Occupy Wall Street Re-groups – Live Blog from the West Coast – San Diego

Nov. 15: Hundreds of supporters of Occupy Wall Street vowed Tuesday to keep up their protests, convening at a busy corner for a meeting to discuss their next move;

4:20 pm – Last post:  Berkeley – Throngs of anti-Wall Street protesters converged on the University of California at Berkeley on Tuesday, vowing to set up a tent camp in defiance of campus rules a day after police dismantled a long-standing encampment in nearby Oakland. …   The Berkeley rallies were called in response to the arrest of 39 people last week after demonstrators briefly set up an “Occupy Cal Encampment”, and organizers said they intended to reestablish that camp by the end of the day.  By early afternoon on Tuesday, about 1,500 people had gathered to demonstrate in Sproul Plaza, scene of 1960s protests on the famously activist Berkeley campus, police Lieutenant Alex Yao said.   Yao declined to discuss police plans or tactics for handling the demonstrations, but suggested that protesters would be prevented from rebuilding their camp there.   “Certainly that encampment is both against university policy and state law, so we will definitely again be educating protesters and participants on how they can exercise their first amendment rights,” he said.   Recent unrest surrounding protests in nearby Oakland has helped rally support nationwide for Occupy Wall Street, a movement launched in New York in September to protest economic inequality and excesses of the financial system.

4:15 pm on the Pacific – An estimate of 1500 people in Zuccotti Park …. GA’s usually take hours. Another estimate: 3000 to 4,000.  This is probably the largest GA ever held in this movement.  The library is back up. It has been restored.

4:11 pm – I’m signing off – at least for awhile. Thanks Anna for giving us the original the heads-up of last night’s crack down at Occupy Wall Street. We used a variety of news sources over these last hours:  al jazeera, the Guardian from Britain, The Other 99 Per cent live stream and narration, Occupy NYC livestream, Huffington Post live blog, globalrevolution stream, and Reuters live blog.

4:08 pm PT – Someone is speaking via human mic: “We’re really to be here! Last night was really hard. We lost a lot. But we have so much more. They showed us their power and we’re showing them ours!” – this last phrase received many cheers. They will be getting updates and plans for the next couple of days.

4:06 pm The General Assembly begins with hundreds participating. It’s awesome to hear all the voices – removed by force over 12 hours ago – that have returned to Zuccotti Park.  A moderator is asking people to turn outward facing others so the people’s mic can work.

3:52 pm – So, maybe San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders will win some kind of award from the Koch brothers for pioneering how major cities should deal with the occupy movement. It was our own Jerry who banned tents, tarps, sleeping bags, and any furniture or anything that a person who couldn’t hold it on their person from being in the Plaza.

3:51 pm – We just heard a report that NYPD is not allowing any food into Zuccotti Park and just prevented bins of ziti and lasagna from coming into the Park.

3:48 pm –  More questions about the coordination of the crackdowns on the occupy movement. Were the dozen or so crackdowns in various US cities over the past week or so co-ordinated? It would seem that there has been some “facilitation” by federal agencies. Rick Ellis, based in Minneapolis for Examiner.com, reports that a justice official as saying the actions were co-ordinated with help from Homeland Security, the FBI and other federal police agencies.   The official, who spoke on background to me late Monday evening, said that while local police agencies had received tactical and planning advice from national agencies, the ultimate decision on how each jurisdiction handles the Occupy protests ultimately rests with local law enforcement.  …  According to this official, in several recent conference calls and briefings, local police agencies were advised to seek a legal reason to evict residents of tent cities, focusing on zoning laws and existing curfew rules. Agencies were also advised to demonstrate a massive show of police force, including large numbers in riot gear. In particular, the FBI reportedly advised on press relations, with one presentation suggesting that any moves to evict protesters be coordinated for a time when the press was the least likely to be present.

3:40 pm PT – Washington, D.C., March –  According to multiple reports on Twitter, about 200 protesters are marching through the Washington, D.C. downtown streets. They entered the Victor Building on 9th street where the Brookfield offices are — the same company that owns Zuccotti Park.   Police chose to simply watch from across the street.   Marchers were there for about 10 minutes before moving on to continue the march down 9t Street NW.

3:28 pm In an announcement that should be familiar to Occupy San Diego demonstrators, the Zuccotti Park protesters have been told by police they cannot have tents, tarps, or even sleeping bags.

3:25 pm – It’s a big party in Zuccotti Park right now.  The park does officially close at 10pm.

3:22 pm – (Took a food break).  The General Assembly at OWS will be held – as per usual – at 7pm ET – which is in less than 40 minutes.

2:50 pm – People are chanting “Occupy! Occupy!” as they retake the park. now the lights are on.

2:49 pm PT – Reporter Paul Harris has made it into Zuccotti Park with the first wave of protesters, after police opened the barriers. He reports:

Police have reopened Zuccotti Park, letting in protesters in one by one. They however searched bags and forbade anyone from carrying in tents or sleeping bags. The mood of those protesters who made them inside was celebratory. “We are still occupying Wall Street,” said two young women as they high-fived. Zuccotti, though was empty of tents as protesters mingled among scores of cops. There is no trace if the encampment that was here for two months.

2:40 pm – Zuccotti Park has reopened.  People are allowed in – but without their tents or tarps … and maybe without their sleeping bags.  Crowds are cheering.

2:29 pm PT – At Zuccotti Park, the reaction from protesters surrounding the plaza was “muted”, says correspondent Paul Harris.  Unlike earlier false news of a win, the real news of a defeat trickled in with many protesters still unaware of the decision. Local construction worker Ken McNamara said he was disappointed but said the movement would survive. “This is something that started here and it will continue. It is not about one space,” he said.  …  Another building union member, George Krevet, said: “This is a concept. Not geography. It was like a spark that lit a fire,” he said.  Both said they would be protesting on Thursday when numerous events, including a march on the Brooklyn Bridge, are planned. After the verdict the crowd of several hundred people surrounding the park – now empty but for police – kept marching and chanting. The notorious drum circle was also in full voice.

