Hey everyone,
My friends and I wrote up this petition for the university to push the city to drop all charges against student arrestees and to refrain from putting us before the Judicial Review Board. Please sign it and forward it to everyone you know!
(Some of us went around the campus earlier today getting signatures, and we've already got about 300)
Support the Students
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Bike Girl
I'm assuming you've all seen the video of "the bike girl", as she is being referred to in the media and on the streets. She's become the embodiment of the protesters' beef with the actions of the police during the G-20, and today she came to my newspaper class because she's apparently friends with my instructor's daughter (pgh's a small town, eh) and we were able to group interview her about the whole ordeal.
For the voyeurs (all of us): Her name's Lauren Wasson, and she's not a protester or an anarchist, but a curious onlooker that got caught in the melee. (Really? No way!) Why she threw the bike? Anger, incited by the love taps from the riot police. ("I don't just go throwing my bike at cops everyday.") She's never had a speeding ticket and she's facing a felony now. According to her, the police were hitting her and pushing her before the news camera started filming them, and then they dislocated her shoulder when they had her on the ground and, of course, bruised her. (Oh! And the big bad professional news programs got both her age and information about her work wrong. Ha. Fact checking at its finest.)
Obviously, it was really awesome to get a story of such timeliness and significance straight from the source, since--as I'm sure you all know too well--.... people don't care to talk to student reporters. Or students in general.
But there's a certain aspect about this that I think relates to our class, and it's the more substantial reason why I posted this: Thanks to the internet, Facebook, YouTube, and TV news stations posting videos online, her story has spread like mad throughout the region and she's become a psuedo-celebrity in days. Although this has exacerbated her torment in some ways, I also think she's been handed a soapbox and a megaphone. But, of course, that means other people have too. She said that when she got out of jail Friday, a guy she's never met from Columbus, OH, emailed her to say he set up a Facebook group and a petition site for her cause. Conversely, an unknown woman called in to Honsberger Live (a controversial program on KDKA news radio that I've never heard of) and told him that she lived next to Lauren in Shaler (where Lauren doesn't and has never lived) and was happy she was arrested because she was a piece of shit and is going to hell, or something like that--I'm paraphrasing what Lauren paraphrased so don't quote me.
It reminded me to some extent of Emily Gould, and how quickly the internet can inflate or deflate someone's ego or fame-- or rather, how quickly we can, by shouting from the rooftops via one innocent, inconspicuous click. Worth thinking about.
For the voyeurs (all of us): Her name's Lauren Wasson, and she's not a protester or an anarchist, but a curious onlooker that got caught in the melee. (Really? No way!) Why she threw the bike? Anger, incited by the love taps from the riot police. ("I don't just go throwing my bike at cops everyday.") She's never had a speeding ticket and she's facing a felony now. According to her, the police were hitting her and pushing her before the news camera started filming them, and then they dislocated her shoulder when they had her on the ground and, of course, bruised her. (Oh! And the big bad professional news programs got both her age and information about her work wrong. Ha. Fact checking at its finest.)
Obviously, it was really awesome to get a story of such timeliness and significance straight from the source, since--as I'm sure you all know too well--.... people don't care to talk to student reporters. Or students in general.
But there's a certain aspect about this that I think relates to our class, and it's the more substantial reason why I posted this: Thanks to the internet, Facebook, YouTube, and TV news stations posting videos online, her story has spread like mad throughout the region and she's become a psuedo-celebrity in days. Although this has exacerbated her torment in some ways, I also think she's been handed a soapbox and a megaphone. But, of course, that means other people have too. She said that when she got out of jail Friday, a guy she's never met from Columbus, OH, emailed her to say he set up a Facebook group and a petition site for her cause. Conversely, an unknown woman called in to Honsberger Live (a controversial program on KDKA news radio that I've never heard of) and told him that she lived next to Lauren in Shaler (where Lauren doesn't and has never lived) and was happy she was arrested because she was a piece of shit and is going to hell, or something like that--I'm paraphrasing what Lauren paraphrased so don't quote me.
It reminded me to some extent of Emily Gould, and how quickly the internet can inflate or deflate someone's ego or fame-- or rather, how quickly we can, by shouting from the rooftops via one innocent, inconspicuous click. Worth thinking about.
Your story, a G20 tale
One of our reporters at the Post-Gazette is interested in talking to students who were arrested during the G20. His name is Jerome Sherman and email is jsherman@post-gazette.com
If anybody has a good story to tell, go ahead an shoot him a line.
If anybody has a good story to tell, go ahead an shoot him a line.
Downtown Iraq
Walking around downtown last Thursday morning felt a lot like being back in Iraq. I deployed in 2008 as a public affairs Soldier, and the downtown scene had that same silent, on-guard feel of walking through the roads of Camp Victory or the Green Zone in Baghdad. The only difference this time, I didn’t have my M16 rifle with my load of 30-round magazine, and I was in civlian clothes instead of in uniform. In Iraq, I never had to fire a shot. Downtown, I’ll continued my walk with my own personal digital camera. I guess, you could say that I went out armed.
Like in Iraq, my mission now with the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette was similar. Take photos. Get the action. Write stories.
The various checkpoints around town were cut off by concrete blocks and military humvees with National Guard and Air Force troops standing by. Most of them are wearing their ballistic vests (for those of you who know the military lingo… the dreaded IBA). No rifles and no kevlar helmets this time around, but the feel of security was still similar. Up-armored trucks weaved their way around the streets. Instead of Military Police, various police officers and law enforcement walked around with zip-tie handcuffs clipped to their belts.
In Iraq, we had these 20-foot, concrete T-walls that surrounded every inch of our base. On top, there were coils of concertina wire that looked like hollowed snakes. In downtown Pittsburgh, instead of walls, massive buildings blocked the view of the grim sky at various angles. Fences surrounded Market Square and various other spots. The same concertina snakes wrapped their way around the chain-linked fences blocking off streets. At one checkpoint, security forces installed a ramp that jutted out to block off any speeding vehicle coming that way. The ramp lowers to allow access to vehicles with credentials and police cruisers. That same kind of ramp is installed in the Green Zone at the gate of the main palace.
