Minneapolis, MN – More than 200 people gathered January 30 to celebrate the life of Twin Cities activist Gabriel Johnson-Ortiz, who passed away Jan. 17 at age 34 after a four-and-a-half-year struggle with brain cancer. His passing is a great loss to his family, friends and comrades from a variety of progressive political and cultural movements.

At the event, representatives of organizations in which Gabriel was active gave moving tributes, including William Martinez of the Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee, Lucila Dominguez of Centro de Trabajadores Unidos en Lucha, Jess Sundin of the Anti-War Committee and Eric Angell of OccupyMN. Several musicians performed in Gabriel’s honor, including an Aztec danzante group and Maria Isa. David Mendez of the Palabristas and David Miller read poems written for Gabriel. Teresa Ortiz, Gabriel’s mother and also a member of the Palabristas, read a moving poem to close out the gathering.

A common theme touched on by all who spoke was that Gabriel was ever present in the movement for social justice. He seemed to be at every protest, event, meeting, party and concert. He transcended movements and issues and always greeted everyone with a smile and a hug. He seemed to know everyone, and those he didn’t know he quickly welcomed and befriended. Gabriel's tireless passion for social justice and solidarity never waned nor did his positive spirit, as he continued participating in political activities even while facing serious health issues.

Gabriel Johnson-Ortiz grew up partly in Minnesota and partly in Guatemala and in Chiapas, México. His family lived in Chiapas when he was a teenager during the mid-1990s. This was just after the Zapatistas had boldly announced themselves to the world by briefly seizing San Cristobal and several other major cities in Mexico’s southernmost state of Chiapas, rocking Mexico and inspiring people around the world. Gabriel embodied the Zapatistas’ rebellious spirit and desire to serve the people.

Gabriel was a fixture in the Twin Cities progressive political and cultural movements since he returned to Minnesota in the late 1990s. Among many other things, he was always involved in the immigrant rights movement and movements of Latino and immigrant workers, participating in the 2003 Immigrant Worker Freedom Ride, helping found MIRAC in 2006, and staying active in MIRAC and CTUL. He also worked for a period doing union organizing with hotel workers who were mostly immigrants.

Gabriel built solidarity with the people of Chiapas, with Latin America and with movements around the world. He regularly participated in anti-war protests in the Twin Cities and joined in for long road trips to national anti-war protests. He was a main Twin Cities organizer of the U.S. Social Forum. Gabriel stood with activists facing political repression, including Carlos Montes, the Anti-War 23 and others.

In addition to his political commitments, Gabriel also promoted Latin American music in the Twin Cities, contributing to local radio shows like KFAI's Corazon Latino, and frequently going to local music events. He also sometimes DJed, sharing his impressive music collection.

Though brought together by the tragedy of Gabriel Johnson-Ortiz's passing, the Jan. 30 event was more a celebration of Gabriel's life than a somber memorial. It brought together people from many political and cultural movements and organizations that don't often gather in the same room, but who came together to celebrate a friend and compañero who made a strong impression on all who met and worked with him.

Gabriel Johnson-Ortiz, ¡Presente!

#MinneapolisMN #Remembrances #MIRAc #MinnesotaImmigrantRightsActionCommittee #CenterForWorkersUnitedInStruggleCTUL #OccupyMN #GabrielJohnsonOrtiz #Zapatistas

The action began with a practice round of mic check on the Plaza outside and then occupiers each grabbed a sign and headed up to the 24th floor meeting room. The public meeting is held inside a large glass-walled room, where about 100 people sit in the room, and dozens more mill around outside, watching the proceedings on TV screens. Some signs were held against the glass, while several more went inside, with slogans reading, “Shelter is a human right,” “The first amendment is 24/7,” and “The 99% will not be silenced.”

Heads turned when an occupier named Divine stood up and shouted, “Mic check!”

Other occupiers repeated after him, as he shouted, “Stop the violation of our constitutional rights! End the harassment, intimidation and attacks on Occupy! Return all our bedding and tents! Revoke all trespasses! Allow shelter for Occupy's assembly!” Divine was removed by two large security guards, but other occupiers picked up where he left off.

These occupiers were also removed, repeating, “Stop the attacks on Occupy!” as all were escorted out of the building.

Sarah Martin explained why the commissioners were targeted by protesters, “The county has tried everything to take the Plaza from us – seizing our tents, tarps and blankets, banning dozens of individual occupiers with trespass notices and a constant campaign of harassment and threats. They raided the Plaza last week, but still, we're not going away.”

