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9 cent hike causes clashes on Brazil streets
Nine cents have been enough to make tens of thousands of Brazilians cry foul for a week.
For the demonstrators who have transformed streets in Sao Paulo and Belo Horizonte into protest battlegrounds, it isn't so much that the price of a bus ticket went up from 3.00 to 3.20 reais ($1.38 to $1.47).
The small bump in fare was the straw that broke the camel's back in a much larger issue, and protesters plan to march again Tuesday to vent their anger.
L.A. May Day observances split immigration, Occupy groups
Two groups in Los Angeles just can’t seem to get together on a day of solidarity.
For more than a decade, May 1 - which is the labor movement's International Workers' Day, or May Day - has been about immigration in Los Angeles. Angelica Salas, executive director for the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights in Los Angeles, said for many years people in the United States didn't celebrate the day, but CHIRLA has tried to change that in Southern California.
“[It’s] a major day of mobilization. All around the world people mobilize en mass," Salas said. “And we’re very proud to have brought back to the United States the engagement of May 1.”
(Click the audio player to hear more on this story from CNN Radio's Jim Roope)
This year, however, immigration will share the day with the Occupy protesters. Nationwide, Occupy organizers are calling for large-scale demonstrations across the country on International Workers' Day, which is Tuesday.
Salas says CHIRLA and other immigrant-rights groups have tried to get together with the Occupy movement for the day. But Michael Novick, an organizer for Occupy Los Angeles, says the two sides just couldn’t “gel.”
Occupy movement plans a comeback
The attempt to re-occupy Zuccotti Park and subsequent arrests of dozens of protesters in New York over the weekend was the start of what Occupy organizers said will be a comeback for the movement this spring and summer. But some city and state governments, armed with new ordinances specifically aimed at the Occupy movement, are ready to prevent demonstrators from re-establishing encampments.
Police in New York put 74 people in handcuffs Saturday night as protesters tried to establish a foothold in the birthplace of Occupy Wall Street, a public plaza in the heart of the financial district. The move followed a week during which protesters tried to occupy several Bank of America branches in New York and more than 100 people demonstrated outside a Mitt Romney fundraiser at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel.
“Clearly the Occupy movement as we’ve known it - that is sort of occupying public spaces around government structures - is facing a stronger legal challenge,” said Gene Policinski, executive director of the Washington-based First Amendment Center, a self-described nonpartisan think tank that educates people about issues surrounding the First Amendment.
For $2,500, Brooklyn artist invites 1% to take home complaints of the 99%
Sebastian Errazuriz is at it again, making political statements with his art. This time, the target is the 1% - of which he may be a member when the art exhibit is through.
The Chilean-born artist used placards from the Occupy Wall Street movement as his muse and painted some of the movement's slogans onto wooden fold-out chairs. The acrylic paint messages include, "Hungry? Eat a Banker," "Kill Corporate Greed" and "Too Big to Fail is Too Big to Allow."
"The artist wishes to support the 99% by inviting collectors (representing the 1%) to purchase the complaints as art or furniture, thus introducing the ideas of one group into the homes of another and at the same time getting the rich to support the cause of the 99%," a news release states.
There are eight Occupy Chairs, and 10 of each design. The eight designs are on display at the Cristina Grajales Gallery booth at the Armory Show, an annual modern art fair in Manhattan that began Thursday and runs through the weekend.
Though Errazuriz, 34, doesn't shy away from bold statements - such as, say, planting 1,100 crosses under the Brooklyn Bridge to highlight the number of deaths in New York each week - his latest endeavor made him nervous.
"I honestly didn't know if the 1% would buy the Occupy Chairs or feel attacked and insulted," he said. "The other gallery people looked at us like, 'What the hell are (they) doing bringing protest signs to an art fair focused on collectors who are obviously all 1%?' "
Occupy Oakland protest muted after last week's arrests
A week after the mass arrests of Occupy Oakland demonstrators following clashes with police, a more muted protest played out Saturday in the northern California city.
Despite a call by a small faction of the Occupy Oakland group to conduct "militant action" against authorities, there was no repeat of last week's violence where protesters threw bottles and tossed pipes at police, who responded with tear gas, smoke grenades and bean bag bullets.
Authorities arrested more than 400 people in that incident.
The Occupy Oakland Tactical Action Committee called last week's police response "police repression" and vowed to conduct "militant action."
"If you identify as peaceful and are likely to interfere with the actions of your fellow protesters in any way (including telling them to stop performing a particular action, grappling, assaulting or holding them for arrest), you may not want to attend this march," the committee warned in a statement on its website.