On Camp Victory, which is located just a few miles south of Baghdad, we had our famous Green Beans Coffeehouse. This morning, I stopped by Crazy Mocha for old time’s sake. Not bad, but I still miss the cappuccinos in Iraq.
The only other vehicles downtown, other than police and military, were Port Authority buses transporting passengers to and fro.
Just like in Camp Victory, I had that feeling of being on the inside. The feeling that any danger or harm may be "out there" but would try to come "in here." It was only later that news reports would show that most of the activity took place in Oakland.
Police and Military stood by awaiting any potential attack. This time, it might be protestors on foot holding signs and digital cameras instead of insurgents riding on beat-down trucks armed with AK-47s and explosives.
The city stood silent as I walked around the perimeter for about an hour that morning. Was this the silent before the storm?
I hoped not.
Like in Iraq, my mission now with the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette was similar. Take photos. Get the action. Write stories.
The various checkpoints around town were cut off by concrete blocks and military humvees with National Guard and Air Force troops standing by. Most of them are wearing their ballistic vests (for those of you who know the military lingo… the dreaded IBA). No rifles and no kevlar helmets this time around, but the feel of security was still similar. Up-armored trucks weaved their way around the streets. Instead of Military Police, various police officers and law enforcement walked around with zip-tie handcuffs clipped to their belts.
In Iraq, we had these 20-foot, concrete T-walls that surrounded every inch of our base. On top, there were coils of concertina wire that looked like hollowed snakes. In downtown Pittsburgh, instead of walls, massive buildings blocked the view of the grim sky at various angles. Fences surrounded Market Square and various other spots. The same concertina snakes wrapped their way around the chain-linked fences blocking off streets. At one checkpoint, security forces installed a ramp that jutted out to block off any speeding vehicle coming that way. The ramp lowers to allow access to vehicles with credentials and police cruisers. That same kind of ramp is installed in the Green Zone at the gate of the main palace.
On Camp Victory, which is located just a few miles south of Baghdad, we had our famous Green Beans Coffeehouse. This morning, I stopped by Crazy Mocha for old time’s sake. Not bad, but I still miss the cappuccinos in Iraq.
The only other vehicles downtown, other than police and military, were Port Authority buses transporting passengers to and fro.
Just like in Camp Victory, I had that feeling of being on the inside. The feeling that any danger or harm may be "out there" but would try to come "in here." It was only later that news reports would show that most of the activity took place in Oakland.
Police and Military stood by awaiting any potential attack. This time, it might be protestors on foot holding signs and digital cameras instead of insurgents riding on beat-down trucks armed with AK-47s and explosives.
The city stood silent as I walked around the perimeter for about an hour that morning. Was this the silent before the storm?
I hoped not.
Monday, September 28, 2009
Pitt News updates
I don't have the exact numbers right now. But from what the editor-in-chief told me, traffic hits to the website went up at least 10-fold from Thursday to Sunday and the paper's Twitter saw about 300-400 new followers.
The photo editor recapped his desk's G-20 experience here. It's an interesting post and really shows how much time the media, not just The Pitt News, really put into their covering of G20 and especially the protests.
A lot of the news was started on the streets by students and onlookers who would use Twitter to update events and was eventually picked up by media sources. There was a big push from independent media sources that helped show an even closer look at the protest/riots through the use of video on the streets.
The photo editor recapped his desk's G-20 experience here. It's an interesting post and really shows how much time the media, not just The Pitt News, really put into their covering of G20 and especially the protests.
A lot of the news was started on the streets by students and onlookers who would use Twitter to update events and was eventually picked up by media sources. There was a big push from independent media sources that helped show an even closer look at the protest/riots through the use of video on the streets.
London Vs. Pittsburgh
I was in London last semester during the G-20, although I did not personally see much of anything. As American students we were told to stay as far away from the protests as possible and the information I received was from the news and accounts of coworkers. Obviously I saw a lot more of this G-20 and I think that Pittsburgh was better off than London. Although there was some police brutality and whatnot, overall our city seems to have survived the summit. In London one man died due to police brutality... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HECMVdl-9SQ&feature=fvw and there were countless other attacks and arrests.
Of course, London is a lot bigger than Pittsburgh and 8 million people are a lot harder to control than 400,000. Did Pittsburgh handle the summit any better than London given it's size?
Of course, London is a lot bigger than Pittsburgh and 8 million people are a lot harder to control than 400,000. Did Pittsburgh handle the summit any better than London given it's size?
It seems like no one explained to the police that there are students who live in Oakland and couldn't get to their apartments/dorms because they were being ordered to disperse.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=etv8YEqaWgA&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=etv8YEqaWgA&feature=related
i missed it
well i sort of missed it. i was working thursday night actually, making buckets of ice cream on atwood street at dave&andys. no one messed with the store, which was nice. there was a big fire engine parked outside which helped things i reckon. friday i stayed home and drank beer and played the new nhl10 game for xbox with some buddies. ive had bronchitis all week so going into a heavily policed area with tear gas in the air didnt entice me. so i guess i pretty much missed it. i dont know what breaking windows proves anyway. the night we won the superbowl was ridiculous, and it seems to me thats probably how the g2o night(s) were. i remember groups of kids trying to smash open the tops of parking meters, circled around it, with the big heavy steel contraption bouncing around dangerously, hitting kids in the shins. i dont know if anyone busted any parking meters this weekend. they might have.