2:14 pm – Washington DC:  Jay Carney, US President Barack Obama’s spokesperson, has suggested that the president believes that deciding how to deal with protesters is a local government issue. …  Carney said that Obama hopes that a balance can be found between protecting citizens’ freedom of assembly and speech with the need for public order, health and safety. …  Regarding Tuesday’s raid in New York City, Carney said Obama was “aware of it”.

2:12 pm –The full ruling is in. The judge says that, notwithstanding the First Amendment obligations to freedom of speech and assembly, “the owner has the right to adopt reasonable rules that permit it to maintain a clean, safe, publicly accessible space consonant with the responsibility it assumed to provide public access according to law.” He goes on:

 To the extent that City law prohibits the erection of structures, the use of gas or other combustible materials, and the accumulation of garbage and human waste in public places, enforcement of the law and theo wner’s rules appears reasonable to permit the owner to maintain its space in a hygienic, safe, and lawful condition, and to prevent it from being liable by the City or others for violations of law,or in tort It also permits public access by those who live and work in the area. who are the intended beneficiaries of this zoning bonus.

 The movants have not demonstrated that they have a First Amendment right to remain in Zuccotti Park, along with their tents, structures, generators, and other installations to the exclusion of the owner’s reasonable rights and duties to maintain Zuccotti Park, or to the rights to public access of others who might wish to use the space safely.

 Neither have the applicants shown a right to a temporary restraining order that would restrict the City’s enforcement of laws so as to promote public health and safety.

 Therefore, the petitioner’s application for a temporary restraining order is denied.

t’s worth going back over some of the legal argument in court earlier. Karen McVeigh reports that the judge asked Douglas Flaum, acting for Brookfield Properties, if protesters would be allowed back into the Zuccotti Park, now the space is now clean. Flaum replied: “Absolutely.” Would they be allowed to sit on benches: “Absolutely,” the lawyer said. And use the space? “Absolutely”. But Flaum said he drew the line at tents.   The position seems clear: Brookfield Properties gave a guarantee in court that, even if the judge made a ruling against “tents and tarps”, the space would be open to protesters.

2:05 pm – Organizers have called for the OWS “Text Alert System” to be activated immediately so thousands of people can come down to Zuccotti Park as they get home from work, etc.  The last time this happened, people were shoulder to shoulder in the park and prevented the place from being evicted then.

1:55 pm  The ruling:

The movants have not demonstrated that they have a First Amendment right to remain in Zuccotti Park, along with their tents, structures, generators, and other installations to the exclusion of the owner’s reasonable rights and duties to maintain Zuccotti Park, or to the rights to public access of others who might wish to use the space safely. Neither have the applicants shown a right to a temporary restraining order that would restrict the City’s enforcement of law so as to promote public health and safety. …  Therefore, petitioners application for a temporary restraining order is denied.

 1:53 pm  The mood at Zuccotti Park is despondent. But it shouldn’t be: the ruling only means that the protesters can’t camp there. The legal situation now is that the park should be opened, as promised by mayor Michael Bloomberg at his press conference at 8am today.   …The New York state supreme court has ruled that the Occupy Wall Street protesters have lost their bid to restore a full encampment at Zuccotti Park, where the protests began two months ago. …  Earlier today, mayor Michael Bloomberg pledged to re-open the park and allow the protesters to return, but without camping equipment. It now remains to be seen whether he will fulfil his promise.

1:49 pm – It’s announced: the judge has ruled against OWS protesters! Judge rules that the park’s rules prohibiting tents are reasonable to maintain public safety and health and to keep the pa …

1:47 pm – Mic check! People are saying on CNN that the TRO was denied.

1:46 pm – CNN reports: restraining order reversed and it’s denied. This is a blow against Occupy Wall Street – and the entire movement, if it is confirmed.

1:43 pm Criticism has mounted all day against the mainstream, corporate media’s failure in getting to this story early this morning.  Corporate media vans were turned away by police from getting close to Zuccotti Park, and a half dozen reporters – or more – were themselves arrested.  And then in response, the major media has pushed back against Bloomberg’s administration and the police. We’ll no doubt hear more about this in the near future.

1:42 pm – In less than 20 minutes, it will start becoming dark – once again – in New York City.

1:39 pm – Electricity has been restored at Zuccotti Park – for the first time since September 17th – when the occupy movement began.

1:25 pm globalrevolution is inside the courthouse building, awaiting the ruling.

1:22 pm – The Protesters Have Not Lost Their Sense of Humor: #ows protester: “the cops have occupied #Zuccotti Park, we’re just trying to figure out what their demands are …”

1:14 pm – In an attempt to settle the confusion, the “people’s mic” at Zuccotti Park has announced to protesters that the New York state supreme court has not yet made its rulin, according to a reporter who’s on the scene. Another one of the UK Guardian’s reporters, Karen McVeigh, says matters are not much clearer inside the supreme court building, where there are reports that the judge may not issue his ruling until 5pm.

1:10 pm PT – Boston: What Does This Mean For Occupy Boston?  Boston.com’s Jeremy Fox reports:

The pre-dawn raid today to clear the Occupy Wall Street camp in New York, along with recent clampdowns on protesters elswhere, signaled a shift in the nearly three-month campaign to call attention to economic inequalities. It also raised questions about what will happen in Boston now.  A spokeswoman for the Boston Police Department said Tuesday morning that it was impossible to say how much longer Occupy Boston protesters will be allowed to remain in Dewey Square. Spokeswoman Elaine Driscoll said there were no immediate plans to clear Dewey Square, but that could change.

1:09 pm – The Books May Be Safe After All Many people took to Twitter early this morning to complain about the NYPD reportedly trashing the 5,000-plus books of the People’s Library.   However, the mayor’s office has now responded to the allegations, tweeting a picture that appears to show a number of books, safely stored and ready for pick-up tomorrow.

 1:02 pm PT – UC Berkeley – Occupy Cal Protests : Thousands have gathered outside Sproul Hall for Occupy Cal protests at UC Berkeley.  The protest is a part of a general strike being held today to protest tuition increases and police violence at last Wednesday’s demonstration.

12:57 pm – People chant: “Whose park? Our park!”  Hundreds if not thousands congragate around Zuccotti Park, waiting for the court’s ruling – which was supposed to be released at 3pm ET , then at 3:15 …. and has yet to be released or confirmed.