"It is a militant action. It attracts anti-capitalists, anti-fascists and other comrades of a revolutionary bent. It is not a march intended for people who are not fully comfortable with diversity of tactics."
But Oakland Police Chief Howard Jordan warned the city would not tolerate a repeat and said officers would arrest anyone "who engages in criminal activity or assaults against officers or community members."
"This type of destructive and aggressive behavior is not welcome in our city," Jordan said.
FULL STORYProtesters struggle to stay awake on first night of sleeping ban
Occupy DC protesters struggled to stay awake overnight but vowed to stay strong Tuesday in the first full day of a camping ban enforced by U.S. Park Police.
"I had more fun in the park last night than the whole time I've been here," said Amanda Rickard, who is among the protesters staying at McPherson Park in Washington. "We were out here playing guitar, singing, playing drums, Scrabble, card games, you know, just stuff to keep us busy so we can stay here and stay awake."
But one protester said he wouldn't be surprised if the mandate against camping gear and sleeping in the park takes its toll on protesters.
"To be honest, I don't know how long we can keep this up," protester Kevin Whiley said after a sleepless night.
Park police began enforcing the ban on Monday after months of tolerating the Occupy camps at McPherson Park and Freedom Plaza. Police moved through the parks on Monday, asking protesters to remove camping gear and be sure to leave a tent flap open at all times.
FULL STORYProtesters vow to stand their ground at Occupy DC camp
Protesters occupying two Washington parks say they will stand their ground if National Park Service police come calling Monday to enforce a law against camping.
"I'm going to do the best I can to stay here," said Emily Margaret, who has been staying at Occupy DC's McPherson Park camp. "If they want to arrest me, they can."
A noon Monday deadline for protesters to remove camping gear from the McPherson Park and Freedom Plaza came and went with no immediate move by police.
FULL STORYOccupy Oakland demonstrations, arrests inject new life into movement
Oakland City Hall was set to reopen Monday after municipal employees worked to clean up damage they said was caused over the weekend by Occupy protesters, about 400 of whom were arrested following clashes with police in this Northern California city.
The mass arrests, described by police as the largest in city history, appear to have injected new life into the Occupy movement as protesters in a number of American and European cities took to the streets Sunday to express their solidarity with the Occupy Oakland group.
"The Occupy movement will respond, as we have always responded: With an overwhelming show of collective resistance," Occupy Wall Street said in a statement posted on its website.
Occupy Oakland is part of a larger movement that began last year on New York's Wall Street and quickly spread across the globe. While the protesters have highlighted a number of causes, the overarching theme remained the same: populist anger over what activists portray as an out-of-touch corporate, financial and political elite.
From Philadelphia to Des Moines, there were reports of Occupy protesters taking to the streets in mostly non-violent demonstrations.
FULL STORYPark service to crack down on Occupy DC camps
The National Park Service plans to crack down Monday on what it calls "sleeping activity" at two longstanding camps established by Occupy DC demonstrators in the nation's capital.
The service notified protesters on Friday that they "may be subject to arrest and their property subject to seizure as evidence" if there are evident "camping violations" by around noon Monday.
The notice for those in McPherson Square and nearby Freedom Plaza said that to comply with the federal agency's camping regulations, demonstrators must remove all camping material from the sites and leave one side of all temporary structures open at all times. Authorities describe the purpose of the order as necessary to ensure public health and safety.
The demonstrators say they will defend their sites.
"Participants of Occupy DC at McPherson Square, both sleeping members and non-sleeping members, will defend the public space we have used as our center for activism on this Monday, January 30th," the group's website said. "Occupy DC will peacefully resist this politically motivated attempt to suppress the free speech of the disenfranchised 99%."
On Sunday, a small group of protesters met for about three hours under the statue of Civil War hero Maj. Gen. James McPherson, which is in the middle of the park, to discuss how to respond.
FULL STORYOakland's mayor says city is fed up after hundreds of Occupy activists arrested
Municipal employees in Oakland worked Sunday to clean up damage they said was caused hours earlier by Occupy protesters, "possibly 400" of whom were arrested for breaking into a YMCA and City Hall and challenging police.
Oakland Police Officer Johnna Watson said authorities were still trying to determine exactly how many people had been detained, with earlier reports putting the figure at over 100 people. She described what transpired as "one of the largest mass arrests that we have seen in the city," adding that "it would be fair to say that we're looking easily at over 300, possibly 400" arrests.
Mayor Jean Quan took reporters through City Hall on Sunday, pointing to walls where graffiti had already been painted over and other areas of garbage, vandalism and destruction that she said had been left by protesters.