It is Our Campus
It seems really obvious watching video footage of last Thursday and Friday that the police were a bit out of hand. This is our campus and it’s not the student’s fault that the University was kept open and therefore hundreds of students remained on campus. I am not disputing that maybe it would have been a better choice to stay inside their dorms and houses, but you cannot lawfully confine students to their rooms because the school refuses to cancel classes and close dorms. It seems like Oakland would have been better off without the hundreds of cops. Tensions were high because of the cops and I don’t think their presence was helpful on either Thursday or Friday night. I don’t have anything against cops and when I was walking through Oakland and into the big rally of Friday afternoon, I was actually kind of glad all the cops were there. It seems like during the day they behave themselves and stay on the sidelines unless something illegal or potentially dangerous is happening. But the footage from those two evenings show the police being unnecessarily violent.
Sunday, September 27, 2009
G-20 Summit - Pre Highlights & Uncertain Thoughts...
I attended a luncheon at the University Club on Wednesday with four different people speaking about the reasons for the G-20 Summit. That was very informative and uneventful. The afternoon following the luncheon was what I found interesting. I observed Oakland preparing for the G-20 Summit.
From 2:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. I observed Oakland transform into a martial law community. I began to see many police officers in camouflage attire patrolling in various areas in Oakland. As the hour drew later, I also noticed many army Hummers filled with military officers. As the afternoon progressed, more and more police activity (ie., police motorcycle and automobile motorcades, police bicycle patrols, etc.).
While walking past Soldiers and Sailors Memorial I noticed a large group of people getting off of a Port Authority bus, and with a closer looked, I saw that it was a group of police officers. It seemed like forever for them all to get off of the bus. They proceeded towards Soldiers and Sailors Memorial. Then another Port Authority bus pulled up and more officers flooded off of a bus. Three bright blue cards with 'Kennywood' on the side pulled up on the the street to the left of Soldiers and Sailors Memorial, and police officers with matching blue shirts got out of the cars and congregated on the sidewalk prior to heading into Soldiers and Sailors Memorial. I began taking pictures with my cell phone.
It was after 4:30 p.m. and a friend called and asked me to join her for something to drink. We decided upon coffee, Starbucks, then I recommended not going to Starbucks since it was supposed to be a 'target' place for the protestors. We decided on McDonalds and both got something to drink from McDonalds, then it occurred to me that McDonalds was also supposed to be a 'target' spot for the protestors. We noticed two to three security guards in McDonalds and figured that they were there for the anticipated protestors. I suggested that we not sit too long in McDonalds, to avoid any potential disturbances. We took a couple sips of our beverages and left McDonalds.
We proceeded to walk to our cars, only to hear sirens in the background and notice PA state troopers walking around and on many of the corners in Oakland. It was 6:15 p.m. and every corner in Oakland had two state troopers on every corner. Some corners had up to ten state troopers congregated together and talkings amongst themselves. We walked across the street, against the light and my friend warned me that we were jay-walking because the light turned red. I told her to just keep walking and we should be alright. She said, "But we shouldn't be jay-walking with all of these police officers around us." As I turned around, it looked as though were surrounded by state troopers and one of them said, "No. You are not going to get a ticket. You are fine." I asked one of the officers if I could take their picture and they said it would be alright.
We took pictures of vaious things on the way back to our cars. It was an eery feeling to see so many police officers every in Oakland Pre G-20 Summit. A feeling that I have never quite felt before in Pittsburgh. I began taking random pictures of Oakland landmarks, just in case... because, sometimes you never know what to expect in a world filled with so much uncertainty.
The next day (Thursday), I stayed home and watched things unfold on television and on the internet. I posted minute-by-minute posts on facebook as things were actually taking place.
- - -
It was after 4:30 p.m. and a friend called and asked me to join her for something to drink. We decided upon coffee, Starbucks, then I recommended not going to Starbucks since it was supposed to be a 'target' place for the protestors. We decided on McDonalds and both got something to drink from McDonalds, then it occurred to me that McDonalds was also supposed to be a 'target' spot for the protestors. We noticed two to three security guards in McDonalds and figured that they were there for the anticipated protestors. I suggested that we not sit too long in McDonalds, to avoid any potential disturbances. We took a couple sips of our beverages and left McDonalds.
We proceeded to walk to our cars, only to hear sirens in the background and notice PA state troopers walking around and on many of the corners in Oakland. It was 6:15 p.m. and every corner in Oakland had two state troopers on every corner. Some corners had up to ten state troopers congregated together and talkings amongst themselves. We walked across the street, against the light and my friend warned me that we were jay-walking because the light turned red. I told her to just keep walking and we should be alright. She said, "But we shouldn't be jay-walking with all of these police officers around us." As I turned around, it looked as though were surrounded by state troopers and one of them said, "No. You are not going to get a ticket. You are fine." I asked one of the officers if I could take their picture and they said it would be alright.
We took pictures of vaious things on the way back to our cars. It was an eery feeling to see so many police officers every in Oakland Pre G-20 Summit. A feeling that I have never quite felt before in Pittsburgh. I began taking random pictures of Oakland landmarks, just in case... because, sometimes you never know what to expect in a world filled with so much uncertainty.
The next day (Thursday), I stayed home and watched things unfold on television and on the internet. I posted minute-by-minute posts on facebook as things were actually taking place.
- - -
September 24 at 4:49 p.m. Channel 11 is broadcasting the coverage LIVE. The G-20 Resistance protesters have been asked to disburse. The SWAT team is moving in. The police have declared the march an unlawful assembly.
September 24 at 4:51pm Pittsburgh TODAY is Truly "Someplace Special." A whole lot of activity going on right now. Please pray for PEACE in our city...
September 24 at 5:07 p.m. The news coverage reports "It is a dramatic showdown!'" Police arresting people now. Stay away from Downtown, Lawrenceville, and Bloomfield unless you want to get caught up on the craziness.
September 24 at 4:51pm Pittsburgh TODAY is Truly "Someplace Special." A whole lot of activity going on right now. Please pray for PEACE in our city...
September 24 at 5:07 p.m. The news coverage reports "It is a dramatic showdown!'" Police arresting people now. Stay away from Downtown, Lawrenceville, and Bloomfield unless you want to get caught up on the craziness.