12:47 pm PT Despite a flurry of rumor on Twitter, the Guardian (UK) reporter Karen McVeigh, who is inside the supreme court building and awaiting the ruling with other journalists, confirms that nothing has yet come from the judge. Despite this, the hundreds of protesters outside the court, and hundreds more at Zuccotti Park, are celebrating wildly, according to our reporters at both locations.

12:45 pm PT – Oakland –  Civil rights groups are suing the city of Oakland in an attempt to prevent police there from using tear gas and other crowd control weapons on protesters associated with the Occupy Wall Street movement.   The Northern California branch of the American Civil Liberties Union and the National Lawyers Guild filed a lawsuit Monday seeking an emergency restraining order against the Oakland Police Department.   The case was brought the same day the city cleared the month-old encampment outside Oakland City Hall established by anti-Wall Street protesters following an October 25 clash with police.  …  The groups say they need a court to intervene because “another police encounter with demonstrators is imminent” following the camp’s removal.  The lead plaintiff is Timothy Scott Campbell, a self-described anarchist who was injured by a police projectile while shooting video of a second confrontation between police and protesters on November 3. [AP]

12:44 pm – Portland –  Local sources have confirmed to Al Jazeera earlier reports that a man was brutally assaulted by police during last weekend’s raid on the Occupy Portland encampment in the US state of Oregon.  The Occupy Portland official Twitter posted on Monday:  A man named Justin James Bridges, musician & ASL translator for Occupy Portland General Assembly, was assaulted by @PortlandPolice today during camp clean out.  He was beaten repeatedly in the back and has now lost use of his right arm. Though Justin was lying on the ground in compliance, Portland Police continuously beat him in the back with clubs until his eyes rolled back in his head. Fellow protesters thought he was dead. He is now in critical care.

12:43 pm – Police announce that people at the park need to clear the sidewalks, and to keep walking.

12:41 pm – It was just announced that there’s a group marching from Foley Square to Zuccotti Park. The crowd cheers. More chants of “Let us in!”

12:37 pm – There are some conflicting reports …

12:35 pm Crowd is getting louder with its chants.

12:33 pm PT – The crowd starts chanting: “Let us in! Let us in!”

12:32 CNN reports judge’s ruling is in favor of Occupy Wall Street! Occupiers and their tents are allowed back into Zuccotti Park!

12:29 pm (It’s 3:30 pm in NYC) The verdict is about to be read … police helicopters are overhead.

12:26 pm – With rain starting to fall, the court decision is about to be released … about to be read. …  or not.

12:23 pm – It appears that police are trying to force or push people away from the barricades around Zuccotti Park but people behind them are not moving.

12:21 pm – Bloomberg’s ‘Disgraceful Eviction Of Occupy Wall Street’ – James Downie takes the mayor to task in The Washington Post:

“As hard as the NYPD and New York City’s government might try to obscure the truth though, one truth remains: At 1 a.m. this morning, in the heart of New York City, protesters exercising their constitutional rights to free speech and assembly were swept away by the state, while that state also did all it could to preventmedia coverage. No matter what one may think of the occupiers or their cause, nothing they’ve done justifies blockading the press or ignoring court orders. Mayor Bloomberg, Police Commissioner Ray Kelly and other New York leaders who ordered the eviction should take a long, hard look at their handling of the occupation. This morning’s action may not be what a police state looks like, but it’s certainly how one begins.”

12:18 pm PT – While we await the result from the supreme court on whether the protesters can go back to the newly-scrubbed Zuccotti Park with their camping equipment, Karen McVeigh, who was in court for the hearing, sends this summary of proceedings.  Karen McVeigh:

Douglas Flaum, acting for Brookfield properties. the park’s owner, told the judge that the park “was never meant to be a tented city”. He went on: “There are health and safety concerns that the city must address. The primary issue is the collection of tents and Brookfield properties has liability obligations.”   He said the company had received numerous complaints from members of the community living near by, and it had simply passed those concerns to the city to deal with and to enforce the rules. …  Lawyers for Occupy Wall Street said the rules dealing with tents and tarps were brought in arbitrarily in response to the occupation. They said of the clearout: “This is a response to one of the most profound speech actions that has happened since the 1960s. The words “we are the 99%” are on the lips of everybody – even the Republicans! …

It should be pointed out that the city and Brookfield properties have promised to open the park anyway – the issue being decided upon in the supreme court is whether the protesters are allowed to camp there.

12:16 pm – At Zuccotti Park, police are lining up along the barricades or even removing them – preparing for the court’s ruling, expected at any moment.  There’s a line of cops inside the barricades.

12:10 pm – SAN DIEGO – There is a rally and march in solidarity by Occupy San Diego tonight at 6 pm. This will be at the Civic Center Plaza. (March will begin around 6:15 pm PT)

12:06 pm More on the use of an LRAD last night (LRAD is Long Range Acoustical Device) which is an acoustical weapon using sound waves. According to a witness from last night (earlier this morning actually) he saw 3 trucks with LRADs pull up, and when it was started up – it malfunctioned and affected cops standing nearby. Oops

12:04 pm PT – More on the mainstream jounalists arrested during the night. The number of journalists arrested during today’s events has risen to at least seven, by one count. Six were carrying NYPD accreditation, and one had UN accreditation.

• Patrick Hedlund, a news editor for the Manhattan news website a DNAinfo.com, and Paul Lomax, a freelance photographer assigned to DNAinfo.com, were arrested, the website said. Both had NYPD accreditation.

• Freelance journalist Jared Malsin was also arrested, wearing a United Nations press pass around his neck – he said on Twitter that he was in a police van with an AFP photographer. I haven’t confirmed this yet. Maslin has posted an account and film of his arrest on the East Village Local blog – a community collaboration with the New York Times.

Those named earlier were:

• Julie Walker, a freelance reporter for National Public Radio, who was arrested in the early hours of the morning, despite wearing an NYPD-issued press badge.

• Matthew Lysiak, a New York Daily News reporter, who was arrested at around 12.15pm today while covering the aftermath of the eviction.

