Sat, 28 Feb 98
From: force.ten@lol.shareworld.com
Fellow Workers and Friends:
Here is a report back of the demonstration that took place in support of the picketers of the cargo ship Neptune Jade on Thursday, February 27th, 1998 in Oakland, CA.
500 Demonstrators showed up bright and early (8 AM) to the Pacific Maratime Association's (PMA) Oakland Office in the city center of downtown Oakland. Not bad for a working day morning. Union members and officials from ILWU locals up and down the west coast as well as IWW, HERE, SEIU, IBT, OCAW, and scores of others were on hand as well as the Labor Party, various political organizations, and community supporters were present. We even set up a temporary micro-power radio transmitter to broadcast the demonstration to the surrounding community.
Speakers included everyone from striking Liverpool Dockers, Spanish Dockworkers, and various ILWU members to Jerry Brown, Alexander Cockburn, and Ignacio De La Fuente (Oakland City Councilman). Speakers and demonstrators urged the PMA to drop its lawsuit against the picketers and to respect the rights of free speech, free assembly, and the right of workers to picket. Demonstrators wore stickers proclaiming, "I picketed the Neptune Jade" and signed letters asking Miniace, head of the PMA to sue them as well. Essentially if Miniace and the PMA want a witch-hunt, they're gonna have to hunt a great many witches.
After the demonstration concluded, we marched over to the courthouse where the hearing was scheduled to take place, but the PMA managed to consolidate the scheduled hearing with another that will take place next Tuesday (March 3rd). Instead, we had more speeches, and the radical street-theater / puupet show troupe, Art & Revolution held a skit re-enacting the now world-famous pickets, including a large mock-up of the Neptune Jade.
Then we marched to Laney College to protest the Laney College & Peralta Community College district's crack down on the Laney College Labor Studies Club for "allowing" two members of that group to participate in the picket and hold a "dangerous and threatening banner" that most likely influenced the PMA's lawyer's decision to Sue that group as well. President Ernie Crutchfield, who had once participated in student demonstrations himself, had called on a armada of Oakland Sheriffs to arrest us, but when he was shown that he had signed a permit allowing our demonstration on the campus that day, *himself*, he suddenly retreated to his office, and the police parted like the red sea.
We then soapboxed for awhile on campus, and spread the word to the Laney College student body.
A KTVU Channel 2 (the Oakland Fox network affiliate station) reporter was on hand to witness the demonstration, but the 10 O'clock news omitted that story, prefering to talk about San Francisco 49er, Jerry Rice's adventures in a cat-house on the peninsula. A victimless crime turned into tabloid journalism. Channel 2 justified their decision on the grounds that it was "a busy news day." Really.
I think big thank yous and huzzahs are in order to all who worked so hard to make this demonstration happen and to all of you who have supported us thus far. We're keeping up the fight, and we hope that those of you who can make it will join us next Tuesday Morning (March 3) at 10 AM at the "post-office" court at 12th and Alice in Oakland. We need to pack the courtroom.
I hope we can prove once and for all that when free speech and freedom of assembly go head to head with international capital, that free speech and freedom of assembly should prevail. This will be a very interseting text case to show whether or not the First Amendment will be squashed by State-Capitalism and multinational corporations.
In Solidarity, FW Steve x344543 Berkeley IWW Branch Secretary Phone (510) 845-0540
Viva Judi Bari *** http://www.iww.org/iu120/local/ *** Organize a new IWW branch in your community *** http://www.iww.org/iu120/Organize-1.html *** Not everyone has access to the internet, but many have access to the airwaves Start your own micropower radio station in your community *** http://www.freeradio.org *** or call (510) 464-3041