This Is What a Police State Looks Like
Let's just ignore for a moment that this is coming from Alex Jones. Video is video, I was there, and this isn't misrepresented in any way. Shit was crazy, man.
Real life or scenes from a movie?
"You don't have to worry about it. You're 3 hours away" was the response I got from my friends at Penn State Friday night when I got the Pitt ENS alert that "Conditions may be deteriorating in Oakland." To some extent, they were right. I was 3 hours away. I wasn't in the middle of the chaos, but that still didn't stop me from thinking about all the people who were.
Over the past few days, all my news about the G20 and the happenings in Oakland had come from people at work, my family, friends, and of course, the media. I even took up listening to KDKA on the radio, which I thought would never happen. Most of the time, I was just listening to make sure the city was still standing.
Thursday night, I had been semi-disappointed that I don't live on campus this year, because I thought it would have been interesting to see everything firsthand. Now, after seeing most of the YouTube videos and photos, I'm not so sure that I still feel that way. I showed my friends at Penn State the photos that were on The Pitt News website and their response was that they looked like scenes from a movie. With most of them depicting tear gas on the streets and cops surrounding protestors, it's easy to see why they would say this. However, it is the fact that these photos are real that makes them so disturbing.
Over the past few days, all my news about the G20 and the happenings in Oakland had come from people at work, my family, friends, and of course, the media. I even took up listening to KDKA on the radio, which I thought would never happen. Most of the time, I was just listening to make sure the city was still standing.
Thursday night, I had been semi-disappointed that I don't live on campus this year, because I thought it would have been interesting to see everything firsthand. Now, after seeing most of the YouTube videos and photos, I'm not so sure that I still feel that way. I showed my friends at Penn State the photos that were on The Pitt News website and their response was that they looked like scenes from a movie. With most of them depicting tear gas on the streets and cops surrounding protestors, it's easy to see why they would say this. However, it is the fact that these photos are real that makes them so disturbing.
Shitstorm
The consensus around here is that this weekend was insane. Stories of police brutality, unruly protesters, and feces-smearing are constantly pouring in via word-of-mouth, Facebook, etc.
No doubt, much of the chaos was propagated by non-protesting Pitt students who just wanted a glimpse of the action and got a little carried away with their curiosity.
At Pitt, we've been privy to several riot-ish events in the past few years, but this was a different animal. It was far less innocuous than last year's Obama- and Steeler-fests. I felt truly unsafe at times, even though I avoided central Oakland for the most part. I would even go as far to say that this was more unsettling than being in New York on 9/11.
I'll leave you all with a link to The Pitt News' photo coverage of the weekend, and my own original G-20 remix:
No doubt, much of the chaos was propagated by non-protesting Pitt students who just wanted a glimpse of the action and got a little carried away with their curiosity.
At Pitt, we've been privy to several riot-ish events in the past few years, but this was a different animal. It was far less innocuous than last year's Obama- and Steeler-fests. I felt truly unsafe at times, even though I avoided central Oakland for the most part. I would even go as far to say that this was more unsettling than being in New York on 9/11.
I'll leave you all with a link to The Pitt News' photo coverage of the weekend, and my own original G-20 remix:
Missing the Madness
I missed the G20. Not by choice, I didn't intentionally avoid all of this chaos, but I had to go home last week for a court date that I could not reschedule. I'm disappointed to have missed all of this insanity. Last Thursday I received periodic text updates about the developing pandemonium, but it wasn't the same as being here.
Since returning this afternoon, I've heard reports from my roommate and friends about the craziness that went down, and I wish I could have witnessed it to make my own judgments. My roommate was adamant in reiterating how foolish all of the student protesters were. She has very little patience for our peers sometimes, and finds their attempts at protests useless and embarrassing. She relayed to me witnessing a kid who shoved his video camera in a police officer's face, after the officer ordered him to get off of the Union lawn. According to my roommate Katie, the kid demanded "Why are you doing this, man?? Why are you doing this?!" to which the officer replied, "Get that camera out of my face."
Katie cannot stand college kids who act like they're fighting the power by bothering cops who are only doing their jobs, and protesting a summit they probably know very little about.
My friend Brandon thinks both the protesters and police officers were a little ridiculous, and played off each other in a more dramatic way than necessary. He told me about his friend's attempt to "protest the protesters" on Thursday afternoon - an ironic approach I find sort of funny, but mostly ridiculous. Brandon described this kid's protest as featuring lines like: "You do not understand human nature" and "What do we like?!" "Hot Dogs!"
This approach may be amusing, but it too seems like a waste of time.
I wish I had been here last week so I could offer my own opinion about this G20 madness. Seeing photos and watching videos of the rioting has been surreal. It must have been unreal to see Forbes transformed that way. It's something that will (probably, hopefully?) never happen again, and it would have been interesting to have been a part of it.
Since returning this afternoon, I've heard reports from my roommate and friends about the craziness that went down, and I wish I could have witnessed it to make my own judgments. My roommate was adamant in reiterating how foolish all of the student protesters were. She has very little patience for our peers sometimes, and finds their attempts at protests useless and embarrassing. She relayed to me witnessing a kid who shoved his video camera in a police officer's face, after the officer ordered him to get off of the Union lawn. According to my roommate Katie, the kid demanded "Why are you doing this, man?? Why are you doing this?!" to which the officer replied, "Get that camera out of my face."
Katie cannot stand college kids who act like they're fighting the power by bothering cops who are only doing their jobs, and protesting a summit they probably know very little about.
My friend Brandon thinks both the protesters and police officers were a little ridiculous, and played off each other in a more dramatic way than necessary. He told me about his friend's attempt to "protest the protesters" on Thursday afternoon - an ironic approach I find sort of funny, but mostly ridiculous. Brandon described this kid's protest as featuring lines like: "You do not understand human nature" and "What do we like?!" "Hot Dogs!"