• AP print journalist Karen Matthews and AP still photographer Seth Wenig were arrested at the same time as Lysiak, and the pair from DNAinfo.com.. They had been with protesters who gained access to ground owned by Triniry Church at Duarte Square. Police cleared the area, and arrested everyone.

12:02 pm PT – People are hanging around Zuccotti Park in NYC waiting for the court’s ruling on whether they can re-take the Park. The ruling is supposed to come down at 3:15 pm ET – in less than 15 minutes .

This is what NO DEMOCRACY LOOKS LIKE. Empty and scrubbed clean, clean of the First Amendment.A pedestrian takes a picture of an empty and closed Zuccotti Park in New York. Photograph: Seth Wenig/AP

11:54 am PT – IOWA:  Occupiers plan to march to Des Moines City Hall this evening to demand that local officials speak out about the Occupy Wall Street raids.   Occupy DSM had already issued an invitation to Occupiers around the country to join in protests in Iowa in the week leading up to the Jan. 3 caucuses. Members do not plan to disrupt the voting itself but are planning peaceful protests at the campaign headquarters of candidates, and some from the Des Moines group thing the New York incidents may draw people to Iowa. …  In Iowa City, Shay O’Reilly, 22, was one of the leading voices early on in starting Occupy movement there. At the time, she and other protesters said they were rallying in support of the protest in New York.   Since then, the occupations around the country have assumed their own personalities and issues and are less tied to the Occupy group in New York City, she said. …  On a pleasant afternoon, more than 50 tents still dominated much of College Green Park this afternoon. Occupy Iowa City has been stationed there since early October. …  “Even, if they are shut down in New York, the occupation that spawned the entire thing, it has grown much larger than the statements coming from New York City,” O’Reilly said. “I don’t think it will affect what is happening in Iowa at all.” …  O’Reilly said she thinks it’s a mistake to assume Occupy Wall Street is done because of the eviction from Zuccotti Park late Monday evening. The “rage” that is coming from the eviction is going to keep the movement going, and O’Reilly said she expects turnout for specific events to surge, although not necessarily more campers.  In response to the eviction, Occupy Iowa City is planning a 7:30 p.m. vigil tonight at College Green Park and is encouraging a letter writing campaign. In Des Moines, protestors have put out a call to Occupy Nollen Plaza in the downtown area, “during rush hour tonight in protest of #ows eviction,” the Occupy Iowa Facebook page says.

11:43 am – Hundreds of Occupy Wall Street protesters arrested last month during a demonstration on New York’s Brooklyn Bridge began appearing in court to face disorderly conduct charges hours after police cleared the lower Manhattan park at the center of the nationwide protest.   Court officers forbade cheering in the courtroom, and protesters came forward quietly, some in jeans and sweatshirts, others in suits, to tell Judge Melissa Jackson in New York State Supreme Court today whether they would plead not guilty, or accept an offer to have charges against them dropped if they’re not rearrested in six months. Here’s more.

11:40 am – It’s 12:40 pm in Phoenix and … Occupy Phoenix Eviction – Occupy Phoenix is reporting on Twitter that they are being evicted. Within the past hour their Twitter account sent out “the plaza is being raided RIGHT NOW! Please come here if you can, and please call Mayor Gordon if you can’t! #occupyphoenix.” They reported police are removing belongings from their plaza.

11:38 am – Judge Michael Stallman will rule on whether to allow protesters back into Zuccotti Park at 3:15pm (NYC time – 12:15 pm Pacific time). #OWS

11:37 am – PT – The Beginnings Of The Crackdown – From the New York Times:  The operation to clear the park had begun near the Brooklyn Bridge, where the police gathered before riding in vans to the block-square park. As they did, dozens of protesters linked arms and shouted “No retreat, no surrender,” “This is our home” and “Barricade!”  …  The mayor’s office sent out a message on Twitter at 1:19 a.m. saying: “Occupants of Zuccotti should temporarily leave and remove tents and tarps. Protesters can return after the park is cleared.” Fliers handed out by the police at the private park on behalf of the park’s owner and the city spelled out the same message.  The protesters rallied around an area known as the kitchen, near the middle of the park, and began putting up makeshift barricades with tables and pieces of scrap wood.  Over the next two hours, dozens of protesters left the park while a core group of about 100 dug in around the food area. Many locked arms and defied police orders to leave. Some sang “We Shall Overcome” and chanted at the officers to “disobey your orders.”

11:29 am – Half hour to court’s decision whether occupiers will be allowed back into Zuccotti Park.

11:17 am PT – Occupy Detroit Granted One-Week Extension On Camping Permit : City Council approved a permit for Occupy Detroit members to continue camping at Grand Circus Park until Nov. 21. Occupy Detroit members had originally requested an additional two weeks, but have also said that they intend to move the camp before that deadline.

11:15 am – Occupy San Diego – Local tea party is supposed to show up at the Plaza for a press conference at 1:00pm today.

11:13 am – PT – Starting to rain in NYC.

11:11 am – Strike called for UC Campuses – The Bay Area’s Occupy movement will be centered in Berkeley Tuesday with a call for a general strike on the Cal campus. …  The strike was called by a group called ReFund California, which is a coalition of students and university employee unions. It will be part march, part walk-out, part teach-in and part occupy.  The plan has demonstrations taking place throughout the day, with a 2 p.m. rally and a general assembly at 5 p.m. During that evening meeting, protesters are supposed to vote on whether to build an encampment.   UC Berkeley leaders told reporters they were determined to avoid a repeat of last week’s violence on campus that included police in riot gear using billy clubs to break apart human chains. The violence broke out after protesters tried to set up tents on the campus.   … If the vote is approved, Occupy Cal activists said they will to set up tents again Tuesday, and college officials said they will try again to stop them.   The day includes a planned speech by UC Berkeley professor of public policy and former U.S. secretary of labor Robert Reich. Reich plans to speak at Sproul Plaza at 8 p.m.  The strike is going to be joined by many other groups, including the former Occupy Oakland encampment. The Oakland Occupiers said they will march from Frank Ogawa Plaza to the Cal campus starting at noon Tuesday.

