 20 people, almost all of whom were cited for misdemeanor trespassing in the morning at all four doors of Wells Fargo Headquarters and released. The police arrested one person for a more serious charge who is apparently already out on bail.


POWER Protestors Occupy Muni to Demand Free Transportation for Youth
4:18pm — Protestors led by People Organized to Win Employment Rights (POWER) occupied busses running on Market and Mission Streets to demand free transportation for youth.


Wells Fargo Shutters Headquarters
4:16pm — Wells Fargo at 1 California (at Drumm) followed the lead of Wells headquarters and built wooden barriers in front of the building that apparently prevent all access to ATMs and the building entrances.


Protestors Have Blocked Bank of America Headquarters for 7+ Hours
4:00pm — Protestors have succeeded in blocking doors at the Bank of America headquarters at 345 Montgomery Street for more than seven hours!


Citi Apartments Protest
3:45pm — Protestors led by the Chinese Progressive Association of San Francisco occupied the Citi Apartments to fight for workers’ stolen wages!!


Wells Fargo Shutters Headquarters
3:30pm — Wells Fargo headquarters at 420 Montgomery (at California) built wooden barriers in front of the building that apparently prevent all access to ATMs and the building entrances.


Occupy Bernal Celebrating Halt to Foreclosure Auction
2:00pm — Occupy Bernal protestors are celebrating at City Hall their success in halting a foreclosure auction of neighbor Maria Davila’s property.

video:


Riot Police Advancing on Protestors at Bank of America
2:00pm — Riot police headed toward protestors at the Bank of America at California and Montgomery.


99%-ers Closing Wells Fargo Account to Support Protestors
1:47pm — Some Wells Fargo customers, shocked by the treatment of Occupy protestors, decided to close their accounts at a downtown Wells Fargo branch.


Hundreds Protest Deportations and Immigration Policies
1:32pm — More than three hundred people are at the Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) office at 630 Sansome to demand that ICE stop tearing families apart, stop deportations and destabilizing communities in the name of “natural security” live video feed


Food Bank of America
1:03pm — The Occupy SF Autonomous Action Workgroup transformed a bank at 1 Market Street into the People’s Food Bank of America and fed hundreds of hungry protestors with nutritious, organic food to show the community what could be there instead of the Bank of America.


Live Video of Occupy the Courts Action
12:55pm — Live video of Occupy the Courts action.


600+ Protestors Marching From Fannie Mae to Immigration and Customs Enforcement
12:43pm — More than six hundred protestors are marching from Fannie Mae to the Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) office at 630 Sansome to demand that ICE stop tearing families apart, stop deportations and destabilizing communities in the name of “natural security”.


150+ Protestors Occupy the Federal Court
12:30pm — More than a hundred fifty protestors occupied the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals at 95 7th Street to demand a 28th amendment to the U.S. Constitution to end corporate personhood.


100+ Protestors Occupy Fannie Mae to Stop Evictions and Foreclosures
12:16pm — More than a hundred protestors occupied Fannie Mae at 55 California Street to stop evictions and foreclosures from predatory loan practices and to demand Fannie Mae turn over empty homes for affordable housing.


Food Bank of America Accepting Deposits and Making Meals
12:07pm — Food Bank of America is serving up meals at their new branch location at 1 Market Street. Bring deposits of canned food or non-perishables or just get fed!


Flash Mob Gathering at 555 California.
12:02pm — A flash mob is gathering at 555 California… check it out!


Human Billboard for Healthcare and Jobs for the 99%
11:21am — Human billboard and about 50 protestors at California Pacific Medical Center action at Van Ness Ave and Geary.


Police Violence and Arrest at California and Montgomery
11:14am — Police hitting with batons and shoving protestors at California and Montgomery. Police arrested videostreamer named Corey out of a crowd of approximately 250 protestors for unknown reason.


Occupy Bernal Pressures Wells Fargo to Postpone Foreclosure Auction

10:58am — Occupy Bernal is celebrating the postponement of an auction of a Wells Fargo home that two Bernal neighbors rent… w00t!


Protestors Re-Occupy Entrance at Wells Fargo Headquarters

10:46am — 10 protestors have returned to block off access to Wells Fargo Headquarters entrance near Montgomery and California, arrests imminent.


Amorphous Black Blob Occupies San Francisco

Mysterious amorphous black blob occupies San Francisco.


Citicorp Evicted

Protestors staged an eviction of Citicorp at 1 Sansome Street.