This approach may be amusing, but it too seems like a waste of time.
I wish I had been here last week so I could offer my own opinion about this G20 madness. Seeing photos and watching videos of the rioting has been surreal. It must have been unreal to see Forbes transformed that way. It's something that will (probably, hopefully?) never happen again, and it would have been interesting to have been a part of it.
The G-20 madness is finally over. After much emotional upheaval, the city can finally get back to normal. But we still can not forget the chaos that ensued in this city, on our campus.
Blame the protesters.
Blame the cops.
But mostly, blame the University.
There was no reason for our campus to remain open this weekend. What would have been the result of closing the buildings, including the dorms, like every other college in the city? A few more days of class over Thanksgiving or Christmas break?
Instead, those who kept the school open allowed their students to get tear gassed and shot with rubber bullets outside of the places they pay the University to live. Had the dorms been closed, the "riots" in Oakland would not have happened, as the "rioters" were simply students curious about the police-state induced outside their windows.
It's too late for the University to do anything but apologize. While it's not much, their simple apology for failing to properly handle the situation would at least show the students that the University at least cares about their well being, something that was not shown this weekend.
Blame the protesters.
Blame the cops.
But mostly, blame the University.
There was no reason for our campus to remain open this weekend. What would have been the result of closing the buildings, including the dorms, like every other college in the city? A few more days of class over Thanksgiving or Christmas break?
Instead, those who kept the school open allowed their students to get tear gassed and shot with rubber bullets outside of the places they pay the University to live. Had the dorms been closed, the "riots" in Oakland would not have happened, as the "rioters" were simply students curious about the police-state induced outside their windows.
It's too late for the University to do anything but apologize. While it's not much, their simple apology for failing to properly handle the situation would at least show the students that the University at least cares about their well being, something that was not shown this weekend.
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Damages
Holly Kagy posted the following list of business that suffered damages as a result of the G20 riots on facebook.
- PNC Bank at Liberty Avenue and Matilda Street in Bloomfield sustained a broken glass door
- P&W BMW Auto Showroom on Baum Blvd. in Bloomfield sustained a broken window pane
- Boston Market Restaurant on Baum Blvd. in Shadyside sustained 10 broken window panes
- KFC on Baum Blvd. in Bloomfield sustained 1 broken window pane
- Pamela's Diner on Forbes Avenue in Oakland sustained broken windows
- Quizno's Subs on Craig Street in Oakland sustained broken windows
- Irish Design Center on Craig Street sustained broken windows
- PNC Bank on Craig Street in Oakland sustained broken windows
- BNY Mellon on Craig Street sustained broken windows
- Citizens Bank on Craig Street in Oakland sustained broken windows
- Fidelity Bank on Morewood and Centre in Shadyside sustained broken windows/drive-thru
- Panera Bread on Forbes Avenue in Oakland sustained broken windows
- McDonalds on Forbes Avenue in Oakland sustained broken windows
- Brueggars Bagels on Forbes Avenue in Oakland sustained broken windows
- Subway on Forbes Avenue in Oakland sustained broken windows
- Rite Aid on Forbes Avenue in Oakland sustained broken windows
- FedEx on Forbes Avenue in Oakland sustained broken windows
- H&R Block on Atwood in Oakland sustained broken windows
Photos from Friday Night
I went into Oakland last night to a friend's party around 10:30. I was too frightened to stop with my little camera because there were hundreds of people standing around on Fifth and I saw three different SWAT teams clinging to the backs of their trucks as they patrolled the streets. Police stopped my boyfriend and I from going down Craig Street, so we took fifth to Bouquet. Miraculously the O was open. The party was really calm compared to the last one at the same house. We mostly sat on the porch and listened to the helicopters.
I took these pictures in front of Soldiers and Sailors around 2am when we walked home. The streets had cleared out. Wobbling sorority girls have never been such a welcome sight to me. I hope things are back to normal now on campus.
I took these pictures in front of Soldiers and Sailors around 2am when we walked home. The streets had cleared out. Wobbling sorority girls have never been such a welcome sight to me. I hope things are back to normal now on campus.
Photos from Friday
These are some pictures that I took yesterday. I walked through Walnut street on my way to work and documented what it looked like as a result of Thursday. I don't know if all of these modifications are precautionary or if the windows are broken. I think the former, probably.
I liked the logical appeals to the protesters' values in these stores.
I liked the logical appeals to the protesters' values in these stores.
A Happy and Sad Note About this Weekend
I don't have much information or insight on the protests but I do have stories about the aftermath. For my internship I write about Bloomfield and its businesses, so I was a little concerned when I heard that the riots had ended up there. The thing that concerned me the most was how it was going to affect this weekend's Little Italy Days, Bloomfield's big celebration for the year. Happily the riots didn't affect the festivities. Italian music and discussion of the previous day pervaded the air. People walked around the festival enjoying the food and booths that people had set up on the street. The only evidence of the riots yesterday were the broken ATMs at PNC on Liberty Ave., and they were quickly fixed within the first three hours that I was at the event. And while there was some concern of protestors parading through the event no one let it damper their spirits.
On a more concerning note I did see some of the aftermath after last night's protests. A friend wanted to attend someones 21st celebration at Peter's Pub but didn't want to go alone, so I tagged along. We decided to go down Bayard to try and avoid the craziness that was surely happening on Fifth and we had a pretty uneventful trip to the bar. By the time we reached Fifth the street looked pretty empty except for the cop cars that were heading towards downtown, so we figured the night's "festivities" were pretty much over. We were only at the bar for about a half an hour but that was more than enough time for me. While we were standing waiting for the birthday girl we saw the smoke coming from one of the police cannisters float down Oakland Ave and had a cop shine a light into the bar from his car. Shortly after this we decided it was safer to leave then rather than waiting to see what was going on. It turned out to be a wise idea because as we were crossing Fifth to go up Oakland to Bayard we had a line of police come down the street yelling for people to get off the street, one of their dogs run at us, and a cannister get shot on the other side of street. Let's just say we quicken our pace quite a bit after that to get home.