11:07 am PT – Labor rallies to Occupy movement – AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka emails supporters:

“They can take away the tarps and the tents. But they can’t slow down the Occupy Wall Street movement.  There have been police raids on Occupy Wall Street in Oakland, Calif.; Portland, Ore.; Denver; Albany, N.Y.; Burlington, Vt.; and Chapel Hill, N.C.—and now, last night in New York’s Zuccotti Park—orchestrated by politicians acting on behalf of the 1%.  But the 99% is undaunted. Occupy Wall Street’s message already has created a new day. This movement has created a seismic shift in our national debate—from austerity and cuts to jobs, inequality and our broken economic system.  Show your solidarity by attending a Nov. 17 bridge action near you…”

11:06 am  March Of Solidarity in Iowa :  Occupy Iowa protesters are also planning a march of solidarity with Occupy Wall Street protesters, according to the Des Moines Register.

11:00 am PT – BERKELEY: Teach-in’s at UC Berkeley; Dozens of students and faculty at the University of California, Berkeley have gathered for teach-ins at an outdoor plaza as part of a campus strike to protest banks and budget cuts.   The protesters also plan to try again on Tuesday to establish an encampment on campus.   An effort to erect a camp last week was met by baton-wielding police. Forty people were arrested, as the university sought to uphold a campus ban on camping.   Protesters also plan a march and rally that is expected to include Occupy Oakland activists whose encampment was taken down on Monday.

10:59 am  – UC Regents call off meeting; campuses set for protest – College campuses around California are scheduled to erupt in protest today through Thursday, as anger at tuition increases and sympathy with an embattled faculty union combine with the spirit of the ongoing Occupy movement.  …  In a highly unusual move, the University of California canceled its governing board’s meetings scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday in San Francisco out of fear that protests there could turn violent. A spokesman said it had been decades since the UC system canceled a regents meeting because of such concerns. “It wasn’t because of the protest, it was because of the threats of violence and vandalism by some rogue elements,” said UC spokesman Steve Montiel.   The cancellation of the meeting angered groups that had planned to protest, but they pledged to carry on at other locations.

10:55 am PT – One hour to ruling by court in NYC.  Meanwhile, Washington, D.C. City Council Says No Need To Break Up Occupy DC Camp – :  “I think they have been unobtrusive,” said Council member David A. Catania (I-At large), chairman of the Committee on Health. “Thus far, I have heard no complaints and people usually aren’t shy about sharing their point of view.”  Council member Phil Mendelson (D-At large), chairman of Committee on Public Safety and the Judiciary, said he thinks the Park Service and city “need to be patient.”   “There are apparently public health concerns with these encampments in other cities and I have been told there are also concerns here,” Mendelson said. “But to the extent these protests remain peaceful, we don’t want to overreact and thereby cause a negative reaction from the public.”

10:47 am PT – Bloomberg Attorneys Claim OWS Stockpiling Bombs – In court filing, Bloomberg’s attorneys argue that activists at Zuccotti Park were hoarding weaponry. Or at least cigarettes and cardboard. The New York Times reports:  Deputy Mayor Cas Holloway wrote in the motion that giving the protesters full run of the park would lead to re-creation of the “unsafe and unsanitary conditions and the substantial threat to public safety” that the city said led to the eviction. There was evidence, he wrote, that the protesters were stockpiling weapons.  Mr. Holloway described a “steady accumulation of combustibles, smoking, and other hazards” at the site and said that makeshift weapons, “such as cardboard tubes with metal pipes inside, had been observed among the occupiers’ possessions,” and that after the Oct. 1 Brooklyn Bridge march, “knives, mace and hypodermic needles were observed discarded on the roadway.

10:45 am PT –  Occupy DC Plans March Of Support For New Yorkers –  Occupy Wall Street was raided last night, and occupiers were evicted and arrested. While occupiers in New York explore legal routes forward, and regroup, we need to gather together to express our solidarity with them. We also need to make it clear to ourselves and to everyone else that this is not over. We have just begun!  “We will march TODAY Nov 15, from McPherson Square Park at 5PM. We will be marching to show solidarity with Occupy Wall Street. As always, this will be a peaceful march!”

10:40 am Pacific Time – New York Council Member Still In Custody, Denied Lawyer – Ydanis Rodriguez, the New York City Council Member arrested in the raid on Occupy Wall Street, is still being held in custody, without access to his attorney.  David Segal, spokesperson for Rodriguez, told The Huffington Post at shortly after 1 p.m. that the council member remains in custody at 1 Police Plaza.  In a release sent to HuffPost, Rodriguez’s office said he and other protesters were being held “in clear violation of their right to counsel.”  …  Upon request, NYPD officers routinely allow attorneys to meet with their clients in precincts across the city, the release said. His office insists their First Amendment rights are being silenced by New York police.  Segal told HuffPost Rodriguez went down to the park to show support when he heard there was a raid occurring. Sometime around 2:30 a.m., Rodriguez was arrested. During the scuffle that ensued, Rodriguez was injured and multiple reports said he was bleeding from the head when police took him into custody.  …  Fellow council member Jumaane D. Williams told HuffPost he got to Zuccotti Park just in time to see his colleague taken off to jail. He called the events over the past 12 hours “disgusting.”   They poorly planned what would happen when they cleared people out, Williams said, which is the point where Rodriguez was arrested.   “I saw what looked like a cut and blood, I asked him what happened and and he motioned to the police officer,” Williams said. He thought the cut probably occurred when Rodriguez was taken to the ground. …  Williams reported that there had been no warning given to the City Council members, and he was upset that is was done under the “cloak of night.”   Williams said he believed the protesters should regroup, and find another park, preferably in a commercial area.

 “They’ve done a great job of getting a message that we’re tired of this economic injustice,” Williams said. “People should like me and the Mayor should be trying to take that energy and trying to harness it into positive solutions.”

10:38 am pt – Protesters and supporters pouring into north side of Zuccotti Park. New Yorkers are implored to “come down.”

