Shamelessly, Mayor McGinn used the OccupySeattle Movement camped at Westlake Center he has done everything he can to undermine to enhance his stature as a people's mayor. He exhorted the protesters whose tents he ordered removed to "fight to get justice". In a Machiavellian flourish after arresting dozens of protesters, the duplicitous mayor told the crowd that they had his support.
McGinn has had a somewhat tense relationship with the protesters since Occupy Seattle began just over a week ago. The Mayor had to take their tents away, he’s had to arrest some of them, and he’s had to tell them to leave at night. Basically, he’s had to establish some order in Westlake Park. It would have been hard for him to come out in full support of the protesters until he came to truce with them about tactics; otherwise, he would have been criticized for letting it all get out of hand. Well, now that order is established and he’s now he’s fully on board.
Earlier today, the Mayor gave the media a preview of what he was going to say tonight. You could just feel the “protester” in him coming out.
“Of course there’s anger out there,” he said. “And, of course, we need to do something different. And that’s going to mean a whole lot of elected officials at every level of government are going to have to start re-examining some assumptions about how we do business and who we are looking out for.”
No doubt he's hoping that we will have forgotten this:
No movement can be credible nor long viable with the endorsement of weasels like McGinn, yet he was apparently well received. [I was unfortunately unable to attend.] What a pity! The Occupiers need to decide whether they are for reform or revolution. The former is a chimera, and the latter has no room for politicians, particularly of McGinn's ilk.
Below are the rules imposed upon the occupiers by their great patron in City Hall.
City of Seattle Information
Sat, 10/08/2011 - 15:37
On the City of Seattle's website they have posted their rules for our occupation of Westlake and City Hall, as of 10/08 it is as follows:
The City of Seattle supports the free speech rights of individuals and groups. We are also committed to protecting the public and providing for other legitimate uses of city property.
Accordingly:
WESTLAKE PARK:
Use of the Park shall comply with all City, County, State and Federal laws and rules.
Westlake Park is to remain open to the public and no exclusive use is allowed.
Persons may not block off public access to any portion of the park. All park pathways, walkways, stairwells and access ways must remain open all times.
Similarly, persons may not block public access to any private property adjacent to the park.
It is illegal to camp in public parks in the City of Seattle. The mayor has made City Hall Plaza available for sleeping in tents between the hours of 8:00 pm and 7:00 am.
One Informational and/or First Aid Canopy will be allowed, subject to reasonable restrictions on size and location. All equipment should be set up in the south end of the park.
No other tents or structures are allowed.
Climbing in or hanging materials from trees within the park is not permitted.
Seattle Parks and Recreation staff will need access to the park for general maintenance and cleaning from approximately 7:00 pm to 10:00 am daily.
Other permitted events are scheduled to occur in the north end of the park. Occupy Seattle should not interfere with these events, and should remain south of the tree line when other events are ongoing.
Dispose of all trash properly. Follow all City recycling rules.
Alcoholic beverages may not be kept or consumed in the park.
Amplified sound is permitted for speeches and announcements between 9:00 am and 10:00 pm only. Comply with relevant City noise rules, at http://clerk.ci.seattle.wa.us/~public/toc/25-08.htm
CITY HALL PLAZA:
Use of City Hall Plaza will comply with all City, County, State and Federal laws and rules.
The City is making City Hall Plaza available for those demonstrators who wish to stay overnight, with reasonable restrictions on the use of tents to allow free public use of the plaza during the day.
Two portable toilets will be available on the Plaza for use between 8 p.m. and 7 a.m.
Tents may be set up on the Lower Plaza only on the Fourth Avenue side of City Hall, from 8 p.m. to 7 a.m.
Demonstrators will remove all structures including tents, tables, furniture, personal articles, etc., and are responsible for returning the area to its original condition by 7 a.m. each day.
Demonstrations in other areas are prohibited.
No amplification may be used.