On a more concerning note I did see some of the aftermath after last night's protests. A friend wanted to attend someones 21st celebration at Peter's Pub but didn't want to go alone, so I tagged along. We decided to go down Bayard to try and avoid the craziness that was surely happening on Fifth and we had a pretty uneventful trip to the bar. By the time we reached Fifth the street looked pretty empty except for the cop cars that were heading towards downtown, so we figured the night's "festivities" were pretty much over. We were only at the bar for about a half an hour but that was more than enough time for me. While we were standing waiting for the birthday girl we saw the smoke coming from one of the police cannisters float down Oakland Ave and had a cop shine a light into the bar from his car. Shortly after this we decided it was safer to leave then rather than waiting to see what was going on. It turned out to be a wise idea because as we were crossing Fifth to go up Oakland to Bayard we had a line of police come down the street yelling for people to get off the street, one of their dogs run at us, and a cannister get shot on the other side of street. Let's just say we quicken our pace quite a bit after that to get home.
My friend Chris took some amazing pictures of the whole fiasco, many I believe for the Pitt News.
My experiences were probably the same as most of yours. I came down to Schenely Plaza Thursday evening, by myself, to see if I could get a story on the events unfolding for my newspaper class. After running from a tear gas canister, armed cops on horses, etc., I decided that I got enough for 250 words.
What surprised me, from what I saw, is that most of the crowd was simply students standing around watching. I can't call what they were doing protesting, more like spectators of the protest, tourists with cameras. Of course there were a few black-clad anarchists but even they were just standing around, at least when I was there. So I'm not entirely sure what incited the tear gas.
Some friends and I did go down to Forbes around 12:30 that night, after we saw some armor-plated FBI humvee things pass their house. (Oh hey! welcome to the neighborhood!) We saw Subway's windows busted in, and Pamela's, which made us sad... even though by the spider web patterned cracks on their windows, we couldn't tell whether the damage was caused by rocks or rubber bullets...
I live in Shadyside though, so after I left my friend's house that night, I stayed in the calm sanctuary that is not Oakland and let the real news people risk their necks. Which! By the way, that newspaper class I mentioned earlier, it's taught by one of the editors of the Post Gazette, Tim Martin, and a reporter named Sadie Gurman often comes in and teaches with him. Well, she was arrested last night, with her credentials around her neck, while she was reporting on the protest in Oakland. And left in jail until 9:00 am.
So I guess it seems the anarchists got what they wanted: lack of laws, but I don't know if their protesting helped bring that about as much as the cops' disregard.
Friday, September 25, 2009
Bloomfield aftermath
As I was riding the bus back to my apartment in Friendship I got a call around 5 p.m. yesterday from my mom.
"There's a group gathering at Friendship Park. It's on the news." (translation: Please find out what's going on without me asking you to potentially put yourself in a compromising situation to fulfill my curiosity.)
"I'll check it out."
"Be careful. Stay away from tear gas." (oh, mom)
Once I was back at my apartment I nabbed my sister and we headed down there, but found nothing. So we headed to Liberty Ave. in Bloomfield. One of the glass doors of the PNC was busted and the glass was being swept away, with protesters milling about as the riot police were packing up.
It didn't appear any of the damage was extensive, from what we saw and what we asked various shopkeepers standing outside their stores what they saw. All they said was that a crowd of the anarchists were beating each other up and they got sprayed with rubber bullets. I didn't hear or read that on the news...
"There's a group gathering at Friendship Park. It's on the news." (translation: Please find out what's going on without me asking you to potentially put yourself in a compromising situation to fulfill my curiosity.)
"I'll check it out."
"Be careful. Stay away from tear gas." (oh, mom)
Once I was back at my apartment I nabbed my sister and we headed down there, but found nothing. So we headed to Liberty Ave. in Bloomfield. One of the glass doors of the PNC was busted and the glass was being swept away, with protesters milling about as the riot police were packing up.
It didn't appear any of the damage was extensive, from what we saw and what we asked various shopkeepers standing outside their stores what they saw. All they said was that a crowd of the anarchists were beating each other up and they got sprayed with rubber bullets. I didn't hear or read that on the news...
Police and Protesters
I took all these pictures in Oakland today. Police in riot gear are a bit too scary for me, but overall I didn't see any violence.
Students trapped, gassed
Watch this clip and about a minute in you can see how student observers were surrounded and trapped by riot police. They had nowhere to go, but still told to leave. When they didn't leave, police shot tear gas into the stairwell where they were.
A lighter G20 note
A very suave Egyptian in his late 40's, calling himself Mohammed, tried to pick me up at the Starbucks in central Oakland around 10am yesterday. He told me he was involved in some part of the G20 commission and said I was pretty. I couldn't wholly understand his accent, so I'm not sure what his role was, but he did have an expensive looking suit. This sort of coffee shop awkwardness rarely happens to me, but at all times it seems to be happening to at least one person I know (especially to my friend Austin.) These older men are so tricky because they catch you off-guard. Mohammed opened the dialog by showing me an article about research at CMU and then I felt bad for him because I thought he just needed someone to talk to. Wrong. I only got away when the person I was supposed to meet rescued me.
Older men hunting for college students at coffee shops are the worst. That's what I am protesting.
Older men hunting for college students at coffee shops are the worst. That's what I am protesting.
Be careful taking walks and buying coffee...
I went for a run in Oakland yesterday around 6pm, and outside of a secret service man casually playing golf in Schenley (which was completely shut off to the public), a few people dressed up like Native Americans, and a girl being removed from the center of Forbes on a stretcher- nothing was too crazy. Everyone seemed to be out running, walking, biking, watching and waiting for something to happen...
I didn't attend the protests, though I had been planning to. At 11pm I recieve urgent messages, and I quote...
