Good Morning from Occupy Boston!

Stories of the Day: The Boston Phoenix covers the story of the Camp Charlie temporary eviction and re-occupation. And lots of Trayvon Martin news (and see info on Rally for Justice for Trayvon below): George Zimmerman expected to be charged with second degree murder in Trayvon Martin’s death, see story here. Attorney General vows thorough review in Trayvon Martin case, see story here. A teacher was fired for organizing a fundraiser for Trayvon Martin’s family. And in censored news, check out The 19 Things That the Talking Heads on Television are Being Strangely Silent About.

Other Occupies/Protests:  OWS has a variety of tactics to break up Bank of America, ranging from direct actions to coordinated Move your Money efforts, and as their spring offensive continues, they’re ratcheting up the pressure. See more here.  More Occupy news: On January 7, 2012, the Philadelphia General Assembly came to consensus on a proposal from the Philadelphia Committee of Correspondence to form a national working group dedicated to conceiving of, and implementing a strategy towards, a National Gathering of the Occupy Movement. OWS and other Occupies are in solidarity. See more here. And in other news, international protests are planned for May 12 and May 15. According to the event website: Saturday May 12 has been proposed as a global day of action in which we will once again take to the streets, to the squares, or wherever we can in order to carry out specific actions that will empower mass demonstrations. May 15 is intended as a global day of action, to intervene in capital flows and mobility, while simultaneously coordinating actions in order to bring awareness to the world so that it moves in a new direction. See more here.

“If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor.” Archbishop Desmond Tutu

Upcoming Events:

• Raise Taxes on the 1% Tax Day Rally and March, Tuesday, April 17, 5:30PM, Dewey Square (South Station). Occupy JP and Occupy Boston will participate, along with many other groups, in a protest against the unfairness of the current tax regime, where people such as Mitt Romney pay at rates far lower than those earning far less, and Warren Buffet’s now-famous secretary pays at a higher rate than Warren Buffet.  The Rally and March will begin at 5:30pm at Dewey Square (South Station) and the march will begin at 6pm and proceed through the city streets, pass by several notorious corporate tax dodgers, and end at Post Office Square. Things to bring:  yourself (most important), signs, noise-making stuff (pots, pans, kazoos, whatever). For a list of co-sponsoring organizations visit http://www.taxdayboston.org.

Thursday, April 12, 2012

Please note events are subject to change; check https://www.occupyboston.org for the latest information!

Event Highlights:

• Rally for Justice for Trayvon,  11am, Parkman Bandstand, Boston Common. Come show support for Trayvon Martin’s family as they demand a thorough investigation of all circumstances regarding Trayvon’s death along with a demand for justice. Also voice your opposition to a proposed “Stand Your Ground” bill presently before the Massachusetts State Legislature. After the rally, please join a lobbying campaign of legislators at the Statehouse.

• Justice for Farmworkers! Picket, Delegation and Theater at Stop & Shop Headquarters, Thursday, April 12 at 12pm, Stop & Shop Corporate Office Headquarters, 1385 Hancock St., Quincy.

  Just days before the Ahold (parent company of Stop & Shop) Shareholder Meeting, please join farmworkers and Fair Food allies in calling on Stop and Shop to join the Fair Food Program!

  For decades, Florida’s farmworkers faced poverty wages and daily violations of their basic rights — including physical abuse, sexual harassment, and in the most extreme cases, modern-day slavery — in order to harvest the food on our plates. Today, however, a new day is dawning in the fields. The Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) — an internationally-recognized farmworker organization — has reached groundbreaking agreements with ten of the world’s leading food retailers, including McDonald’s, Subway and Trader Joe’s. Hailed by the New York Times as “possibly the most successful labor action in the US in twenty years,” the Fair Food Program establishes a worker-designed code of conduct in the fields and requires retailers to pay one more penny per pound for the tomatoes they buy to go directly to the workers who picked them—all of which is monitored and enforced by the independent Fair Food Standards Council. Supermarkets like Ahold leverage their high-volume purchasing power to demand the ever-lower prices that result in farmworker exploitation. By refusing to partner with the CIW, the steps the company has taken fall far short of the substantive, verifiable and enforceable standards that the situation requires, consumers expect, and others within the industry have embraced.