"I ran out of patience a long time ago," Quan said of the Occupy Oakland activists. "We're tired of some people - and, again, it's a faction of the Occupy movement - using Oakland as their playground."
"I think people are really angry," she added later, speaking about residents' feelings toward the demonstrators.
FULL STORYOccupy activists march in Oakland, plan to take over building
Scores of Occupy protesters marched through the streets of Oakland, California, on Saturday afternoon, planning to take over a building that will serve as their new home base.
Aerial video showed the activists proceeding through the city's streets, many of them toting signs while others carried what appeared to be supplies.
While touting the action as "Move-In Day" on their website, occupyoaklandmoveinday.org, organizers have not stated what vacant building they plan to occupy. They also acknowledged that "like the encampment at Oscar Grant Plaza, the building move-in is not legal."
But the group said the move was necessary, in part because "since November, the city of Oakland and its police force have made it impossible for us to meet, to serve food, and to provide a place for people to stay."
Occupy movement plans to shut down ports
Protesters affiliated with the nationwide "Occupy" movement hope to shut down West Coast ports from San Diego to Alaska on Monday in an effort to "disrupt the economic machine that benefits the wealthiest individuals and corporations," according to organizers.
Ports in San Diego, Los Angeles, and Oakland, California; Portland, Oregon; Seattle and Tacoma, Washington, Vancouver, British Columbia and Anchorage, Alaska, are targets of the effort, according to the Occupy the Ports website.
Protesters are also planning to demonstrate at the port in Houston, while Salt Lake City demonstrators are also organizing to disrupt operations of a Walmart distribution facility.
FULL STORYTuesday's live events
The 2012 presidential election is 11 months away, but that doesn't mean we're resting on our laurels until the first caucus takes place. CNN.com Live is your home for the latest news from the campaign trail.
Today's programming highlights...
9:30 am ET - Occupy goes to Congress - Members of the Occupy movement march to Capitol Hill to call on Congress to help those who need it the most.
Police order structure taken down at Occupy DC
U.S. Park Police surrounded a wooden structure erected Sunday by Occupy DC protesters, with a standoff ensuing and several arrests being made, according to witnesses.
The structure was built overnight in McPherson Square as a place where protesters could stay warm in the winter and hold their daily General Assembly meetings, according to Wade Simmons, one of the Occupy demonstrators.
Police ordered the structure taken down around noon Sunday, a post on the Occupy DC website reported, but about a dozen people remained perched on top of or inside the building, which was donated by a father-son architect team. As many as 200 people gathered at the park to watch the standoff.
Police put up barriers around the structure and cordoned off nearby streets with yellow tape as protesters chanted, "This is a nonviolent movement," and, "Put the pepper spray away."
FULL STORY
Does Occupy have an anthem? It might now
The most powerful social movements come accompanied with music - gospel-tinged chants for the civil rights movement, psychedelic rock for the hippie era of the late 1960s. But what about Occupy? Does the recent protest against corporate greed have a beat?
While artists such as Kanye West were visible at protest sites early on to lend support, musical content specifically addressing the movement has been sparse. Along with the debut of OccupyMusic.org in October, recent stirrings across the country show that a soundtrack, as fluid and organic as the movement itself, is being woven alongside the protest.
Third Eye Blind released “If There Ever Was a Time” last month. Lyrics included a direct call to action: "If there ever was a time to get on your feet, take it to the street, come on and meet me down at Zuccotti Park."
The bridge between the movement and music was further strengthened recently when producers announced a compilation album was in the works called “Occupy This Album.” Artists such as David Crosby, Lloyd Cole, Jackson Brown, Devo, Third Eye Blind and Yo La Tengo have signed on to the project, the producers said in a statement.
Exclusive: Inside the offices of Occupy Wall Street
You would think a movement born of disillusionment would yield somber music, but instead of dirges about economic woes the compositions coming out of the Occupy camps strike upbeat chords and fuel optimism.
Atlanta student and activist songwriter Ariel Root Wolpe is part of the musical movement. Her song “Occupy” has gotten positive reviews from listeners around the city.
Exclusive: Inside the offices of Occupy Wall Street
A block away from the New York Stock Exchange, a few dozen Occupy Wall Street organizers show up to work every day at an office building in the heart of Manhattan's Financial District. The movement may have lost its public face - a handful of protesters appear at Zuccotti Park on any given morning - but the folks who sit at desks inside the office said Occupy is still very much alive despite the recent evictions of encampments across the country.
CNN was granted exclusive access to the office where signs with critical information and phone numbers hang on the walls alongside artwork featuring slogans familiar to the movement. Groups of people cram into the small conference rooms for strategy sessions.