"Get out of there, Jess. They are about to gas everyone."
This morning I got up to date on what was happenening, and I realize that we are keeping the peace here, but swat teams and cops in riot gear on every corner as I go to buy a coffee- perhaps a bit much?
I particularly enjoyed the cops on horseback. Please get out of here with your noble steed.
A small group of people carrying signs reading,"I love capitalism, don't smash my windows." spotted my Breuggers coffee and began to scream at me.. "You love capitalism too, you there with your Breggeurs. I bet you like Starbucks too, huh?"
Um, I like coffee. Have a nice morning?
Again, I didn't go. This is just what I observed, should that have relevance to our project.
I didn't attend the protests, though I had been planning to. At 11pm I recieve urgent messages, and I quote...
"Get out of there, Jess. They are about to gas everyone."
This morning I got up to date on what was happenening, and I realize that we are keeping the peace here, but swat teams and cops in riot gear on every corner as I go to buy a coffee- perhaps a bit much?
I particularly enjoyed the cops on horseback. Please get out of here with your noble steed.
A small group of people carrying signs reading,"I love capitalism, don't smash my windows." spotted my Breuggers coffee and began to scream at me.. "You love capitalism too, you there with your Breggeurs. I bet you like Starbucks too, huh?"
Um, I like coffee. Have a nice morning?
Again, I didn't go. This is just what I observed, should that have relevance to our project.
Thirsty Thursday.
I won't lie - I attended the riot last night just to watch some extreme police brutality. Needless to say, I was pretty disappointed when I got to Schenley Plaza at 9:30 PM and it was tame as ever. I'd been in an office from 1-9, and where I expected something to the extent of the Super Bowl riots, all I got was an inordinate amount of police and people standing around, arms crossed, silent and waiting for something to happen. Yeah, there were some dirt punks strolling around with bandannas and goggles on their faces - just in case a can of tear gas came tearing through the dullness - but overall, everyone was there for the same reason I was: to see shit hit the fan.
That's why patience is a virtue.
Elmer Eric Schattschneider, a political scientist and a Pitt alumnus, had this theory about conflict. The amount of people who are brought into a conflict determine the results of it, which is to say the bigger the audience, the bigger the conflict, the bigger the winner. This is mostly applied to politics, namely interest group politics, but I think it's applicable for rioting also. The more people who are watching, the more violent the outcome. When I got to Schenley Plaza, it was just a whole lot of people standing around and waiting for something to happen. They were the audience, not the participants. Anticipation was building. More and more people were coming to Schenley Plaza because everyone was gathering there for a reason, right? Right? But why was nothing happening? Why are there so many people and so many cops?
I left with my friend from to go grab some beers, and that's when the SWAT cars came ripping through Forbes Avenue (side note: when the shit did Pittsburgh get armored SWAT tanks? Where are my tax dollars going?!). Apparently, a large group of protesters had made their way down to Schenley Plaza, and whether or not they did anything, I can't say, but whatever happened was enough to light the powder keg. A friend meeting me at Schenley texted me. "WE GOT TEAR GASSED." A large truck announced that the City of Pittsburgh declared this an unlawful assembly; anyone in the area was subject to arrests and they would use physical force. Two shots arced in the sky, and when they landed, white gas spread like fog. People were running, and other people were yelling at them to walk.
A stream of heavily armored police rushed the group of us that was just standing there on Forbes Avenue by the Carnegie Museums, dumbfounded, reacting slowly when they kept shouting at us to move back. They grabbed one old and dirty man wearing round glasses, and they threw him to the ground. He was flanked and swallowed by a pack of armored men. People started screaming "LEGAL! LEGAL!" and pointing at the group of police. Two police officers got up from the pack and rushed us. One had a billy club, the other had a rifle. A protester-medic was beaten with the billy club, and the other cop pointed the rifle at me, shouting "MOVE. MOVE BACK."
Three more arcs of smoke trailed towards the Cathedral of Learning. A helicopter was flying circles above Oakland, and its spotlight kept hitting the Cathedral walls. I wanted to get onto the lawn to see what was going on, but there were cops everywhere. Every street was blocked. People were standing in flocks on the corners, craning their heads and bouncing on their tip-toes to see the mayhem. The row of cops kept moving back; they were always screaming at us, never just telling us, asking us. We were just kids. We just wanted to see the shitshow.
I've satisfied my quota for police brutality, but that's all that Thursday night satisfied. Why didn't the protesters do anything? After traveling from all over the country - shit, all over the world - all you're going to do is hula-hoop and bang on makeshift drums? I wanted someone to throw something at the wall of police officers - a shoe, a can of soda, a bag of shit, anything! I wanted people to be shouting about capitalist bourgeois pigs! I wanted picket signs and chanting! I wanted public indecency! I wanted anger and frustration and passion! And yes, I saw anger, frustration and passion, but it came from the cops who were paid to be there and not the protesters who came of their own will. Because there was none of that, there was devastatingly little reason for there to have been as much violence as there was last night, and that makes my satisfaction feel hollow.
There are a lot of people shit-talking the police for use of excessive force, and I don't think it's undeserved. It certainly was gratuitous violence. However, to pin the blame completely on the cops is misguided. Violence was demanded. Everyone who gathered at Schenley and Forbes and the Cathedral was there to witness and possibly be a part of some unadultered chaos. We were the Schattschneidian audience that fed the conflict, and it hit a critical mass at which someone had to deliver the goods to the people. If no one had came to watch the gathering of protesters, i.e. if no one had wanted to see violence, there would have been less brutality. Possibly even none. Again, I'm satisfied with what happened to the extent that it fulfilled my need to see shitshows and garner cool stories (a cop fucking pointed a rifle at me! COME ON. THAT'S SO COOL), but I really just wish it was the protesters who started it. I really wish there was more of a reason than just "because."
In other news, I watched this video a billion times last night. Unbelievable.
That's why patience is a virtue.
