Occupy Protests

Occupy Moves Its Cause Indoors

Occupy isn't gone, it has just moved inside -- where its much cooler these days. Far from having their spirits crushed after police raided the last remaining Occupy camp last week (which had become less about occupy and more about the homeless), the Occupy movement has strategically continued to fig ... More >>

Occupy Movement Turns One Year Old on Monday, But Shows No Sign of Growing Up

It seems like just yesterday Occupiers had created their own unregulated cities playgrounds in downtowns, hoping this would help combat American poverty. Here we are a year later, and it's time to ask: What's really changed?Well, nothing, of course.  But who gives a damn really, the Occupy ... More >>

Occupy at Least Makes for Good Art

The notorious Occupy Movement might have faded into the of background of the political conscious, but it's been etched in our minds forever. This weekend, you can catch a glimpse of protesters, but not camped out on the streets. Remember this now-defunct movement at the Yerba Buena Center for the Ar ... More >>

Occupy Berkeley: New Report Says Cops Were Definitely Too Mean During Protests

If Occupy protesters could garner sympathy anywhere, it's going to be in the hypersensitive city of Berkeley. A new report released this week sides with UC Berkeley protesters, claiming police were a bit too heavy-handed during last fall's protests when they repeatedly clubbed student protesters wit ... More >>

Occupy This Album Is as Massive, Inconsistent, and Powerful as Occupy Itself

Remember all the hand-wringing last year over the so-called disappearance of protest music? As the Occupy movement hit its peak, capturing the attention of the country, commentators and older musicians were accusing contemporary artists of failing to grapple with the major struggles of their time in ... More >>

Building Occupiers Hurl Bricks Onto Crowd Below, Injury Reported

Update, 5:55 p.m. SF Weekly's Albert Samaha estimates about 70 cops in riot gear, about a dozen on motorbikes, and six axe-wielding firefighters are on the scene. About two dozen bystanders are observing from Jefferson Square Park nearby. No move to storm the building yet following the object-tossin ... More >>

Occupy Protesters, Watch What You Tweet

A New York judge has ruled that Twitter must release tweets from an Occupy Wall Street protester, claiming the information, which highlights the chaotic arrests on the Brooklyn Bridge last year, is -- and should be -- public for the whole world to read. Malcom Harris, a 22-year-old writer, was one o ... More >>

"Smugglers' Songs": A Glimpse down the Road to Freedom

Why Are Faggots So Afraid of Faggots? Asks Mattilda Bernstein Sycamore

It's hard to overstate how much the politics of sexuality have changed in the past 20 years. In the 1980s and '90s, coming out of the closet was a radical act. In 2011, gay men and lesbians are so cute and cuddly and downright marketable in popular culture that even Archie and Jughead hang out with ... More >>

A Nation Mobilized

SF Weekly Letters

Occupy Movement Calling on Artists to Design New Logo for 99 Percent

​Occupy is asking protesters to do something a little more creative than just occupy vacant buildings. The Occupy movement has launched a contest, calling on designers to create a new logo that would best symbolize the international movement and its basic tenet -- protesting financial inequality. ... More >>

Occupy Oakland: Judge Issues Restraining Order Against Protesters

​Oakland officials truly upped the ante in their battle with Occupy Oakland when they secured a stay-away order for 12 protesters who were charged in connection with the weekend chaos in downtown Oakland.The demonstrators were ordered to stay 300 feet away from Frank Ogawa Plaza, home of City Hall ... More >>

Occupy Movement Losing Support in San Francisco

​The Occupy Movement is still making headlines, four months after it took root in New York City. But it's only front-page news because of the damage it's been causing, not because of its success. Perhaps that explains the latest sentiment among San Francisco residents who were once on board with O ... More >>

Mayor Jean Quan Calls on Occupy Wall Street to "Disown" Occupy Oakland

​After a weekend of epic chaos that led to more than 400 arrests in downtown Oakland, Mayor Jean Quan says she is going to place a call to New York City -- home of the Occupy Wall Street movement --  to let protesters there know she is really, really sick and tired of Occupy consuming her hom ... More >>