Posters featuring Occupy slogans hang on the office walls.
The office space appears to be the movement’s nerve center. But the volunteers who plan future actions, network with other Occupy protests and deal with logistical issues insisted the location is not Occupy Wall Street’s headquarters.
“This is just an office space that a handful of people have tried to make a resource for the Occupy Wall Street movement,” said Han Shan, a member of Occupy Wall Street’s press relations and direct-action working groups. “Everybody is looking around trying to figure out where the heck the headquarters is, and the truth of the matter is this movement is bigger than any piece of geography, than any piece of real estate, than any square block.”
Click the audio player to hear more on this CNN Radio report:
“It’s nice at times to not have the rain over your head, especially when you’re trying to type on your computer,” Hayes said, “but we would still get the same amount of work done with or without this office space.”
Still, the effort critical to maintaining the movement’s momentum gets done in the cubicles and conference rooms at the office every day. The finance committee manages expenses and donations. A communications group disseminates information agreed upon by consensus. The housing group makes sleeping arrangements for protesters who had nowhere to go after police raided their encampment in Zuccotti Park.
“People recognized that there was a need for some sort of space to get work done that requires Internet, that requires electricity, that requires security and safety, that requires indoor space,” Shan said.
Police clear Occupy camps in Los Angeles, Philly
Police in Los Angeles and Philadelphia dismantled tents and arrested Occupy protesters who refused to leave city areas early Wednesday.
Los Angeles police moved in at 12:30 a.m. Wednesday (3:30 a.m. ET). About an hour later, the City Hall lawn was cleared and closed for cleanup. About 200 people were arrested in the operation, utilizing some 1,400 officers, said Police Chief Charlie Beck. The Los Angeles encampment, which has been in place for some 60 days, had become the largest remaining one after police raided New York's Zuccotti Park on November 15 and dismantled the nearly two-month-old camp.
In Philadelphia, CNN affiliate WPVI reported about 40 protesters were arrested following a clash with police.
FULL STORYVideo shows Houston police shooting armed man
Video has surfaced of Houston police officers shooting an armed man in a downtown park.
Police said 21-year-old Joshua Anthony Twohig was armed with a rifle and fired several shots inside Tranquility Park near an area where Occupy Houston protesters were gathered on November 21.
Houston police said they shot Twohig after attempts were made to have him drop his weapon. He suffered several gunshot wounds and was transported to a hospital with nonlife-threatening injuries. Twohig is charged with aggravated assault against a public servant.
Bicycle officers A. Cantos and H. Lam said they were on patrol when they heard gunshots and saw Twohig standing on a bridge near the park's fountains and pond holding a weapon. When the officers approached the scene and told Twohig to drop his rifle, they said he fired his weapon into the pond and then gestered as if he was intending to commit suicide. Police said Twohig then screamed "shoot me, shoot me" toward the officers.
At about this point, police said a witness began recording video of the incident, which CNN obtained from a Houston TV station.
The video shows Twohig dressed in a suit holding a gun to his head. Officers are heard on the video shouting commands to Twohig before they shot him.
CNN affiliate KTRK reports it spoke with Twohig's family after the incident. They did not want to comment about the shooting and told KTRK not to contact them again. KTRK said the name of an attorney for Twohig has not been released at this point.
"We don't know his motives - that being said, he was not a member of the Occupy movement that we know of," Occupy Houston protester Dustin Phipps told KTRK.
"I'm glad that the gentleman did not point his gun at all these innocent people here," witness David Loeser told KTRK.
L.A. mayor: Occupy park to be closed
Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa announced Sunday that City Hall Park, where Occupy L.A. protesters have camped for almost 60 days, will close at 12:01 a.m. (3:01 a.m. ET) Monday.
Occupy Wall Street's weekend plans ruffle some readers' feathers
Editor's note: This post is part of the Overheard on CNN.com series, a regular feature that examines interesting comments and thought-provoking conversations posted by the community.
The Occupy Wall Street movement's plans for an upcoming mass demonstration, targeting major retailers on Black Friday, has lots of readers seeing red going into the Turkey Day weekend. Some scoffed at the danger involved with getting in between hyped-up shoppers and their prize, and others thought the movement's goals were misguided. Few spoke in support of the Occupy protesters.
1. Occupy targets retailers on Black Friday
"No doubt this movement will cause someone's death, making it a true black Friday," said Tralfaz. "Don't mess with shoppers looking for bargains. They have nothing to do with the people you are against and most of the ones I know would kill you to get 50% off. Your movement is about to lose all of its power and turn the masses against you." FULL POST
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