Occupy Cal protesters held a press conference Monday and set up two tents on Sproul Plaza to demand that criminal charges against Nov. 9 Occupy Cal protesters be dropped.
Members of Occupy Cal set up “cellphone stations” urging students to call District Attorney Nancy O’Malley’s office and demand that all 13 protesters be cleared of criminal charges filed as a result of the Nov. 9 protests. They then held a press conference around 11:15 a.m. which drew about 40 people.
Some criminal charges against the protesters include resisting arrest, remaining at the scene of a riot and obstructing a public place.
At their arraignments, 12 protesters were issued stay-away orders. Six of the orders — which prevent them from stepping onto UC property, except to fulfill class- or work-related duties — were lifted over the past two weeks.
“We’re here to lead a campaign to call the district attorney and demand that the charges be dropped and hopefully tie up those phone lines for the next 72 hours, if possible,” said graduate student Beezer de Martelly.
At the press conference, graduate students called the charges a strategic move by the administration to suppress the campus’ student movement against the privatization of education.
“The irony is that the district attorney is a public official … but she has no public accountability,” said Honest Chung, Students for a Democratic University ASUC presidential candidate. “All we can do is mobilize our strength to say that these charges are BS.”
Occupy Cal members then set up two tents on the Sproul Plaza steps.
Dean of Students Jonathan Poullard met with the protesters to notify them that the tents violate the campus policy against encampments and asked that they be taken down, according to campus spokesperson Janet Gilmore.
UC Berkeley senior Navid Shaghaghi said the protesters would not take down the tents unless O’Malley dropped the criminal charges.
UCPD spokesperson Lt. Eric Tejada said UCPD is monitoring the situation. As of press time, the tents remained.
A Nov. 9 reenactment will probably occur Tuesday, de Martelly said. Phone banking will go on for several days.
“If a serious number of people from the community cry out about how pathetic these charges are, it’ll create enough political pressure to at least give us some grounds to mobilize a mass movement,” she said.
Afsana Afzal covers academics and administration.
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It was raining this morning. Guess where the tents and their hippie owners went.
*Poof!*
Why does the Daily Cal feel compelled to provide a platform for every utterance and gesture from these people? It’s clear that the editors either can’t tell the difference between news and promotion, or are rather sympathetic to these fruitloops.
Holding my campus hostage and “making demands”, eh? See, this is why no one minds a little pepper spray in your eyes every now and then. I mean your eyes hurt and water up and you get the message and LEAVE. That’s what we all call a happy fucking ending. So stupid, guys. C’mon and GET IT: you’re not LIKED.
UCPD spokesperson Eric Tejeda is known in Berkeley for his criminal conduct of having his officers beat up civilians, harass them and having his officers shine lights in the eyes of young tree sittters such as 19-year odl, Amy Delatorre last fall which resulted in Amy’s back being broken. He is the head of a gang of thugs known as the University of Berkeley Police Department and should be criminally charged for his crimes and civil rights violations he and his officers practice on Berkeley residents on a daily basis. HYe is a coward and a thumper and should never be considered a public servant. The officers under his command are henchmen for the University doing Chancellor Birgeneau’s bidding along the lines of the gestapo.
Begone, fucking activist hippie. You are filth.
“The officers under his command are henchman for the University doing Chancellor Birgenau’s bidding along the lines of the gestapo.” Wow–what an ignoramus. Comparing the UCPD to the Gestapo would be like comparing Israelis to Nazis. Oh wait, SJP-pals of Occupy-regularly do that…
[UCPD spokesperson Eric Tejeda is known in Berkeley for his criminal conduct of having his officers beat up civilians]
Despite whatever Goebbels said, repeating the same lie over and over again doesn’t make it true. Why don’t you just freaking grow up, ditch the stupid Berkeley activist schtick, and get a real job?
UCPD spokesperson Eric Tejeda is known in Berkeley for his criminal conduct of having his deputies beat up civilians, harass them and havintg his deputies shine lights in tree sitters such as Amy Delatorre last fall that resulted in Amy’s back being broken. He is the head of a gang of thugs known as the University of Berkeley Police Department and should be criminally charged for his crimes and civil rights violations he and his officers practice on Berkeley residents on a daily basis.
I demand that the charges be increased.
So there.
“The irony is that the district attorney is a public official … but she has no public accountability,” said Honest Chung.
Someone needs to point out to Honest but Stupid Chung that the D.A. is an elective office and that is how she is held accountable. Learn how your government system works, you moron.
I think Honest knows that. Think deeper into the issue, he obviously wants more accountability, not just an election to hold someone accountable. Just saying.
No. Occupy isn’t interested in anybody else’s opinion. Their idea of democracy is that their little self-selected GA group gets to decide for _everybody_. Real elections involve too many people who don’t agree with them.
Honest Chung is more accurately called Dishonest Chung.
UC Berkeley senior Navid Shaghaghi said the protesters would not take down the tents unless O’Malley dropped the criminal charges. ”And after that, I will hold my breath until I turn blue.”
Correction: or until it rains!
Did it ever occur to you that maybe they weren’t there the next day because the police removed them?
Actually he never said that! He said: Till the administration takes a stance on the charges. And the administration took the stance of indifference! We have it all on tape.
Yeah, let’s tie up the phone lines so the job of the people who prosecute criminals who threaten our lives cannot be done. Yeah, we’ll make it easier for those other criminals like us.
So you think that the people should just sit down and shut up? Doesn’t sound like democracy…
And what, you think that by calling the DA she’ll be so distracted that her superhero cape will get all caught up in the phone line and she’ll loose her super-crime-fighting powers? Get real, and actually do something about it if you don’t like it. Oh wait, no because then you’ll get beat by the police.
Baying like rabid hyenas and shouting down everybody they disagree with certainly doesn’t sound like democracy, I agree.
I’m sorry, but associating Occupy Cal types to rabid hyenas is quite unfair, given that most rabid hyenas mind their own business and don’t intentionally impose their will upon others.
“So you think that the people should just sit down and shut up?”
There’s a huge difference between free speech and peacefully assembly on one hand, and being a bunch of law-breaking agitators spoiling for a fight, even if you are too dimwitted, immature or ignorant to know the difference. You want to be treated like responsible adults, then ACT like responsible adults as opposed to a bunch of street hoodlums or spoiled children.
I don’t think it quite works like that.
“I demand that the charges being levied against me for stabbing that 7-11 clerk be dropped. They’re BS!”
I demand Eric Holder enforce voter fraud laws.