Occupy Bernal Shuts Down Bernal B of A Branch

10:11am — 45 Occupy Bernal protestors led by four families fighting eviction and foreclosure delivered demand letter and shut down Bank of America branch at 3250 Mission and 29th Streets, heading to Wells Fargo branch at 22nd and Mission Streets.


Banner Blocking Downtown Traffic

10:04am — Banner blocking intersection at Montgomery and California.


Protestors Take to the Streets at Bank of America

9:57am — Protestors take to the streets at Bank of America at 345 Montgomery.


20+ Protestors Gather at Bank of America Branch

9:54am — Twenty to twenty-five protestors have gathered at the Bank of America branch at Powell and Market Streets.


Police Commander Confirms Seven Arrests at Wells Fargo Headquarters

9:22am — Police Commander confirms seven arrests so far at Wells Fargo Headquarters entrance at 420 Montgomery.


Police Raid at Wells Fargo Headquarters

9:22am — Police are blocking off access to Wells Fargo Headquarters entrance at 420 Montgomery and cutting protestors out of lock boxes to arrest them.


Foreclosure House Party

9:21am — Foreclosure house party with music and furniture at 7th and Sansome Sts.


Protest Shutting Down Wells Fargo Headquarters

8:50am — 40 protestors and some squids now blocking entrances at Code Pink action at Wells Fargo Headquarters, 420 Montgomery St (at California).


Protestors Start Blockade of Bank of America

8:31am — Six people blocking entrance and five police guarding the ATM at 345 Montgomery Street Bank of America branch, 30 protestors there, need more.


68+ Protestors Lock Down Wells Fargo Headquarters

8:30am — Police and firefighters have assembled intending to cut bolts and chains used to bind together at least 68 protestors performing civil disobedience by blocking entrances to Wells Fargo bank headquarters building at Montgomery and California Streets.


Mobile Party Bus Occupies Wells Fargo

7:39am — Mobile party bus occupies Wells Fargo.


Activists Charge Bechtel

7:29am — Four activists at Bechtel, including Father Louis Vitale, 45 Beale St, are reading a list of charges against the corporation in the building lobby.


Wells Fargo Civil Disobedience

6:53am — About 30 Occupy Wall St West protestors have blocked five entrances of Wells Fargo Bank at 420 Montgomery Street (at California).


Squid Fry at Goldman Sachs

Code Pink welcomes you to fry squid at Goldman Sachs, the corporation Matt Taibbi referred to as “a great vampire squid wrapped around the face of humanity, relentlessly jamming its blood funnel into anything that smells like money. More info: Action List/Schedule

6 thoughts on “January 20 Occupy Wall St West News

  1. It would be great if code pink could act like ladies who love other creatures. (At least stop advertising another creature’s demise as a symbol of a statement.) I’m embarassed to be of the same species as them now, and I’m involved in the Occupy movement. I hope your squid get away. If I find them and they are alive, I’m taking them.

  2. Until we collectively address the massive fraud that is the official story of what happened on September 11, 2001, we will still be under its shadow. If we ever want to be free of the wars and genocides it has spawned; if we ever want to have our budget priorities set straight; if we ever want to be free of total dependence on fossil fuels; if we ever want our public money spent on the public’s priorities; if we ever want anything permanent and good in our future, we must have the truth about 9/11.

    To all protestors of whatever stripe: 9/11 Truth is the ultimate reason for protest. It is the hub of the wheel around which all other issues are spokes. That includes war and all kinds of injustice, and even includes the oppression of the rest of us by the 0.0001%.

    Demand the Truth about September 11.

    • There are so many “until we” conditions that it’s irresponsible to criticize issue or action X because it takes attention away from issue Y when there are so many more powerful forces opposing both X and Y together. Focus your attention on the issue closest to your heart, but don’t lash out at others focusing on THEIR issue closest to THEIR heart. There are many of us, enough to solve all the problems, if we let each other.

      • Fair enough. I even agree. But I’m not criticizing anyone for focusing on their most important issues, and in most cases they are my issues too. I’m merely pointing out the centrality of this issue, and issue which apparently most liberals don’t even acknowledge exists. Just try to get ANSWER to allow you to speak about 9/11. You can’t, because not only is it the most central issue; it is also the most censored. Even by the anti-war movement.

  3. It was a great day of actions. I hope we can maintain this degree of “unity in diversity” in actions in the near and far future.

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