10:36 am PT – Occupy LA Is Peaceful In Contrast To Zuccotti Park : OfftheBus contributor Linda Ferrero reports from Occupy Los Angeles:  While Occupy Wall Street at Zuccotti Park is uprooted and other Occupy sites are raided across the country, Occupy LA remains in compliance with the city and therefore peaceful. On Monday night, an Artists’ March took place, gathering in California Plaza and marching to City Hall.   In sharp contrast to what is happening in New York, police presence was minimal as a small group of artists and musicians, carrying paintings, singing, and playing guitars and drums marched on sidewalks. Los Angeles does not appear to be part of a coordinated  effort to evict Occupy sites.

10:31 am – Hundreds at Zucotti are chanting: “open the park! Open the park!”  People are awaiting the court’s ruling.

NYPD everywhere. Protestors can't fit around Zuccotti so they've spilled to Broadway & Liberty #OWS

10:26 am – Court hearing going on right now in NYC on injunction filed by OWS lawyers.  Here is some of the discussion, from tweets: Arthur Levine, lawyer for #OWS: “They’d like to say it’s a camping case. It’s not a camping case, it’s a first amendment case. …  Douglas Flaum, lawyer for Brookfield, which owns Zuccotti: “We are not in any way trying to stop speech.” He cites health reasons …   #OWS lawyer to court: “This was a deliberate response to one of the most profoundspeech-activities in this country since … ”  Brookfield lawyer to court: We’re not limiting free speech, just tents. This is private property. #ows

10:25 am PT – March is arriving at Zuccotti Park from up Broadway. #OWS

10:23 am – An update on the number of arrests: police commissioner Ray Kelly said 142 people were arrested in Zuccotti Park when it was cleared in the early hours of the morning, and 50 to 60 in the streets nearby, meaning that at least 200 are now in custody.

10:19 am – More reports about journalists being harassed by police:  Journalists have been detained by police while covering Occupy Wall Street protests in New York.   Associated Press writer Karen Matthews was taken into custody Tuesday along with AP photographer Seth Wenig (WEH-nig) and Daily News reporter Matthew Lysiak.  When they were detained, they were covering protests at a property in lower Manhattan hours after police cleared a park of the main Occupy encampment.   Wall Street Journal reporter Alison Fox saw Matthews and Lysiak being placed in handcuffs. Another AP reporter later saw Matthews and Wenig being removed in a police van.  Freelance radio journalist Julie Walker says she was arrested on disorderly conduct.   Police didn’t have a count of how many journalists were arrested and didn’t immediately comment.   Two journalists were arrested on Sunday during an Occupy raid in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. [AP]

10:17 am –  There’s more evidence of a political backlash on the city council against mayor Michael Bloomberg’s actions today. The City Comptroller John C Liu has issued this statement:

“Going in and forcibly removing the protestors in the dead of night sends the wrong message. City Hall should have continued to talk with the protestors in the light of day if it wanted them removed, instead of evicting them in the middle of the night. There seems to be no compelling reason for this action at this time. The protestors have a right to be heard.”

10:16 am – West Coast time:  Names of journalists arrested during the night at OWS:  We reported earlier today on the complains that journalists have been obstructed in reporting the eviction and aftermath. A number have been arrested. This the tally so far:   • Julie Walker, a freelance reporter for National Public Radio was arrested in the early hours of the morning, despite wearing an NYPD-issued press badge.   • New York Daily News reporter Matthew Lysiak was arrested at around 12.15pm today while covering the aftermath of the eviction. He is on a police bus, and filing updates for the NYDN live blog.   • AP print journalist Karen Matthews and AP still photographer Seth Wenig were arrested at the same time as Lysiak, aand a photographer from DNAInfo. All had been with protesters who had gained access to ground owned by Trinity Wall Street church at Duarte Square. Police cleared the area, and arrested everyone.

10:14 am – Another unconfirmed report states that 500 people are marching right now on Zucotti Park.

10:11 am – Unconfirmed reports that new judge has ordered that protesters may be allowed back in to Zucotti Park. Not confirmed yet.

10:10 am PT – Berkeley:  Dozens of students and faculty at the University of California at Berkeley have gathered for teach-ins at an outdoor plaza as part of a campus strike to protest banks and budget cuts.   The protesters also plan to try again on Tuesday to establish an encampment on campus.   An effort to erect a camp last week was met by baton-wielding police, in response to the protest which was deemed “not nonviolent” by .   Around forty people were arrested, as the university sought to uphold a campus ban on camping.   Protesters also plan a march and rally that is expected to include Occupy Oakland activists whose encampment was taken down early on Monday morning.

10:08 am – Phoenix and Toronto being raided.

10:04 am – BERKELEY, CALIFORNIA: UC Chancellor orders review in light of recent police violence. In light of campus police violence against protesters, University of California, Berkeley Chancellor Robert J. Birgeneau faces lawsuits, a letter from over 1,700 instructors expressing “No Confidence,” and a City Council cutting off support. In response, Birgeneau announced Monday he was ordering an official review of police actions.  …  On Nov. 9, UC Berkeley students launched Occupy Cal with a day of protest that saw 39 protesters get arrested and multiple videos surface on YouTube of campus police beating students.

10:01 am PT – 1:01 pm New York time: Overheard on #OWS livestream: “Don’t you like the new park? It smells like Clorox and broken constitutional amendments” overheard.”

9:51 am PT – People in NYC had gathered around Trinity Church and began moving into a park near or next to the church. Church officials stated that the occupiers are not welcome, which upset some other clergy.

9:49 am -PT – A twitter comment says that police are clearing out Occupy Phoenix.

9:43 am – LONDON  Civic authorities in London say they are resuming legal action to evict a protest camp outside St. Paul’s Cathedral after talks with the protesters stalled.   London’s Occupy protest outside St. Paul’s, where more than 200 tents have been pitched since October 15, has settled into a stalemate between church and civil authorities.   The cathedral and local authority the City of London Corporation suspended legal action to remove the camp two weeks ago, and offered the protesters a deal to stay until the new year if they then agreed to leave.   The protesters say they have not agreed to this.   The Corporation said Tuesday it would restart legal action to clear pathways around the cathedral. [AP]

9:40 am -Pt – 12:40 pm in NYC ;  Owner of Zuccotti Park – Brookfield  – Issues Orwellian Statement On Zuccotti Park:  Brookfield Office Properties just released a statement on the police eviction of Occupy Wall Street, done at its behest. One paragraph in particular will be of note for occupiers trying to re-enter the park right now:   Brookfield had hoped to reopen the Park this morning after it had been cleaned. The City and Brookfield, however, were notified of a court-ordered injunction regarding the use of the Park. As a matter of public safety, the Park will remain closed pending the resolution of this matter.   To keep the park open, Brookfield has been forced to close it.