  Join farmworkers and Fair Food advocates in demanding that Ahold uphold human rights and join the Fair Food Program! More information: www.ciw-online.org, Contact: elena@interfaithact.org; 650.678.9127

• 4:00 PM — Ride the Rails Come Ride the Rails with us to spread the word to Boston’s subway riders about Camp Charlie, the Occupy MBTA campaign, and the broader Occupy Boston community. We’ll be meeting at Camp Charlie at 4:00 PM for a brief training, after which we’ll be setting out in teams to connect with Boston’s rush-hour commuters and recruit them for the movement through speaking, leafleting, and distributing copies of the Boston Occupier. Let’s seize the unique opportunity to engage thousands of T commuters about the issues that could immediately impact them — the cuts, hikes, and layoffs — as well as the deeper issues that they raise for us all. See you there! Please note: Ride the Rails will meet every day at 4:00 PM at Camp Charlie until the occupation has run its course.
•  [Ongoing] Occupation of State House Steps for Public Transportation, April 5 – 14, 2012, Camp Charlie at the State House. On April 4, Occupy the MBTA, a working group of Occupy Boston, launched Camp Charlie, a ten-day occupation of the Massachusetts State House steps to protest fare-hikes and service cutbacks on the MBTA. Having survived the depths of the recession, the 99% now faces additional taxes in the form of escalating T fares and the loss of essential transport routes. This is a further transfer of public wealth to the banks. These are the same institutions that were bailed out by the American taxpayer after being rendered insolvent by their own, criminal recklessness. The only debt in need of servicing is their debt to us. In a country that lavishes four billion dollars in subsidies on the oil companies, the relentless assault on public transport could not make less sense – ethically, environmentally, or otherwise. Camp Charlie will be a place for public debate, conversation, and outreach – a living testament to the refusal of the people to be further abused by a clutch of corporate interests, multinational banking cartels and consolidated oil interests.

Calendar for Thursday, April 12, 2012

5pm – 7pm,  Street WG meeting,  Boloco, next to Community Church (Copley Square)

5pm – 6:45pm, Facilitation WG Meeting, at City Place Food Court in the Transportation Building – Boylston, Charles and Stuart Streets

5:15pm – 6:45pm, General Strike (May 1) WG Meeting, Encuentro 5, 33 Harrison Avenue, Boston (5th floor)

7pm – 10:30pm, General Assembly, Emmanuel Church, 15 Newbury Street (close to Arlington street)

Please note! Due to the increasingly warm weather and the Occupation at Camp Charlie, meeting locations may change. We encourage you to check the Occupy Boston Calendar for the most up-to-date information.

These are just some of the many events at Occupy Boston. Check out our Daily Calendar for more information.

Volunteer Opportunities/Announcements: 

• Occupy Boston’s newspaper, The Boston Occupier, is looking for new staff members, including writers, editors, photographers, and those willing to help with fund-raising and distribution of the newspaper. Everyone is welcome to attend today’s working group meeting (see below)!
• Help support Camp Charlie! Protesters need healthy food, water, hand warmers, sweaters, blankets, duct tape, and you! Also musicians needed, acoustic only. Bring friends/bands/instruments…sorry, no power.  And if anyone has time to come by for any amount of time and help out by sitting at the Info table to talk to people that would be great!

For a partial listing of Working Groups looking for volunteers, please click here!

For more information on Occupy Boston’s General Assembly, including passed resolutions, click here!  

And if you’re interested in learning more about Occupy Boston and how you can participate, click here! 

Contact Us: Want to subscribe to the Daily Digest? Click here to have it sent to your email inbox every morning! All Working Groups or Occupy Boston events that need placement in the Daily Digest, please email AnnaC@OccupyBoston.org. And subscribe to the Occupy Boston Media Rundown, a daily listing of Occupy-related news, by contacting JohnM@OccupyBoston.org.