Occupy San Francisco to Shut Down Financial District

​Occupy San Francisco is unleashing itself all over San Francisco's financial institutions come Friday, in what protesters are saying will be the largest street protest the city has experienced since the anti-war demonstrations in 2003. It's been several weeks in the making, ever since the Occupy ... More >>

Oakland Tribune Afraid of Losing Even More Subscribers to Occupy Oakland Tribune

Making news is one way to increase your readership​In a fun twist of irony, the Oakland Tribune newspaper is attempting to quash the freedom of speech of another local news outlet, with a cease and desist order sent earlier this week.According to writers at the newly established activist paper, th ... More >>

Occupy Oakland: New Camp Pops Up in West Oakland

​Just a short month after being uprooted and cleared out by police, Occupy protesters have reportedly pitched tents again as part of a new camp established late Tuesday night in West Oakland. Was it something we said?The Oakland Tribune reports already more than a dozen tents are occupying the new ... More >>

What Do Occupy Oakland and Mayor Jean Quan Have in Common?

Let's face it, her stars are not aligned​First, they are both Libras. Why does that matter, you ask? It doesn't, unless you are a firm believer in astrology, or perhaps, like us, you are looking for another excuse to see Mayor Jean Quan in this wizard hat.As our sister blog, the Exhibitionist note ... More >>

Mayor Ed Lee, Police Say Feds Didn't Order Them to Evict Occupy SF

Officials maintain the decision to evict Occupiers was from City Hall, not Washington. ​Both Mayor Ed Lee and San Francisco police deny that they received marching orders from any federal agency to evict Occupy SF protesters and arrest resisters at Justin Herman Plaza on December 7. SF Weekly requ ... More >>

Occupy Bernal Heights: No Tents Necessary

Courtesy of the Badass Bernalwood Press Bernal Heights residents want homes, not tents​Bernal Heights residents are proving you don't really need to pitch a tent to fight big banks. As Bernalwood reports, a bunch of neighbors in the quirky neighborhood have decided to create an official "Occupy B ... More >>

SFPD's Ugly History with Pepper Spray

​When San Francisco Police came calling in June of 1995, 37-year-old Aaron Williams probably didn't think it would be his last day on Earth. But as the pet-store-burglary suspect emerged from his house, a dozen officers piled on him. Police pepper-sprayed him, restrained him, and placed him face-d ... More >>

Occupy Movement to Shut Down West Coast Ports

​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: ... More >>

W. Kamau Bell: Stop Talking Shit About the Occupy Movement!

​San Francisco's W. Kamau Bell and his socio-political stand-up comedy sidekicks, Laughter Against the Machine, have traveled around the nation, making stops at six different Occupy Movement camps, including ones in Portland, San Francisco, New York, and New Orleans. And while he acknowledges he's ... More >>

W. Kamau Bell: "Stop Talking Shit About the Occupy Movement"

Me and my socio-political stand-up comedy crew, Laughter Against The Machine, just finished our first national tour. Collectively we went to six Occupations, in New Orleans, Portland, New York, D.C., and San Francisco. And I would like to make a request of you. Stop talking shit about the Occupy Wal ... More >>

Occupy the Pop Charts: Five Reasons Why We Like Third Eye Blind's Stephan Jenkins

Gil RiegoThird Eye Blind's Stephan Jenkins performing in S.F. last year.​ Yesterday, San Francisco's own Third Eye Blind released "If There Ever Was a Time," a new song in support of Occupy Wall Street. Penned by frontman Stephan Jenkins, the song's lyrics are a cheery encouragement for young ... More >>

Move Your Money Day: San Francisco Residents to Dump Their Banks

​In what could be the first practical request by the Occupy Movement yet, protesters are asking everyone across the nation to take part in the "Move Your Money Day" tomorrow and divert their investments from big banks. It might seem ambitious, but considering how the mass exodus of customers from ... More >>

Occupy SF Movement Grows on Market Street

​Last week we told you about the Occupy Wall Street movement spreading all the way to the West Coast, including San Francisco. Near the Financial District, protesters have set up a makeshift home for themselves, equipped with tarps, food, rain gear, and, because it's San Francisco, they're attempt ... More >>