9:39 am – PT – It’s calm right now in NYC – The roles are reversed: the police are standing in the middle of Zuccotti Park while #ows protesters surround it.

9:38 am PT – Attorney: City Violating Law – The police, the mayor and Brookville Properties are currently in violation of court orders by not allowing protesters back into the park, according to Margaret Ratner Kunstler, an attorney with the National Lawyers Guild, the group representing the protesters.   The temporary restraining order signed at 6:30 a.m. by New York Supreme Court judge Lucy Collings allowed for the protesters to return to the park with their tents, but the city filed a response within the last half hour indicating that they disagree with the decision to allow the tents to come back to the park, according to Kunstler.   The hearing on the issue that was scheduled for today at 11 a.m. has been delayed and a judge hasn’t been assigned to the case.   –Janell Ross

9:35 am PT – When New York mayor Michael Bloomberg had Zuccotti Park cleared of protesters Monday night, he did so against the wishes of most New Yorkers.   A poll released Tuesday from the Siena College Research Institute found that while many New York State voters believe the Occupy Wall Street movement lacks a clear message, a majority of them also think the protesters should be allowed to stay in public parks around the clock.   …  The survey, conducted only days before police officers evacuated Zuccotti Park on Mayor Bloomberg’s orders early Tuesday morning, is the latest in a series of public opinion polls finding broad tolerance for Occupy Wall Street protesters who began camping out in lower Manhattan two months ago to demonstrate against income inequality, corporate influence in government and other topics.

9:34 am – NPR Reporter Arrested Early in Morning:  The New York Daily News Reports:   Julie Walker, a freelance radio reporter for National Public Radio, said she was arrested while trying to report on the protests overnight, while wearing her NYPD-issued press identification. Walker said she spent three to four hours in custody before she was released around 7 a.m. She was given a desk appearance ticket.

9:31 am pt – MediaBistro has reported that in the New York Police Department’s raid of the Occupy Wall Street encampment, the entire library that had been collected over the past two months was destroyed.   MediaBistro reported that 5,554 books were thrown into dump trucks, along with “tents, tarps, pallets, sleeping bags”.

9:13 am PT –  NYC: Reportedly, police have told Occupy Wall Street protesters they cannot gather at Duarte Square, which is privately owned by a church. Nearly 400 are reported to have gathered there and already erected one tent.

9:08 am PT –  Eviction notices handed out to Occupy Toronto members –  The city handed out eviction notices to Occupy Toronto protesters on Tuesday, November 15, 2011.   The city handed out eviction notices to Occupy Toronto protesters on Tuesday, November 15, 2011. The city handed out this eviction notice to Occupy Toronto protesters on Tuesday, November 14, 2011. Click on photo to read the letter.   The city handed out this eviction notice to Occupy Toronto protesters on Tuesday, November 15, 2011. Click on photo to read the letter.  People participate in an Occupy Toronto protest outside Brookfield Place on Bay Street on Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2011.  …   City of Toronto bylaw officers have handed out eviction notices to Occupy Toronto protesters who have been camped out in St. James Park for a month.   A day after Mayor Rob Ford said notices would be handed out “soon,” the city is telling the protesters it’s time to pack up their belongings and bring their around-the-clock occupation of the park to an end.  …  In a letter given to protesters and media, the group has been ordered to immediately remove their tents, structures, equipment and other debris from the park, and to stay out of the park daily between 12:01 a.m. and 5:30 a.m.   …  The city said it will remove the tents if the protesters don’t comply with the order, which was issued under the city’s Trespass to Property Act. The letter was signed by city manager Joe Pennachetti.

9:06 am PT  – Oakland Mayor Tells BBC Crackdown On Occupy Movement Is Coordinated Between Cities

Embattled Oakland Mayor Jean Quan, speaking in an interview with the BBC, casually mentioned that she was on a conference call with leaders of 18 US cities shortly before a wave of raids broke up Occupy Wall Street encampments across the country. “I was recently on a conference call with 18 cities across the country who had the same situation. . . .”   Oakland’s encampment was raided Monday around 1 a.m. New York City raided the Zuccotti Park encampment at nearly the exact same time.

9:04 am PT – Reporters Angry About Media Blackout Of Zuccotti Raid:  At a press conference this morning, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said press were kept away “to prevent a situation from getting worse and to protect members of the press.”   However, there are multiple reports of reporters being shoved, hit and arrested by New York Police Officers.   Lindsey Christ, a reporter for NY1, a local NYC cable news channel told the New York Times “Those 20 minutes were some of the scariest of my life.” Christ said she witnessed police officers take a New York Post reporter standing near her and “threw him in a choke-hold.”   A freelance NPR reporter was detained, as was a New York Times reporter.   Rosie Gray with The Village Voice, told a police officer, “I’m press!”   To which officer responded, “Not tonight.”

8:59 am PT – The New York Daily News has done a good piece of reporting around how the Occupy Wall Street protesters obtained the restraining order.

 When the cops raided Zuccotti Park, lawyers for Occupy Wall Street immediately woke up a judge with a civil liberties background and asked for help. Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Lucy Billings signed an early-morning order temporarily barring cops from keeping protesters and tents out of Zuccotti Park.   But within hours, she was off the case as court administrators prepared to randomly choose a new judge — and excluded Billings’ name from the list of candidates. …   Court officials said her name would not be on a random generator of judges to be assigned to the case, because she usually works on real-estate cases. But it’s no surprise that the OWS lawyers woke her up in the middle of the night – for 25 years before becoming a judge, she was a lawyer for the American Civil Liberties Union.

