General Strike Statement

Categories: General Strike - 11/2/11

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Below is the proposal passed by the Occupy Oakland General Assembly on Wednesday, October 26, 2011 in reclaimed Oscar Grant Plaza. 1607 people voted. 1484 voted in favor of the resolution, 77 abstained, and 46 voted against it, passing the proposal at 96.9%. The General Assembly operates on a modified consensus process that passes proposals with 90% in favor and with abstaining votes removed from the final count.

PROPOSAL:

We as fellow occupiers of Oscar Grant Plaza propose that on Wednesday, November 2, 2011, we liberate Oakland and shut down the 1%.

We propose a city wide general strike and we invite all students to walk out of school. Instead of workers going to work and students going to school, the people will converge on downtown Oakland to shut down the city.

All banks and corporations should close down for the day or we will march on them.

While we are calling for a general strike, we are also calling for much more. People who organize out of their neighborhoods, schools, community organizations, affinity groups, workplaces, and families are encouraged to self-organize in a way that allows them to participate in shutting down the city in whatever manner they are comfortable with and capable of.

The whole world is watching Oakland. Let’s show them what is possible.

1928

8 Responses to “General Strike Statement”

  1. monarch

    Unbelivable!!!!! Reminds me of the Nam protests. interesting how our Rights are protected and have been protected for 200 hundred years and now when we all want and need to exersize them the most we are not allowed to. Iv have seen no violent demonstrators so far. what is all the exsessive force and violent force for? it makes me very angry at our higher authority that
    with their position they all dont seem to give a damn what we are fighting for but only we are standing on the wrong side walk that was paid for by tax dollars!!! civillian taxes wtf? Making a mountain out of a mole hill. Its time to see things with simple straight simplicity. no red tape,no more waiting for papers to arrive. time for no nonsense! like it used to be.their are people who need help and cant wait another decade to get it. Time for change! come on Obama we need u!

  2. concernedinoakland

    Ridiculous. Just what you should do if you want to lose all public support. After Brutal Tuesday, OccOakland has earned public empathy and political recognition. If you shut this town down– traffic, small businesses, the social service agenicies that are the only lifeblood this city has– you will kill your public backing. Thank you Urbaned for your insight and coorelation to the actions of a better organized, and less militaristic OWS.

  3. Urbaned

    http://www.opoa.org/uncategorized/an-open-letter-to-the-citizens-of-oakland-from-the-oakland-police-officers%E2%80%99-association/ — Yes, we need real leadership…..

    Yes, that is what this movement needs. VISIONARIES who can not only see yesterday, today, and tomorrow, but who can adjust their psychologies in order to move ourselves and our communities forward. As a teacher of rhetoric, I see almost every statement made by this (so-called) branch of OWS as inflammatory, citing to violence, angry, dangerous, and frankly, “old school.” Who are you hateful and angry and frustrated people? That’s whose voice you adopt.

    You have to be stupid to think that the people of Oakland, the police, the unions, and the businesses are not fully aware of today’s broken and inequitable economy – yet, you keep prodding us as if we didn’t know. You demand that we take to the streets and scream out against the system. Some people are joining, but you sound like a tempest in a teapot. Look at the police response – they don’t want to harm us; they just don’t know what to do as well.

    While OWS (and Michael Moore, one of your guests) has clearly defined today’s enemy as the 1%, you continue demanding that we shut down schools, transit, shipping, and transportation. How will this hurt anyone but ourselves? You are wholly misguided.

    I have been following Occupy NYC intensely since day 1. Their language is entirely different from yours. They speak of non-hierarchical organizations and peaceful action (for example, the march on the Brooklyn Bridge). There was no incendiary talk of shut downs, freeway closures, and they did not have to beg local businesses to close for a day (in fact, they are a boon to them).

    Whoever is running your organization needs to take their head out of the sand and look around. You don’t strike against yourselves, you act against the 1%. You take your money out of banks and put it into credit unions. You boycott harmful products. And, you become involved in creating a new system – a new one-person-one vote democracy, a new education system (http://educationrevolution.nycga.net/2011/10/24/hello-world/ ) and more. Your jumping on the OWS bandwagon has been both harmful – it could be the reason Scott Olsen was hurt – and uneducated. It’s time for Oakland to get an education, join the real OWS, and stop co-opting this new movement with old-world, dangerous ideologies.

  4. jz

    the crime would be in the causing of auto collisions possibly resulting in injury or death and preventing vital emergency services from doing their job. “Socializing, snacking, dancing to the radio”= OWS saying “we’re happy we’re fucking up your day and preventing you from getting anywhere regardless of why you need to get there, but it’s all for your benefit”. Nice message. Actually, it kinda sounds like the government around tax time. My message to you would be to stop coming up with ways to disrupt the people who are already hurting.

  5. wenstar107

    On Nov 2 we should make it difficult for others to get to work as well. Occupy the freeways by driving 50 in 65 zone. And 20-25mph on regular streets. Just a few cars occupying freeway off ramps for say 5 min will cause huge delays–if done in a coordinated way could be unbelievably effective. Do it on a few connecting fwys and shut it all down. We could occupy trains and buses during peak traffic so they will be too full for others to get on. Everyone get off have a nice lunch get back on for the evening rush. Occupy gas stations with lines of cars (approx 30 ea station) getting $1 worth of gas then get back in line and continue all day with everyone moving slow, socializing, snacking, dancing to the radio while they pump. The owner may close but the cops can’t do anything–where’s the crime. No permits need to do any of this and the police can’t be everywhere especially in the traffic jam that would be created city wide. Now that will get Wall Streets attention without us shedding blood.

  6. ksun

    Can someone direct me to fliers in both english and spanish, if available? Or if there are printable fliers online somwhere, a link. thanks