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| Image by Getty Images via @daylife |
Here is a good alternative: http://goo.gl/Equdp
This site shows the "best of" #OccupyPortland news in a daily digest format.
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
Too busy to follow all the Occupy news?
Here is a good alternative: http://goo.gl/Equdp
This site shows the "best of" #OccupyPortland news in a daily digest format.
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
News from the OSW
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| Image by eisenbahner via Flickr |
The Order of the Serene Wisdom
The OSW website is still primitive and does not have whole a lot of information. We now have a Facebook group, also.
Events of interest:
Thursday, Nov. 24, noon-7 p.m.:#OccupyThanksgivingPDX at Wallace Park in Northwest Portland. Info: http://tinyurl.com/opdx-thanksgiving
Date TBA: OSW meeting to discuss proposed adaptation of monastic rules into a contemporary, interfaith context that can encompass the cultural, spiritual and demographic diversity of the #Occupy movement and resulting community. We will be drafting a document that is largely modelled after a contemporary modification of the Rule of Saint Benedict (by the White Robed Monks of St. Benedict) and a version of the Franciscan rule (by the Franciscan Community of Mercy), however our proposed monastic rules would further emphasize our commitment for a new kind of monasticism that addresses systemic issues such as racism, classism, able-ism, sexism and homophobia, and also more heavily incorporate elements of collectivist leadership and decision-making from Quakers and Anabaptists. RSVP by email.
Other news from IGC: Visit http://chaplainsoccupypdx.blogspot.com or follow Twitter at http://twitter.com/occupypdxigc or Facebook at http://tinyurl.com/opdxigc.
The Order of the Serene Wisdom (OSW) -- Ordo Sapientiae Viae Veritatis in Latin -- was conceived during a weekly chaplains' meeting of the #OccupyPortland Interfaith Guild of Chaplains (IGC) in late October, 2011. In the noises, actions and motions of the bustling Occupation encampment community, we felt a need for a collective, structured spiritual practice in an authentic community. There were some positive responses to this idea. Also, we believe that the #Occupy movement is a beginning of the new spiritual awakening as well as of the political, social and economic transformation. What better time is there to start a new monastic order that reflects the spirit of the #OWS worldwide? In the ancient and medieval times, monasteries saved the civilizations and provided community, places of learning, and economic opportunities amidst social unrest and collapses of empires. The OSW -- a thinly-disguised anagram of #OWS -- is a truly interfaith and ecumenical religious order that draws wisdom from both traditional scriptures and mythos from all cultures, as well as from the "Inner Light" that speaks to us in our silence. The structure of the OSW is mostly based on the Order of St. Benedict, with necessary modifications appropriate for an interfaith context, and a leadership structure modelled after the #Occupy movement's General Assembly.
The OSW is based in Portland, Oregon. We invite those outside Portland to form their own independent priories under the same name. Like the Occupy movement itself, there is no centralized global organization, just mutual cooperation.
Monday, November 21, 2011
#OccupyThanksgivingPDX park-upation update
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| Image by The Prudent Cyclist via Flickr |
The weather report indicates a good possibility of rain on Thanksgiving Day. We will be park-upying the Wallace Park in Northwest Portland, and there is a covered picnic area with a table. The park is accessible by TriMet 77 bus and also a short distance from the nearest 15 stop, as well as the Portland Streetcar (23rd & Marshall).
So far we are expecting a pretty low-key event, with some people coming and going, with a total of no more than 20 at any given moment (take this into account when making food, although it is always nice to have more than not enough) -- which should keep us below the crowd level that would technically require a permit. In any case, with the history of #OccupyPortland-related events so far, the City has not been too stringent on permits, due to the possible issues with the freedom of assembly. Since this event is sponsored by the Interfaith Guild of Chaplains, it is further protected under religious freedom, any less than any church picnic at a park. The reason why we are requesting RSVP also has to do with health regulation -- as we cannot really give away food to the "general public" even if we aren't selling it (as they say on Last Thursdays on Alberta every year).
We are also inviting a number of VIPs as a gesture of goodwill and peace-building.
You are invited to come when you can and leave when you must. With people coming in and going there should be something going on throughout the event. Also feel free to bring your friends and neighbors, and any random person you might meet on the street. This is about community-building and re-capturing the spirit of autonomous, collectivist collaboration that was a big part of our occupation in the downtown parks (minus tents, troubles, and A-camps).
Some suggestions:
- Vegan items are good; if you are bringing in turkey or any meat/fish/egg/dairy product (label ingredients!), ensure that the temperature stays above or below the danger range at all times in order to prevent any health risk. (e.g., cooler with ice.)
- No alcohol please. We do not have a permit for this.
