Update (7:10 p.m.) Eighteen motorcycle cops have pulled up near the plaza while two more rows of cops in riot gear have lined up around protesters. A group of 40 protesters are in a circle, refusing to leave the plaza, noting that it is a public facility.
Update (6:45 p.m.) Two people have been arrested after a skirmish erupted on the perimeter of Justin Herman Plaza.
Update (6:30 p.m.): Cops have formed a circle around two dozen protesters who are sitting in the middle of the plaza, with their elbows locked, refusing to leave. Protesters are shouting "The world is watching, and 'we are the 99 percent.'"
Update (6:25 p.m.) Police have issued a dispersal order to protesters who are sitting on the plaza. Instead of moving, protesters are playing Bob Marley's famous Get Up, Stand Up through the loudspeaker. About 60 cops in in riot gear are advancing toward the plaza.
Update (6:10 p.m.): Protesters marched to Justin Herman Plaza, chanting, "Whose plaza? Our plaza." Police in riot gear lined the bocce ball courts as protesters made their way back inside the plaza. "We've just taken back Justin Herman Plaza," one protester shouted over the mic. The group is now sitting on the plaza, where they plan to hold a general assembly.
Original Story (5:50 p.m.): Occupy SF protesters had pledged to reoccupy Justin Herman Plaza tonight after police raided the camp early this morning, clearing out tents and arresting protesters. But apparently, there's too many cops out on the plaza now, which means protesters are coming up with Plan B: Occupy City Hall?
The one immediate drawback to clearing out the Occupy SF camp was that it didn't do much to deter protesters; in fact the group only grew louder and more visible. In other words, they might have packed up, but they didn't go home. Rather, they crowded the streets, blocked Muni, and made noise outside downtown office buildings.
We went down to this scene earlier to get a sense of whether Occupy SF would actually "reoccupy" its former camp site just as protesters did after being booted out of Frank Ogawa Plaza in Oakland. But let's face it, San Francisco's hullaballoo will always pale in comparison to Oakland.
Anyway, here's a snapshot of what we saw downtown today, post police raid:
Update (2:10 p.m.) Protesting makes you hungry, which is why Occupiers have taken their cause back to the Federal Reserve building where there's rumors of pizza on its way. After they regain their energy, the group is planning to reoccupy Just Herman Plaza later this evening.
Update (1:30 p.m.) Occupy SF protesters are marching through the Financial District, and have crossed back to Justin Herman Plaza to where they are circling the site and chanting "Whose streets? Our streets." Cops in riot gear are standing by.
Less than 12 hours after police raided the Occupy SF camp, protesters gathered in front of the Federal Reserve building in downtown to denounce the early morning police actions.
SF Weekly Staff Writer Lauren Smiley is on the scene and tells us that as of 1 p.m., more than 150 protesters were spilling out onto Market Street, bringing the F line to a halt. Paul Rose, spokesman with Muni, confirmed that the assembly is preventing trains from moving along Market Street, causing "rolling delays" throughout the system.
Police are hovering nearby, but they don't seem inclined to break up this peaceful assembly.
Police stormed into the Occupy SF camp early this morning, arresting more than 70 protesters and breaking down the encampment on Justin Herman Plaza.
Media outlets are reporting that police and fire crews circled the camp at about 1 a.m., giving protesters five minutes to pack up and go. Many campers left, however a group remained at the camp and were later arrested when they blocked Market Street, police told reporters.
About 70 people were arrested on suspicion of illegal camping, and two more were arrested on suspicion of assault after they threw a metal chair at a police officer.
Meanwhile, in Australia, Occupy protesters have come up with a more choreographed way to escape police.
A few weeks ago, we got a real kick out of the fact that Occupy Oakland deposited a $20,000 donation it received into Wells Fargo -- one of the many big banks the movement has been actively protesting since September. Say what you want about Occupy SF camp (it's dirty and filled with homeless people) -- at least protesters there are practicing what they preach.
Members of Occupy SF announced their ambitious plans to turn protesters into bankers by creating the People's Reserve Credit Union. According to Occupy SF's Facebook page:
The goal of this project is to encourage San Francisco residents, businesses, as well as nonprofit and city agencies to keep their money out of the big banks and to redistribute that money locally. Initial services will include micro-loans for the working poor and homeless, and subsidized student loans at low interest rates.
That same month, the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California issued a sobering report on pepper spray, which had been legalized for police use in October 1992. By May 31, 1995, California law-enforcement officers had used it nearly 16,000 times, roughly 24 times per day. Twenty-six people had died -- not including Williams -- giving pepper-spray victims a 1-in-600 chance at death.
By October 1995, the San Francisco Police Department had updated its use-of-force policy, which details when and how pepper should be used. However, it appears that SFPD didn't follow that policy six months later when officers picked up an incoherent Mark Garcia, then pepper-sprayed and hog-tied him. He died the next day, after suffering two massive heart attacks.
Since then, no one has died in SFPD custody following the use of pepper spray, according to Officer Albie Esparza. But with a wave of police pepper-spray attacks on Occupy Wall Street protests in Davis and across the United States, could it happen again?
Even if police have cleared most Occupy encampments across the nation, the movement is still very much alive. According to Occupy Oakland, more protesters up and down the West Coast have joined in the effort to shut down the ports and disrupt the 1 percent on Dec. 12.
According to Occupy Oakland:
As of Nov. 27, 2011, the Occupy movement in every major West Coast port city: Occupy LA, Occupy San Diego, Occupy Portland, Occupy Tacoma, Occupy Seattle have joined Occupy Oakland in calling for and organizing a coordinated West Coast Port Blockade and Shutdown on Dec. 12, 2011. Other West Coast Occupies, including Occupy Anchorage and Vancouver, Canada are planning to join the economic blockade and disruption of the 1 percent on that date.
