Oakland General Assembly
Date 12/19/11
Approximate Start Time: 6:25 pm
Approximate Head Count: 100
Notes by P
WELCOME
F: At the general assembly we try to facilitate a direct democratic facilitation process. (Reviews hand signals) For legal support contact: 415-285-1011. Write this number on your body or memorize it. For text updates, text BAYACTION to 41411. Please be considerate of those around you if you are smoking.
AGENDA OVERVIEW
FORUM
F: Please form groups and discuss topics that are on your mind. You will have fifteen minutes for a discussion, then we will have reportbacks.
Topics people discussed included
- more community outreach
- neighborhood GA’s
- focus on local issues and what people need in encampments
- confronting patriarchy and sexism in the movement.
COMMITTEE ANNOUNCEMENTS
- Antirepression: Please support Kali. His court date is coming up this week.
- Events: Thursday there will be a forum at 6pm – Interoccupy discussion with OWS. Christmas day we will have an OccuPresence from 9am to 7pm here at the plaza. We’ll trim and decorate the Oak Tree. At 2pm there will be a holiday feast. We’ll have music, performers, and we encourage you to bring presents. We are also planning an Occupy 2012 event for New Year’s Eve. Contact us: events@occupyoakland.org.
- Facilitation: GAs will be on a reduced schedule, Mondays and Wednesdays, until Jan. 8th. The Facilitation Committee meets on the days we hold GA at noon. Contact us at occupyoaklandfacilitation@gmail.com
- Foreclosure: Research Action Committee: Contact us at oakfrac@gmail.com
- Habeas Defense Caucus: We will have a speaker at 5pm, here at the plaza on Tuesday about the NDAA.
- Labor Solidarity: We have an action planning session coming up 12/29/11 at the CNA on 2000 Franklin Street at 20th. Contact us at occupyoaklandlaborsolidarity@gmail.com
- LBL: Please send a thank you email to Mr. Micchan at the Grand Lake Theater for supporting us. We meet at 4pm at The Rising Loafer. Contact us: lbl@occupyoakland.org
- Occupy The Hood: We meet Tuesdays at 7:30. We are open to all! Look for us on Facebook.
- On A Boat Committee: We deliver furniture to homes that need it. We are our own union. Help us take back 10th and Mandela and hold it down.
- Vigil: We have a dated journal book at the info table for equal access. We deeply appreciate your support in our umbrella action. We were amazed by how fast word spread on Twitter and Facebook. Thank you everyone!
PROPOSALS
F: Proposals may be submitted to the FWG by three or more people. Proposals are then presented to the GA. We’ll have a round of clarifying questions, pros and cons, a final statement by the proposal makers, and then we will vote. We have a process for financial proposals. We ask proposers to clarify finance proposals, but we do not have a round of pros and cons.
1. Rent Strike Proposal: Proposers were not present.
2. Straw Poll to Use the People’s Mic vs Amplified Mic: Proposers were not present.
3. Finance Proposal for $1,825 toward January 1st Oscar Grant Action: We propose that $1,825 be allocated to the Oscar Grant Speak Out and March. $825 would go toward posters, a PA, flyers, a banner, and a mobile sound system. $1,000 would go toward the use of a flatbed truck, and would be refundable.
Clarifying Questions
- Does the $1,825 include the $1,000 for the truck? – Yes.
- Don’t we already have a sound system? – We were told it wouldn’t be available until next year.
- If someone lends you a sound system, would you refund the money or reduce what you are asking for? – Yes. Someone offered to lend this committee a sound system.
- How can we as a GA occupy “Oscar Grant Plaza” if we don’t stand behind this?
Vote Results (I think the count was actually 94 yes, 0 no, and 6 abstained; I was told that the following was the reported vote count):
YES: 94
ABSTAINED: 0
NO: 6
This proposal has passed.
ACTION AND GENERAL ANNOUNCEMENTS
- City Council will be having a vote at Tuesday’s meeting (5:30pm) regarding a resolution to prevent any port shut downs in the city. We should let our voices be heard. You can sign up to get on their stack online, or you can do it in person.
- Use the main Occupy Oakland Website to make comments about proposals that are pending. Click on “About” and “GA Proposals.” We encourage proposal writers to use the comments to modify and refine their proposals before coming to the GA.
- If you are a proposer, please respect our time by showing up when it is time to present your proposal.
- On Friday there will be a rally at Justin Hermann (Bradley Manning) Plaza at 3pm, and a march at 4pm, regarding the NDAA.
- We will have to postpone the autonomous action for a GA at the Oakland Police Department. Many people were positive and showed interest in the idea, but due to time constraints, we’ll plan it for later.
- OTX West is offering volunteers free laptops in exchange for 30 hours of service. This program will begin again on January 4, 2011. (“Volunteers will receive 1 “service buck” for every hour they work. These bucks can be used to purchase items from our tech store that’s located inside the OTX-West warehouse. Depending on what we have available in the store, you can purchase a set of speakers, printers (ink and paper not included), black mice and keyboards, black monitors, and routers among other things. These items range from 1 to 15 “service bucks” each (e.g. speakers=1 buck, black mouse=2 bucks, router=5 bucks). You can also purchase an upgraded computer that may have a CD burner, more memory, and a faster processor by trading in your old computer and paying between 8 and 20 “service bucks.” More information online: http://otxwest.org/volunteer.html)
CLOSING
F: This was a good assembly. Thank you for being here.
We ended with a Unity Clap and some cheers to release energy and spread support for the Vigil. Many stayed afterwards to hold a presence at the vigil, or to have extended discussions with comrades.
8:30 pm
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