- If you can bring in plates, silverware, etc., you are wonderful. If you can think of anyone who lives within a walking distance of the Wallace Park who is willing to let us use their kitchen for dishwashing, we may even be able to forego disposable materials.
- Bring music, games, spoken words, etc. to share
- A tablecloth, some kind of table settings, candles, etc. would make the occasion elegant and festive.
- We are planning on a hilarious Thanksgiving General Assembly at 3 p.m. This isn't a real General Assembly and will not actually do anything. There will be three very silly proposals (that would make headlines on the Onion!) on what to do on the "Day after Black Friday." The idea is for everyone to offer craziest possible amendments and see how bizarre it would turn into! While this is purely for fun, it is also a great learning opportunity for those who have heard about the GA and interested in participating but don't know how, as we will be running on the standard General Assembly procedures.
- Please - no tents. However, we suggest bringing in a blanket or something to keep yourself warm.
One more planning meeting for anyone who is able: Tuesday, Nov. 22, 3 p.m. at the Copeland Commons (the big room on the main floor), TaborSpace (5441 S.E. Belmont St.).
Link to the earlier post on this event: http://tinyurl.com/opdx-thanksgiving
This event is sponsored and organized by the #OccupyPortland Interfaith Guild of Chaplains, an independent and autonomous group. This is not an official #OccupyPortland General Assembly-sanctioned event.
Thursday, November 17, 2011
The OSW, a new interfaith religious order for the OWS era
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| Image via Wikipedia |
In the noises, actions and motions of the bustling Occupation encampment community, we felt a need for a collective, structured spiritual practice in an authentic community. There were some positive responses to this idea. Also, we believe that the #Occupy movement is a beginning of the new spiritual awakening as well as of the political, social and economic transformation. What better time is there to start a new monastic order that reflects the spirit of the #OWS worldwide?
In the ancient and medieval times, monasteries saved the civilizations and provided community, places of learning, and economic opportunities amidst social unrest and collapses of empires. The OSW -- a thinly-disguised anagram of #OWS -- is a truly interfaith and ecumenical religious order that draws wisdom from both traditional scriptures and mythos from all cultures, as well as from the "Inner Light" that speaks to us in our silence. The structure of the OSW is mostly based on the Order of St. Benedict, with necessary modifications appropriate for an interfaith context, and a leadership structure modelled after the #Occupy movement's General Assembly.
For more about this visit: http://goo.gl/8SvO0
An urgent message to the mayor and police chief
Nov. 17, 2011
Dear Mayor Adams and Chief Reese,
For a long time, the world looked up to Portland as a model that we can be proud of, in terms of how the #Occupy movement, its organizers, and city officials came together in supporting the popular sentiments that led to the global #OWS movement. I feel that the high point in the history of #OccupyPortland was how the Occupy General Assembly, committees, the City of Portland, and the Portland Marathon worked out their conflicts and created a true win-win solution that caught the whole world by surprise. This, and the civility at the core of the interactions between #OccupyPortland and the City of Portland, including the Fire Bureau, Parks and Recreation Bureau, and the Police Bureau, made #OccupyPortland perhaps the most successful Occupations on earth.
Now I miss those days, when our shared concerns were about street youth on drugs and occasional incidents involving an inebriated chronic homeless on a bench. Those issues were our shared concerns,
and solutions were for the benefit of all parties involved. You both know that aside from these incidents, everything was mostly peaceful.
Now that, as many of the downtown area big businesses and their interest group Portland Business Alliance, has gotten their demands by "getting rid of the homeless" in the Chapman and Lownsdale parks, and that now we are in a phase of a reinvigorated #OccupyPortland movement in which we are not longer, in Mr. Mayor, your own words, "worried about tents and port-a-potties," you and Chief Reese ought to show your stated support for the #Occupy movement and its causes for social and economic justice.
Instead, Mr. Mayor and Mr. Chief, after the extensive homeless outreach campaign ostensibly to separate those who were part of the #OccupyPortland encampment simply for food and shelter from what you might think of as "genuine protesters," you have decided to outfit the police with riot gear and assault weapons.