The interior of City Hall is closed to the public from 6 p.m. to 7 a.m., except for scheduled events.
Fires (including open fires, stoves, fireplaces or any other heating devices) are prohibited.
Demonstrators will not interfere with the operation of the Homeless Shelter located in the City Hall Red Room, nor will they interfere with anybody entering or leaving the building.
IMPORTANT CONTACT INFORMATION:
Seattle Parks Department: (206) 982-4583
Seattle Police Department: 911 (if emergency) or (206) 625-5011 (non-emergency)
Westlake is always cold and wet this time of year, often quite windy too. These regs make longterm residency at WC a virtual impossibility.
The Night Umbrellas Became Illegal in Seattle
The Stranger’s Dominic Holden reported umbrellas that are not being held by a standing individuals are considered structures, and therefor are illegal at the Occupy Seattle protest in Westlake Park. That’s right. Umbrellas are illegal in Seattle:Police are aggressively clearing people out of the park. Cops are telling people they can’t stand underneath the awnings, can’t wrap themselves in a tarp, and can’t even sit down with an umbrella. “You can’t have an umbrella open unless you’re standing and holding it,” a cop reportedly just told a few people who were sitting down next to their umbrellas. Paul Contant, intrepid reporter, just called to confirm that person’s account. And he added, “The cops are lined up under the awnings—I tried to get under an awning to type and and they told me I cannot be under the awning at all.” Police are also telling people they can’t lay under a tarp.
Occupy Seattle’s Facebook page explains how umbrellas legally become “structures”:
There is a lot of confusion about what is going on at Westlake right now as some structures have been taken down by the police. From the Occupy Seattle Police Spokeswoman:
In Westlake Park no sleeping structures are allowed (our information/food/medical tent is!) and sleeping under the awnings is not allowed. You cannot have tarps tied down to anything, but you can have them covering yourself. You can have umbrellas but someone must be holding them at all times, if left unattended they are considered to be structures. Blankets and sleeping bags are okay! We are not being kicked out of the park at this time.
http://blog.seattlepi.com/stepforward/2011/10/08/the-night-umbrellas-became-illegal-in-seattle/
Here's McGinn's specious defense:
Yesterday the Mayor received criticism after reports that umbrellas could be illegal if used as shelter at Occupy Seattle. Mayor McGinn explained his position in a statement today:
Reports have recently centered on honking, and umbrellas. SPD did ticket drivers who were honking after 10 pm. People live next to Westlake Park and SPD was enforcing the noise ordinance. In response, I understand protestors themselves starting holding up signs saying “Do not honk!” as a way of respecting the rights of nearby residents.
As for umbrellas, police were concerned that protest participants were using umbrellas and tarps to create makeshift tents to evade the no-camping rule. But no one has been ticketed or prohibited from using an umbrella at Westlake. They remain (and hopefully always will remain) legal in Seattle.
The city does feel strongly about camping at Westlake. Some have argued that the justness of the cause means we should look the other way and ignore the city’s no-camping rules at Westlake. But when it comes to free speech, government does not get to do that. We are not allowed to favor one type of speech over another. That is anathema to the Constitution. If we permit camping at Westlake for one group, no matter how worthy the cause, we will be obligated to permit camping at Westlake for any group that wishes to do so as a form of speech. That is simply not an appropriate use for Westlake. This is why we have made City Hall, a civic building that is a locus of political speech, available for camping. Anyone who wants to stay warm and dry can do so at City Hall plaza.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with Seattle, City Hall Plaza is a fraction the size of Westlake Center, and farther removed from the heart of the city. CHP is entirely unsuitable as McGinn well knows.
http://blog.seattlepi.com/stepforward/2011/10/09/mayor-mcginn-responds-to-complaints-about-citys-response-to-occupy-seattle/
Nevertheless, despite the best efforts of capital's office-holding factota, the protests continue at Westlake Center, Disappointingly small, but ardent all the same.
Who knows, maybe this time...