#MinneapolisMN #OccupyWallStreet #OccupyMN #HennepinCountyCommissioners #OccupyMinneapolis

Minneapolis, MN – About 100 supporters and participants of Occupy Minneapolis gathered at People’s Plaza here, Dec. 11. They hung signs advancing the demands of the 99%, using clothespins on ropes tied to plaza light poles, pounding staked signs into frozen planters and taping their messages onto poles and benches.

“On the 2 month anniversary of OccupyMN, we gather at the People's Plaza again, to reclaim our space and continue our fight for equality and justice,” said a statement from organizers of the action.

Sam Richards said, “The 1% can pay for a place at the table. The only way the 99% can have our voices heard is ongoing occupations and protests in public spaces. The Hennepin County attorney is trying to take away our right to assemble and be heard. The People's Plaza is our plaza – a place for us to gather, to organize and to voice our demands for a society that puts people over profits.”

He added, “The county has tried everything they can think of to take the plaza from us – seizing our tents, tarps and blankets, banning dozens of individual occupiers with trespass notices and a constant campaign of harassment and threats. But we refuse to be deterred. The county can steal our belongings but they cannot evict our demand for justice!”

Participants in Occupy Minneapolis are still maintaining a 24/7 presence on the plaza.

#MinneapolisMN #OccupyWallStreet #OccupyMN #OccupyMinneapolis

Minneapolis, MN – El 6 de diciembre, fue un día de acción nacional a favor de aquellas familias en peligro de perder sus casas debido a la ejecución hipotecaria. Para ello más de 100 personas se congregaron frente a la casa de Bobby Hull en la 3712 Columbus Ave. Sur, Minneapolis, y anunciaron el inicio de una ocupación de su casa para garantizar que el banco US Bank no le saque de su casa.

El señor Hull quien es un veterano de guerra, humilde y trabajador, ha vivido en esta casa en el sur de Minneapolis desde el año 1968 con su familia pero está en peligro de perder su casa, la cual pasaría a manos del banco. Aunque ha vivido allí por décadas y ha hecho sus pagos mensuales al banco, por razones de salud no ha podido seguir con los pagos exigidos por el banco. Hull ha intentado negociar con el banco para reducir el pago mensual, pero el banco no le hace caso y sigue intentando retomar a la casa. En el vecindario en el sur de Minneapolis donde viven muchas familias latinas y afroamericanas de la clase trabajadora hay muchas familias que han perdido sus casas debido a la ejecución hipotecaria durante la actual crisis económica, aumentando la pobreza y la crisis de familias sin hogar.

Ahora hay un movimiento de inquilinos y dueños de casas que dicen “basta” a los bancos y rehúsan salir de sus casas cuando el banco intenta adueñarse de sus casas. El movimiento de indignados en Minneapolis, conocido como Ocupar Minneapolis, está apoyando a Bobby Hull para que el banco US Bank no le saque de su casa. Ocupar Minneapolis es parte del movimiento Ocupar Wall Street que ocupa espacios públicos y ahora también casas para protestar a favor del 99% de la población trabajadora y en contra del 1% de los más ricos, los bancos y las grandes corporaciones que verdaderamente controlan la economía y la política del país por sus propios intereses y no los intereses de la gran mayoría.

Ocupar Minneapolis sigue con su ocupación de la plaza en el centro de Minneapolis, aunque los políticos del condado de Hennepin están intentando restringir la habilidad de los manifestantes para mantener su protesta allí. Hasta la fecha la ocupación de la plaza en el centro de la ciudad sigue viva. También el movimiento Ocupar Minneapolis sigue con la ocupación de la casa de Monique White en el norte de Minneapolis. Como la casa de Bobby Hull en el sur de Minneapolis, la casa de la señora White está también en peligro de la ejecución hipotecaria. Los manifestantes dicen que van a mantener las ocupaciones hasta que haya justicia.

#MinneapolisMN #HousingStruggles #Foreclosure #Eviction #OccupyWallStreet #OccupyMN #OccupyMinneapolis #BobbyHull

Minneapolis, MN – On Dec. 6, a national day of action for occupying foreclosed homes, more than 100 people rallied here in front of Bobby Hull’s house at 3712 Columbus Avenue. They announced the start of an occupation of his home to prevent US Bank from kicking Hull and his family out of their home.