Mssrs. Adams and Reese, this makes absolutely no sense to me. First of all, what the City is doing is potentially in violation of ORS 163.190, which makes it a crime, a Class A Misdemeanor, to "place another person in fear of imminent serious physical injury." Secondly, I do not think I am the only one scratching my head (not a reference to the media-hyped rumors of a head lice outbreak!) trying to make
sense of your seeming 180-degree change of attitudes taking place sometime last Saturday, November 12. Many progressive media and bloggers are speculating the existence of a secret federal directive
to crush #Occupy movements nationwide in a coordinated attack. Yet, even then, the mayor had the ultimate say in when and how anything was to be implemented, according to the same sources. Thirdly, the constant presence of riot police and display of their weapons over the past several days in downtown is defeating what you ostensibly seek to accomplish: tourists and shoppers are now reluctant to go downtown as it no longer looks like a safe, family-friendly environment. While the ongoing intimidation campaign by the Portland Police Bureau further drives a wedge between the more mainstream, moderate types of the "99 percent" and the radical, "anarchist" elements, the demonstrations are increasingly attracting those radicalized elements while driving away the more moderate and peaceful types, including myself. Enough is enough. There is no reason to spread a mass paranoia and turn an important part of Portland such as downtown into a war zone, and inconveniencing the rest of the 99% through unnecessary and excessive traffic closures and restrictions. The #OccupyPortland movement did not bring this upon downtown. Through your actions, the people are more agitated towards the police and the resentment and anger towards the City are growing, perhaps even more so than during the days of encampment. A week ago, the problem was confined just in three city blocks; today the Steel Bridge and a large portion of downtown Portland, Old Town-Chinatown, Pearl District and Lloyd District are affected.
Mr. Adams and Mr. Reese, there are far more constructive and non-confrontational ways to support public safety and help the local businesses and workers who work there. Even you yourselves have always said publicly that the majority of #OccupyPortland people are peaceful, organized and responsible, and that it has always been a problem of few individuals with questionable ties to #OccupyPortland.
As the November 17 action was planning on a rally today at the Tom McCall Waterfront Park, let us learn from the legacy of Governor Tom McCall -- a very moderate Republican who brought us SOLV and bottle deposits -- When faced with a prospect of a major showdown between anti-Vietnam demonstrators and the American Legion Conference, Mr. McCall did not send down riot police; rather, he worked closely with the organizers to create a solution that prevented a major violent conflict, known as Vortex I. Creativity and out-of-the-box thinking, which he originally thought of as "a political suicide," made him a wildly popular governor and one of the best-remembered elected officials in Oregon history.
Mr. Adams and Mr. Reese, you have an opportunity today to make a history that all Portlanders and Oregonians can be proud for decades to come. It is on your shoulders and in your hands to show that you walk the talk when you and your colleagues say you support the messages of the #Occupy movement.
This polarization, alienation and increasing tension between #OccupyPortland and the City of Portland must stop. I am expecting you to show some initiative that once again bring us all together for a common cause and win-win solutions.
The ball is in your courts.
Sincerely,
Sarah Morrigan
The #OccupyPortland Interfaith Guild of Chaplains
http://chaplainsoccupypdx.blogspot.com
Twitter: @OccupyPDXigc @sarahmorrigan
This is not an official statement of the Interfaith Guild of Chaplains
Our invitation to #OccupyThanksgivingPDX
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| Image via Wikipedia |
We occupy it because:
- This is a quintessentially American holiday, and is an important part of American cultural narratives.
- This is also a holiday that commemorates the fact that the European colonizers began their expansive ambitions and conquest and genocide of the First Nations, in the name of "freedom" -- something this holiday tends to sugar-coat.
- On this day, there are many -- and growing number of -- Portlanders who are unhoused and, since most of other Portlanders have a privilege of being able to stay home, take a day off, and spend time with family, they are left outside often with no place to go and nothing to eat. We recognize this social inequity.
- Today, Thanksgiving Day is the official beginning of the "Holiday Season," which is essentially an orgy of consumerism orchestrated by the top 1%. Many publicly-traded big corporations count on this season, and the Fourth Quarter earnings report affects share prices significantly. We occupy this day to reclaim the Thanksgiving as a time for community, sharing, and abundance.
When: Thursday, Nov. 24 -- The festivities run from noon until 7 p.m.; everyone is welcome to participate in part or all of this event.
Where: In the close-in Northwest Portland with a good public transit and bicycle greenway access. Please RSVP for location.
What: Lunch and dinner, potluck style; open-mic music and spoken words; community discussions on various topics; games; and the "Thanksgiving General Assembly" -- mostly a fun exercise where people who are new to the #Occupy movement can learn how to participate in a GA, or organize their own GAs.
Updates (Nov. 24): http://chaplainsoccupypdx.blogspot.com/2011/11/giving-thanks-to-occupy-community-and.html
Updates (Nov. 23): http://chaplainsoccupypdx.blogspot.com/2011/11/more-about-occupythanksgivingpdx.html
Updates (Nov. 21): http://chaplainsoccupypdx.blogspot.com/2011/11/occupythanksgivingpdx-park-upation.html
Tell your friends about this. http://tinyurl.com/opdx-thanksgiving
Printable fliers (4 to a letter-size sheet): http://bit.ly/sIe1mw
If the RSVP form below does not display well, here is a direct link in a new window.
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
Abusive paternalism
By Tim Graves
This is not an official statement of the Interfaith Guild of Chaplains.
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