Occupy activist facing seven years in jail was 'promoter of non-violence' | World news An Occupy Wall Street activist charged with assaulting a police officer is a “promoter of non-violence” who wandered into a tussle with law enforcement while celebrating St Patrick’s Day, her lawyers plan to argue in court this week. Jury selection began on Monday morning in the trial of Cecily McMillan, who denies assaulting Officer Grantley Bovell as he arrested protesters from the anti-capitalist movement in New York’s Zuccotti Park on 17 March 2012. “An innocent woman is being accused of something that could send her to prison for seven years,” McMillan’s attorney, Martin Stolar, told reporters outside the state supreme courtroom in lower Manhattan. “She was leaving the park pursuant to the police department’s orders when she was brutally assaulted by a police officer and subsequently accused of assaulting that police officer.” McMillan told a small group of supporters: “Thank you for being here today.”
The Mindfulness Bell : a journal of the art of mindful living How to be a citizen journalist with Brown Moses | Guardian Masterclasses Citizen journalists are outperforming the mainstream media, breaking new ground and untouchable stories in countries such as China, Kenya and Brazil. But thanks to the vast repositories of video footage, satellite images and eyewitness reports posted on social media, it is possible to report from the world's most dangerous territories without setting foot in them. Founder of the famous Brown Moses blog, Eliot Higgins research into the Syrian conflict has inspired questions in parliament, major stories in the Guardian and New York Times, and praise from Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch. During this large-scale seminar, Eliot reveals the tools and techniques for tracking down sources of new footage and information, verifying facts, spotting fakes and accurately geolocating material. This course offers a unique opportunity to learn from a recognised pioneer in the field, whose work at the vanguard of social media forensics is prized by news outlets, NGOs and governments alike.
Brain Pickings FBI Documents Show Plot to Kill Occupy Leaders Redacted FBI Documents Show Plot to Kill Occupy Leaders If ‘Deemed Necessary’ Posted on Jun 29, 2013 “Did the FBI ignore, or even abet, a plot to assassinate Occupy Houston leaders?” A Freedom of Information Act request filed by the Washington, D.C. Here’s what the document said, according to WhoWhatWhy: An identified [DELETED] as of October planned to engage in sniper attacks against protestors (sic) in Houston, Texas if deemed necessary. Paul Kennedy of the National Lawyers Guild in Houston and an attorney for a number of Occupy Houston activists arrested during the protests said he did not hear of the sniper plot and expressed discontent with the FBI’s failure to share knowledge of the plan with the public. “[I]f it is something law enforcement was planning,” Kennedy said, “then nothing would have been done. Texas law officials have a history of extreme and inappropriate violence. —Posted by Alexander Reed Kelly. More Below the Ad New and Improved Comments
New Spectacular Videos Every Weekday | Show Us Your Clips Revealed: how the FBI coordinated the crackdown on Occupy | Naomi Wolf It was more sophisticated than we had imagined: new documents show that the violent crackdown on Occupy last fall – so mystifying at the time – was not just coordinated at the level of the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security, and local police. The crackdown, which involved, as you may recall, violent arrests, group disruption, canister missiles to the skulls of protesters, people held in handcuffs so tight they were injured, people held in bondage till they were forced to wet or soil themselves –was coordinated with the big banks themselves. The Partnership for Civil Justice Fund, in a groundbreaking scoop that should once more shame major US media outlets (why are nonprofits now some of the only entities in America left breaking major civil liberties news?), filed this request. Verheyden-Hilliard points out the close partnering of banks, the New York Stock Exchange and at least one local Federal Reserve with the FBI and DHS, and calls it "police-statism":
Help inspire others and get inspired at UpInspire.com. FBI Investigated 'Occupy' As Possible 'Terrorism' Threat, Internal Documents Show According to internal documents newly released by the FBI, the agency spearheaded a nationwide law enforcement effort to investigate and monitor the Occupy Wall Street movement. In certain documents, divisions of the FBI refer to the Occupy Wall Street protests as a "criminal activity" or even "domestic terrorism." The internal papers were obtained by the Partnership for Civil Justice fund via a Freedom of Information Act Request. The fund, a legal nonprofit that focuses on civil rights, says it believes the 112 pages of documents, available for public viewing on its website, are only "the tip of the iceberg." "This production ... is a window into the nationwide scope of the FBI’s surveillance, monitoring, and reporting on peaceful protestors organizing with the Occupy movement," wrote Mara Verheyden-Hilliard, the fund's executive director, in a press release Saturday. The FBI did not immediately respond to The Huffington Post's requests for comment Sunday. Also on HuffPost:
Good News, Inspirational Stories, Positive Views - HuffPost Good News Public manipulation by the mainstream media One week has passed since a small protest took place during a Remembrance Day ceremony outside of Old City Hall in Toronto. On this day, two Afghan-Canadian peace activists, Laila Rashidie and Suraia Sahar, were in attendance with a banner to remember Afghans killed by Canadian troops. These two women did not attend the ceremony with an intent to cause a disruption. I contacted one of the women involved and asked Laila several questions about the incident. Laila and Suraia with their banner outside Nathan Phillips Square. It is important to note that there were two other small protest groups in attendance. Police initially became aggressive with the anti-fascism group and confiscated their banner. Derek Soberall was standing next to the protest groups and began filming the confrontation with his cell phone. Several men attending the ceremony then approached the protesters. White haired man and Logan (from Paris, Ontario) assaulting a protester.
SoulPancake 3 Occupy Wall Street Protesters Win $50K Settlement Over "Thought Crime" Arrest The city has settled a lawsuit brought by three Occupy Wall Street protestors who accused the NYPD of arresting them without cause, detaining them for almost 24 hours, and forcing them through a humiliating strip search. On November 17th 2011, 20-year-old Kira Moyer-Sims was buying coffee on the Lower East Side while three friends waited in a nearby car. Suddenly 30 police officers swooped in and arrested them, and later drilled them on their relationship with the movement while they were in custody. “I felt like I had been arrested for a thought crime,” Moyer-Sims said at the time. According to the settlement, the city will pay $50,000 total to Moyer-Sims, Angela Richino, and Matthew Vrvilo. "They were arrested on the belief that they were about to go to a protest," their attorney Vijayant Pawar tells us. Pawar says his clients are satisfied with the settlement, but that it doesn't make up for the NYPD's actions.
Podcasts • Center for Courage & RenewalCenter for Courage & Renewal The Inner Life of Rebellion – Parker J. Palmer and Courtney E. Martin The history of rebellion is rife with excess and burnout. See more at www.onbeing.org/program/parker-pa…of-rebellion/7122 Leadership and Change The work we help people do inwardly has consequences in the larger world. In this podcast, Parker Palmer speaks of the link between inner work and institutional and social transformation. The Clearness Committee During his appearance on PBS’s Bill Moyers Journal in February 2009, Parker Palmer spoke about being present for someone suffering from depression, based on a practice known as “The Clearness Committee.” An Undivided Life What does it mean to live a divided life, one in which we keep our inner lives separate from our interactions in the world? Off the Map Parker J. Jim says about Parker, “He is a national treasure, a deep thinker and a profoundly spiritual person.” Leadership and the 5 Habits This podcast is an interview of Parker J. Democracy, Here On Earth