Bobby Hull, a working class Vietnam War veteran, has lived with his family in the South Minneapolis home since 1968. But now he’s in danger of losing the home, which would be taken by the bank. Although he’s lived there and made his mortgage payments for decades, due to health reasons he wasn’t able to keep up with the high payments more recently. Hull tried to negotiate a lower monthly payment with the bank, but they wouldn’t negotiate and moved forward with the attempt to take away his house. In South Minneapolis, where many working class Latino and African American families live, there are many families who have lost their homes due to foreclosure during the current economic crisis, which just further increases poverty and homelessness.

There’s a growing movement of tenants and homeowners who are saying “Enough is enough!” to the banks and refusing to leave their homes when the bank tries to foreclose on them. The Occupy Minneapolis movement is supporting Bobby Hull to try to prevent US Bank from kicking him out of his house. Occupy Minneapolis is part of the Occupy Wall Street movement that is occupying public spaces and some homes too. These occupations are a protest in favor of the 99% of the population and against the 1% of the richest people, the banks and the large corporations that control the economy and politics of the country for their own interests instead of in the interest of the vast majority.

Occupy Minneapolis’s central occupation continues downtown at The People’s Plaza outside of Hennepin County Government Center and City Hall, although Hennepin County officials continue trying to restrict the protesters’ ability to stay there. As of this writing the occupation of the downtown plaza continues. Occupy Minneapolis members are also continuing to occupy Monique White’s house in North Minneapolis. Like Bobby Hull’s house in South Minneapolis, Monique White is also in danger losing her home to foreclosure. The protesters say they’ll maintain the occupations until they win some justice.

#MinneapolisMN #HousingStruggles #Foreclosure #Eviction #OccupyWallStreet #OccupyMN #OccupyMinneapolis #BobbyHull

At 8:30 a.m., while some occupiers still slept, Hennepin County Sheriffs seized blankets, tarps, a table and food.

Since Oct. 7, Occupy MN/Minneapolis has carried out a day-and-night protest at the Hennepin County Government Center, now dubbed People’s Plaza, demanding a redress of grievances including joblessness, homelessness, foreclosures and the buying of elections; the occupiers are demanding people over profits.

As part of that protest, occupiers have demanded the right to use tents in order to have shelter and to bring attention to the situation of the thousands without shelter in Minneapolis every night. On Nov. 30, occupiers set up 40 tents that were ripped down by Hennepin County Sheriffs in the early hours of Dec. 1.

#MinneapolisMN #OccupyWallStreet #OccupyMN #OccupyMinneapolis

The complaint argues that the new “Procedures for Public Use of the Hennepin County Government Center” issued by Hennepin County and certain unwritten procedures enforced by the county violate the demonstrators’ First Amendment rights because:

• The rules were expressly created in response to OccupyMPLS, which is a content-based limitation on speech.
• The rules put forth impermissible time, place and manner restrictions.
• The rules are unconstitutionally overbroad.
• The rules are a result of arbitrary and unconstitutional decision-making.
• The unwritten procedures were designed to suppress Plaintiff’s speech and are inconsistent with how the county has treated other groups.

The complaint, which provides details of the county’s restrictions, asks the court to declare that the “Procedures for Public Use of the Hennepin County Government Center” and certain unwritten procedures relating to chalk, electricity and use of structures are unconstitutional under the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.

“The rules put forth by Hennepin County are particularly troubling because they were created as a direct response to OccupyMPLS,” stated Justin Perl, partner at Maslon Edelman Borman & Brand. “They were not based on any previous ordinances. The Constitution does not allow the government to just make up new rules as you go along in order to target a particular group.”

“In the United States, we have celebrated protesters occupying spaces around the globe during the Arab Spring, yet we are quick to criticize the Occupy Movement for utilizing some of the same methods of expression.” stated Charles Samuelson, executive Director of the ACLU-MN.

Plaintiffs include: Occupy Minneapolis and individuals Benjamin Egerman, Benjamin Painter, Samuel Richards, and Melissa Rowan. Plaintiffs are elected delegates of OccupyMPLS to represent their interest as an unincorporated political association.

Cooperating attorneys include: Tim Griffin and Brian Thomson of Leonard, Street and Deinard and Alain Baudry, Justin Perl and Leora Maccabee Itman of Maslon Edelman Borman & Brand LLP.

#StPaulMN #InJusticeSystem #civilLiberties #ACLU #OccupyWallStreet #OccupyMN #OccupyMinneapolis #AmericanCivilLiberitesUnion

Minneapolis, MN – About 800 people blocked a major bridge here, Nov. 17 in a march demanding jobs. Police declared the protest to be an unlawful assembly and arrested 11 people who sat down in an act of civil disobedience. The 10th Avenue Bridge, which spans the Mississippi River, was closed for about an hour.