Elmer Eric Schattschneider, a political scientist and a Pitt alumnus, had this theory about conflict. The amount of people who are brought into a conflict determine the results of it, which is to say the bigger the audience, the bigger the conflict, the bigger the winner. This is mostly applied to politics, namely interest group politics, but I think it's applicable for rioting also. The more people who are watching, the more violent the outcome. When I got to Schenley Plaza, it was just a whole lot of people standing around and waiting for something to happen. They were the audience, not the participants. Anticipation was building. More and more people were coming to Schenley Plaza because everyone was gathering there for a reason, right? Right? But why was nothing happening? Why are there so many people and so many cops?
I left with my friend from to go grab some beers, and that's when the SWAT cars came ripping through Forbes Avenue (side note: when the shit did Pittsburgh get armored SWAT tanks? Where are my tax dollars going?!). Apparently, a large group of protesters had made their way down to Schenley Plaza, and whether or not they did anything, I can't say, but whatever happened was enough to light the powder keg. A friend meeting me at Schenley texted me. "WE GOT TEAR GASSED." A large truck announced that the City of Pittsburgh declared this an unlawful assembly; anyone in the area was subject to arrests and they would use physical force. Two shots arced in the sky, and when they landed, white gas spread like fog. People were running, and other people were yelling at them to walk.
A stream of heavily armored police rushed the group of us that was just standing there on Forbes Avenue by the Carnegie Museums, dumbfounded, reacting slowly when they kept shouting at us to move back. They grabbed one old and dirty man wearing round glasses, and they threw him to the ground. He was flanked and swallowed by a pack of armored men. People started screaming "LEGAL! LEGAL!" and pointing at the group of police. Two police officers got up from the pack and rushed us. One had a billy club, the other had a rifle. A protester-medic was beaten with the billy club, and the other cop pointed the rifle at me, shouting "MOVE. MOVE BACK."
Three more arcs of smoke trailed towards the Cathedral of Learning. A helicopter was flying circles above Oakland, and its spotlight kept hitting the Cathedral walls. I wanted to get onto the lawn to see what was going on, but there were cops everywhere. Every street was blocked. People were standing in flocks on the corners, craning their heads and bouncing on their tip-toes to see the mayhem. The row of cops kept moving back; they were always screaming at us, never just telling us, asking us. We were just kids. We just wanted to see the shitshow.
I've satisfied my quota for police brutality, but that's all that Thursday night satisfied. Why didn't the protesters do anything? After traveling from all over the country - shit, all over the world - all you're going to do is hula-hoop and bang on makeshift drums? I wanted someone to throw something at the wall of police officers - a shoe, a can of soda, a bag of shit, anything! I wanted people to be shouting about capitalist bourgeois pigs! I wanted picket signs and chanting! I wanted public indecency! I wanted anger and frustration and passion! And yes, I saw anger, frustration and passion, but it came from the cops who were paid to be there and not the protesters who came of their own will. Because there was none of that, there was devastatingly little reason for there to have been as much violence as there was last night, and that makes my satisfaction feel hollow.
There are a lot of people shit-talking the police for use of excessive force, and I don't think it's undeserved. It certainly was gratuitous violence. However, to pin the blame completely on the cops is misguided. Violence was demanded. Everyone who gathered at Schenley and Forbes and the Cathedral was there to witness and possibly be a part of some unadultered chaos. We were the Schattschneidian audience that fed the conflict, and it hit a critical mass at which someone had to deliver the goods to the people. If no one had came to watch the gathering of protesters, i.e. if no one had wanted to see violence, there would have been less brutality. Possibly even none. Again, I'm satisfied with what happened to the extent that it fulfilled my need to see shitshows and garner cool stories (a cop fucking pointed a rifle at me! COME ON. THAT'S SO COOL), but I really just wish it was the protesters who started it. I really wish there was more of a reason than just "because."
In other news, I watched this video a billion times last night. Unbelievable.
When do our rights as students at the host university become null and void and our city turns into a police state?
The damage last night was no worse than the Super Bowl win, yet students, the ones whos tuition dollars run the school who invited you here, were nearly assaulted for trying to cross the street to go home and get out of the way. I know it's the 20 most powerful people in the world, and you're just doing your jobs, but continuing to harass and threaten students when no leader was left in Oakland is insane.
The ACLU is up in arms calling it Kent State like. At the end of the G-20, lets hope that protester violence and police oppression aren't the only things people are left talking about.
Welcome to Oakland, protesters
Photo by Vaughn Wallace / Photo Editor at The Pitt News
This is going to be a completely selfish post here, but the folks at The Pitt News have been doing an amazing job covering the G-20 — especially in Oakland.
Because I was cooped up writing a paper at my apartment in Shadyside yesterday, I wasn't able to get the real experience of protests and riots in Oakland. I would check CNN or even the PG every once in a while, but no news source gave me the most up-to-date information like The Pitt News.
I know that the news, photo and other editors have been running around the area capturing stories to report. If you check out the paper's G-20 page, you can a list of all the stories about the Summit.
What I found most useful while trying to figure out what was happening in Pittsburgh and Oakland, was to follow the Pitt News' twitter. They were tweeting in real time the events that were taking place. It was a very anecdotal approach to news and a great way to follow what was happening.
The View
You have to wait in a queue, and your time at the controller is limited, but here's the view from atop the Cathedral of Learning.
http://www.tour.pitt.edu/cl_cam.html
http://www.tour.pitt.edu/cl_cam.html
Sounds Like Things Are Getting Hairy
"Here is the part where I felt most violated -- The riot cops then ENTERED our dormitory and shouted that students needed to return to their rooms immediately. Anyone arrested, they said, would be expelled from the University of Pittsburgh, no questions asked."
http://www.reddit.com/r/worldnews/comments/9nxw2/armored_police_seize_university_of_pittsburgh/
http://www.reddit.com/r/worldnews/comments/9nxw2/armored_police_seize_university_of_pittsburgh/
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