8:57 am PT – NYC Council Member Spokesman Provides More Details;  Ydanis Rodriguez, New York City Council Member, was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest.   David Segal, spokesperson for Rodriguez told The Huffington Post that the council member went down to Zuccotti Park around 1 a.m. as soon as he got word an eviction was underway.   “He went down to show support, he’s been down there since it started,” Segal said.   Rodriguez went to the park the last time it appeared Bloomberg may evict the protesters on Oct. 14. Last night, during the raid, he was hit in the head and reported to be bleeding.   “Sometime after that at about 2:30 or so, the council member was arrested,” Segal told HuffPost. “It appeared that he had an injury over his eye, obviously we’ll know more once he’s released.”

New York city: a Direct Action call planned today at noon. This was already scheduled via InterOccupy.org, but we’d like to suggest that the call be used to directly discuss what can be done in response to today’s eviction. Please spread the word to Direct Action folks in your occupation that this call is happening!

8:37am PST (11:37 ET) : The New York Supreme Court hearing into the restraining order brought by lawyers for Occupy Wall Street against the city of New York is under way. Karen McVeigh is tweeting from the court. She reports that attorney Jeffrey Rothman argues that the police’s refusal to obey the order and allow protesters back into the park is causing violence. Rothman tells the ocurt that he tried to serve emergency order on police to allow protesters into the park, but they refused to accept it.

CBS NEWS – NEW YORK – Members of the Occupy Wall Street movement vowed to reoccupy Zuccotti Park after police forcibly removed them early this morning before sanitation crews came into the park to clean it.   New York Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said about 200 people had been arrested – 142 in the park, and 50 to 60 in surrounding areas.  …  Demonstrators were told they could return in several hours, but without sleeping bags, tarps or tents. By eight a.m. some protesters had returned, jumping over barricades. But the police closed the park again.  ….Hundreds of other protesters and their supporters marched through lower Manhattan this morning to Foley Square, near City Hall, chanting, “This is what democracy looks like.”  …  The group vowed to reoccupy Zuccotti Park (also known as Liberty Park).  …

“This movement can’t be contained in one square block in lower Manhattan. It is bigger than that,” read an announcement on the OccupyWallSt.org website. “You can’t evict an idea whose time had come.”

 This morning protesters locked arms outside the City Hall gates but left peacefully when police in riot gear appeared.   The marchers then left Foley Square, with about 300 to 400 moving along the sidewalks, taking care not to block them. Police were everywhere.   The mood during their march on always-congested Canal Street towards Duarte Square was both festive and angry – a combination protest and countercultural festival. Police officers ignored protesters who called out, “Join us!”

8:20am PST: NEW YORK The New York public advocate, Bill de Blasio, an elected official who acts as a sort of watchdog for the city of New York, has issued a strongly worded statement condemning the actions of mayor Michael Bloomberg in evicting Occupy Wall Street protesters from Zuccotti Park. He said:

 Protecting public safety and quality of life for downtown residents, and guaranteeing free expression are not exclusive of one another. Mayor Bloomberg made a needlessly provocative and legally questionable decision to clear Zuccotti Park in the dead of night. That some media and observers were prevented from monitoring the action is deeply troubling.

 I know of no one – protesters included – who desires a permanent occupation of lower Manhattan. But provocations under cover of darkness only escalate tensions in a situation that calls for mediation and dialogue. I call on the Mayor to find a sustainable resolution –as other cities have done – that allows for the exercise of free speech and assembly, with respect for the rights of all New Yorkers to peaceful enjoyment of our great city.

Occupy Oakland to join Berkeley protest : OAKLAND — Frank H. Ogawa Plaza, devoid of tents and campers, was quiet Tuesday morning as the city returned to normal a day after police cleared a month-old Occupy Oakland encampment.  …  But it won’t remain quiet all day. Occupy protesters plan to march from the plaza to UC Berkeley at noon Tuesday to join a student strike and teach-in on campus, where tensions remain high from an Occupy protest last week.   …  Students rallying against tuition increases and budget cuts had attempted to set up tents near Sproul Plaza, but police broke up the tents. Officers are being criticized for their use of force while breaking up the protest, after videos were posted online of police using batons on students who had linked arms to try to protect the encampment.

8:16 am PST – MSNBC: Hours after police officers descended on Zuccotti Park in a surprise sweep of the Occupy Wall Street headquarters, protesters were locked in a standoff Tuesday morning with police over a court order that would allow them to return with their tents.  …A hearing on the temporary restraining order, filed by a New York City judge, was scheduled for 11:30 a.m. ET. … In the meantime, however, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg told reporters Tuesday that he had not received the order and that the park would remain closed “until we can clarify the situation,” he said. …  Tuesday’s court order, which was published on The New York Times website, said authorities were prohibited from “preventing protesters from re-entering the park with tents and other property previously utilized.” But Bloomberg closed the park while lawyers reviewed the order.

8:12am PST: New York mayor Michael Bloomberg made what appeared to be a surprising statement this morning, saying that the Occupy protesters’ First Amendment rights were “not absolute”, and were trumped by the health and safety concerns of the occupation of Zuccotti Park. So what’s the legal situation? ProPublica has this explainer, which provides useful context, but because Zuccotti Park is a “legal gray area”, is inconclusive

8:10 am West Coast:  Police are arresting demonstrators who are intentionally being arrested, standing it appears in front of a NYC police station.  See this link.

7:51am PST: Despite the court order apparently allowing protesters back into Zuccotti Park, police are resolutely preventing protesters from retaking the plaza.

7:34am PST: Protesters have now reached Zuccotti Park. There are about 200 of them, some brandishing copies of the court order they say allows them back into the plaza. There are chants of “let us in!”.

NEW YORK CITY . The National Lawyers Guild obtained a court order allowing the protesters to return with their tents to the park, where they have camped for two months. The guild said the injunction prevents the city from enforcing park rules on the protesters who are now looking for squatters rights, despite park rules banning camping overnight.

By 9 a.m., the park was power-washed clean by sanitation workers. Police in riot gear ringed the public space, waiting for orders to reopen it.

The city told protesters they could come back after the cleaning, but under new tougher rules, including no tents, sleeping bags or tarps, which would effectively put an end to the encampment if enforced.