Speaking on the bridge, Pastor Paul Slack demanded Congress pass a job bill that addresses unemployment, particularly the massive unemployment that exists in the African American community.

“Minnesotans know better than almost anyone how much crumbling bridges and infrastructure can cost a community. We must fix Minnesota’s infrastructure and we must use these jobs to fix the economic inequality in our state – with 22% African-American unemployment we have one of the worst racial job gaps in the country. We are marching to demand that our leaders pass a jobs bill that will put people back to work repairing our infrastructure and providing vital public services, not kill even more jobs with devastating budget cuts,” said Tee McClenty, Executive Vice President of SEIU HealthCare Minnesota.

After the protest on the bridge, demonstrators marched to People’s Plaza, the home of Occupy Minnesota for another rally.

Kim Defranco of the Minnesota Coalition for a People’s Bailout told the crowd, “Make no mistake, the 1% wants us to go back to our foreclosed homes, unemployment lines, to our jobs and shut up! So they can continue their stealing from us. We tell the 1%, it's too late. We will not go back! We are awake and united and we will continue this fight until we get justice.”

Deb Konechne, of the Events Committee of OccupyMN urged people at the rally to join encampment at Peoples Plaza, where people have held a 24-hour presence since Oct. 7.

#MinneapolisMN #MinneaoplisMN #CapitalismAndEconomy #SEIU #OccupyMN #OccupyWallStreet #SEIUHealthcareMinnesota #MinnesotansForAFairEconomy #OccupyMinneapolis

Minneapolis, MN – About 400 people rallied at People’s Plaza and marched through downtown Minneapolis on November 14 in defense of OccupyMN. After the march they returned to the plaza and filled it with blankets and sleeping bags for a mass ‘sleep-in’ in defiance of Hennepin County’s new rules banning sleeping in the plaza. As of 10:00 p.m. the County authorities have not moved to clear the plaza.

The new rules which go into effect today were passed at the County Commissioners’ meeting last Tuesday in response to OccupyMN’s occupation of Hennepin County Government Plaza since October 7, which the protesters renamed “People’s Plaza”.

The new restrictions include the ban on sleeping in the plaza, no hanging or posting of signs on the plaza, and no porta-potties on the plaza except at the discretion of the County Administrator. The porta-potties which had been there since October 7 are no longer there. The commissioners passed the new restrictions unanimously.

According to Deb Konechne of the Minnesota People’s Bailout Coalition, who co-emceed today’s rally, “The new rules are an eviction notice, and people won’t accept them. Tonight we can see that more people are occupying the plaza to speak out against corporate greed and injustice, regardless of whatever new restrictions on freedom of assembly Sheriff Stanek may have gotten the commissioners to pass.”

The rally featured many speakers vowing to defend people’s right to continue the occupation of People’s Plaza. Union leaders that spoke included Cliff Poehler of AFSCME Council 5, Javier Morillo of SEIU Local 26, Michelle Sommers of ATU Local 1005, Donnie McMillan of Carpenters Local 322 and Kieran Knutson of the IWW. Some of the people who have been sleeping out at the plaza since the beginning spoke about the need to continue the movement. Several individuals and organizations from the community vowed to defend the occupation including Darryl Robinson of Communities United Against Police Brutality, community activist Mel Reeves, Polly Kellogg of Women Against Military Madness, Linden Gawboy of the Welfare Rights Committee, Jennie Eisert of the Anti-War Committee, among others.

#MinneapolisMN #MinneaoplisMN #OccupyWallStreet #OccupyMN #SheriffStanek #HennepinCountyCommissioners

Minneapolis, MN – About 150 gathered at People’s Plaza, the site of OccupyMN for a rally, Nov. 11, demanding “Money for human needs, not for war.” The protest, on Veteran’s Day, included speakers from Veterans for Peace, the Anti-War Committee, Women Against Military Madness, and others.

Marie Braun of the Twin Cites Peace Campaign told the crowd, “Just as the people of Afghanistan must decide their own future, so too it is we the American people, not the corporations and politicians who must decide our future.”

Angel Buechner of the Welfare Rights Committee stated “Because of the unjust wars abroad, poor people don’t have access to social programs here at home.”

Mick Kelly of the Minnesota Committee to Stop FBI Repression told the rally, “The 1% is a tiny class made up the heads of corporations, the wealthy and the bankers. They have built an empire that spans the world for their own profits and the resort to repression at home.”

Kelly urged rally participants to resist any attempts to shut down OccupyMN on Monday, Nov. 14 and to participate in the national call in day to demand charges be dropped against Chicano anti-war activist Carlos Montes.

