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Welcome to Occupy Brooklyn

January 16, 2012 in The Basics

New to Occupy Brooklyn? Here’s a brief description of what we are doing.
Part of the 99%?  There are many ways to get involved.
New to the Occupy movement in general? Check out these Frequently Asked Questions.

Here is a list of upcoming local General Assemblies & OWS Events:

Bushwick General Assembly
7p.m. on Thursday, February 23
Brooklyn Fireproof, 119 Ingraham Street

Sunset Park General Assembly
10am – 12 on Saturday, February 25th
Trinity Lutheran Church, 411 46th Street

Williamsburg General Assembly
7:30p.m. on Tuesday, February 28
The Woods — Backroom — 48 South 4th Street

Operating with the consent of the Occupy Brooklyn General Assembly, this website is meant to serve as a hub for the consolidation and dissemination of information about Occupy activities in Brooklyn.  It’s maintained by the Internet Working Group, and is a work in progress.

All entries and pages on this site are living documents that will change as we do.

Charter Schools and Their Impact on Public Education

January 16, 2012 in News

Following this week’s Occupy Brooklyn General Assembly, the Education Working Group will host a film screening of The Inconvenient Truth Behind Waiting for Superman and a teach-in. A panel discussion with NYC educators and parents will follow. Refreshments will be available.

Thursday, January 19th 2012
6pm     Occupy Brooklyn General Assembly
7pm     Film Screening
             The Inconvenient Truth Behind Waiting for Superman, written and directed by NYC public school teachers and parents
8pm     Panel and discussion with NYC educators and parents

The Commons
388 Atlantic Avenue (between Hoyt & Bond)
Brooklyn

Organized by Occupy Brooklyn’s Education Working Group

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by jiml

Planning Meeting for Citizens United Actions at 60 Wall

January 6, 2012 in Calls to Action, News

Friday January 6th (tomorrow), 5-7pm at 60 Wall St.

Come help the End Corporate Personhood sub-group of the Politics and Electoral Reform WG (*whew*) give shape to two days of planned action:

Friday, January 20th – Occupy the Courts | Saturday, January 21st – Occupy the Corporations

For additional info or if you are not able to attend and contribute directly to the planning meeting and still want to be involved:

endcorporatepersonhoodnyc@gmail.com

http://tinyurl.com/corpRIP

Brooklyn General Assembly, OWS Demand End to Fire Department Budget Cuts

December 29, 2011 in News, Press Release

Occupy Brooklyn General Assembly and Occupy Wall Street Demand an End to Dangerous Fire Department Budget Cuts

The Occupy Brooklyn General Assembly sends our strongest support and solidarity to the rescue 2 team, the crew of Engine 234 and especially to the firefighters who were injured responding to the Crown Heights fire on December 19th.

Firefighters at the scene of a fierce blaze in Crown Heights on December 19. Photos/caption via NY Daily News.

Firefighters at the scene of a fierce blaze in Crown Heights on December 19. Photo via NY Daily News.

During these hard times, we recognize the brave men and women of the FDNY, and we send solidarity and encouragement to continue the hard and honorable work that they do for the citizens of New York City.

Since the start of the occupation in September, the press has painted our relationship with police and firefighters as adversarial. In fact, we have always recognized all union members – especially the police and fire fighters who risk their lives on behalf of the 99% – as part of our ranks and struggle. That is why it is with such a heavy heart that we learn of the continued serious condition of fireman Robert Wiedmann, and send our best wishes and support to he and his family.

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Announcing The Brooklyn Occupant

December 29, 2011 in News

The Occupy Brooklyn newspaper, titled The Brooklyn Occupant, has launched online! You can read our first story here: www.newspaper.occupybk.org

Why a newspaper? It’s simple: many Brooklynites simply don’t have quality access to the Internet, and we think they deserve to know what’s going on in this movement.  As a handout at marches, rallies, and meetings, it can also serve as a way to share the movement’s voices with those who haven’t heard them. While the Occupied Wall Street Journal grows into a national broadsheet featuring editorials, Brooklyn Occupant ScreenshotThe Brooklyn Occupant will be written in everyday language featuring stories about individuals’ struggles. We aim to give voices to those the mainstream media often overlooks.

So why a website? We’re still working on accessing a printing press and developing enough material to justify a print edition. Rather than waiting and letting the stories of our neighbors go untold, we opted to begin publishing online.

What can I do? Check back at the end of every week for new material, and, as always, please share any stories, tips or photos from Brooklyn with us! You can email us at OccupyBrooklynNewspaper@gmail.com or join our working group.

Thanks,
The Brooklyn Occupant working group

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by Todd

The Hard, Rewarding Work of Occupy Brooklyn Meetings

December 14, 2011 in The Basics

After reclaiming the commons and confronting a corrupt system on the streets, one of the most challenging and rewarding experiences for many of us is the discussion and reaching of consensus within a new community of diverse voices.

Behind the proposals, friendly amendments, and twinkling fingers lies an unromantic and vital task: finding a physical space. The Occupy Brooklyn G.A. has been fortunate to have a small, dedicated group working week after week to reach out to houses of worship and community groups.  They need our help, and we need to help ourselves.

While this might be solved with a long-term occupation, we have not reached consensus on the when/how/where.  In the meantime, all of us, especially as winter sets in, need to work harder to find and arrange safe and friendly space.  Eliana has created a brief How-to Guide and list of locations to get us started.  Click here to view it or continue reading below.

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Occupy the DOE: Panel for Educational Policy Action

December 12, 2011 in Calls to Action, News

Last night, the Occupy Brooklyn General Assembly consented to Occupy the DOE’s request to raise awareness of a December 14th demonstration against co-location of charter schools into Brooklyn public schools. Read the proposal by clicking here. Note that the G.A. did not reach consensus on a broader orientation toward educational policy in general or charter schools specifically.

The following is Occupy the DOE’s call to action with background, location, and more:

The Panel for Educational Puppets
(sorry, Policy!) is meeting this Wednesday at 6PM at Newtown High School in Queens to decide on a number of charter co-locations into existing public schools. Occupy the DOE believes that the PEP is illegitimate, undemocratic and should not be empowered to make decisions affecting public school students, parents and workers. Occupy the DOE also believes that charter co-locations create “separate and unequal” educational institutions in this city. We believe in equal public education for ALL students. 

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by Todd

#D12: West Coast Port Shutdown

December 12, 2011 in Calls to Action, News

Squidman ImageLast night, the Occupy Brooklyn General Assembly consented to stand in solidarity with the West Coast Port Shutdown and the supporting Occupy Wall Street march on Goldman Sachs.  Read the proposal by clicking here.

These actions are taking place as we write this post.  If you can, get to Lower Manhattan and join the march!  Click here for details on where/when

If you’re not in the city, follow #d12 on Twitter or visit WestCoastPortShutdown.org to see what’s happening on the West Coast and to find out how you can support port workers and truckers in your area and stand up to the corporations that have tried busting their unions and exploiting their labor.  Of course, port workers’ issues aren’t limited to the west coast, as reported recently in the Carroll Gardens Patch.

Here’s a brief explanation of the Occupy Wall Street march, dubbed “Going Squidding,” on Goldman Sachs:

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