After the anti-war rally, members and supporters of Veterans for Peace began an Overnight Bivouac at People’s Plaza.

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #AntiWarCommittee #WomenAgainstMilitaryMadness #VeteransForPeace #CommitteeToStopFBIRepression #OccupyWallStreet #OccupyMN #VeteransDay

The occupation is organized and endorsed by members of SEIU and other sectors, including churches, community organizations and activists at OccupyMN.

Monique White has lived in her home and worked in the community for the last eight years. Helping her buy her home is the last thing her father did before he died. One year ago she was laid off from her job at a group home because it was de-funded by the state due to the budget crisis. Although she has a part time job, she fell behind in her house payments to US Bank Corp. They have been unwilling to work with her. According to the greedy bank’s last financial report, they made $1.2 billion. At the same time, 393 homes in Hennepin County went into foreclosure.

Mel Reeves reminded the crowd, “During the time I have been speaking, 7 more families in the U.S. went into foreclosure.

Nick Espinosa, an organizer of the occupation, said, “We are not leaving until they negotiate.”

Nick Muhamud, from the North Side said, “These are the moments the 1% dread – look around you – when the people of all races and ages come together to fight back.”

A small contingent will be on alert at the house 24/7 and when and if the sheriff comes an emergency call will go to come to White’s home to protect it.

The event ended with a spirited march through the neighborhood.

#MinneapolisMN #Foreclosures #HousingStruggles #OccupyWallStreet #OccupyMN

Stanek, a Republican, is well known for his racist views, which include using the n-word to refer to African Americans. He has also taken steps to draw the sheriff’s department into Homeland Security’s repressive ‘anti-terrorism’ programs.

We encourage all our readers to circulate the following statement:

Anti-War Committee Stands in Solidarity with Occupy Wall Street, Minneapolis

County / Sheriff Hands Off People’s Plaza!

Starting with New York City, and spreading to more than a thousand cities in the US and across the globe, the Occupy Wall Street movement has given voice to the majority of people, who are suffering from an ever-deepening economic crisis here at home, and endless war abroad. Minnesota has joined this movement in saying it’s time to put people over profits, and several occupations have started here, including one in downtown Minneapolis.

Since October 7, thousands of Minnesotans have occupied the People’s Plaza, outside the Hennepin County Government Center, maintaining a presence day and night to demonstrate against corporate greed and political corruption.

The Anti-War Committee has been a part of Occupy Minneapolis since the beginning, because we too are a part of the 99%. We understand that corporate control of resources in other countries is one of the driving reasons that the U.S. goes to war, and we will not pay with our tax dollars or our lives to further the profits of a few while so many suffer. At the occupation, we have rallied and marched, attended teach-ins, shared meals, participated in general assembly meetings and slept out on the plaza with no shelter.

County officials have restricted the rights of Occupy Minneapolis from the very first day. Claiming that it is for the safety of the protesters, we were denied the right to set up tents, or any kind of structure, to provide shelter from the cold and rain (even though many other occupations have tents). Yesterday, Hennepin County Commissioners voted for a plan to shut down the People’s Plaza on November 14th: All protest signs must be taken down and no one will be allowed to sleep at the Plaza.

Commissioners have cited the cold weather, but if they were concerned about the health and well being of the protesters they would lift the restrictions on shelter, not evict us. We know that this is an attempt to end the occupation they wish had never begun, and we condemn all threats to evict Occupy Minneapolis!

In the name of the 99%, we support the rights of the occupiers, and demand the right to continue a round-the-clock presence at the People’s Plaza. We call on all people of conscience to take concrete actions to defend Occupy Minneapolis. This includes contacting County Commissioners to demand they allow the occupation to continue without interruption. If the county moves to evict us from the People’s Plaza on Monday, November 14th, we call on all people of conscience to mobilize to the Plaza, and stand in solidarity with the 99%.

Please call the Hennepin County Commissioners and Sheriff Stanek. Let them know this is an unacceptable denial of our constitutional right to assemble!

Sheriff Rich Stanek: (612) 348-3744 and sheriff@co.hennepin.mn.us

Mike Opat, chair: 612-348-7881

Mark Stenglein: 612-348-7882

Gail Dorfman: 612-348-7883

Peter McLaughlin: 612-348-7884

Randy Johnson: 612-348-7885

Jan Callison: 612-348-7886

Jeff Johnson: 612-348-7887

General information: 612-348-3000

#MinneapolisMN #AntiWarCommittee #OccupyWallStreet #OccupyMN #SheriffStanek