Author Archives: Robert F.

 General Assembly Minutes 10/23/11

 

 

 

Call to Order 10 min

Ice breaker

Announcements 15min

• Reverend Richard Cobble from Concerned Black Clergy

• Show of support for the movement
• Concerned Black Clergy stand in Solidarity with Occupy Atlanta

• Legal is doing a legal observer training tomorrow at 8 pm

•  We need more legal observers

• Know your rights Training time TBA

• Working group for warmth and dryness meeting tomorrow at noon at the park, looking for people with expertise on keeping warm and dry in the winter

• Media committee is working on asking for heating goods

• Occupiers from Durham give us mad props and want a copy of our GA Pledge
• GA Peace and Justice Coalition is having its monthly end this war rally to Occupy Atlanta this wednesday, they will have signs to bring the troops home, 5pm-6pm
• 89.3 is doing special programing on wednesday concerning the crisis of homelssness in ATL so the programing  will be interviewing homeless people, advocates, and organizers, we are welcome to tune into WRFG.org to listen
• Haloween working group has been formed, meet Colin at 8:30 at the stage.
• Sunday oct 30th GLAR will come to occupy atlanta and will be doing teach ins throughout the day.
• AFSC has been letting us use their building. we will be moving everything to the park to end the division.Talk to Lindsey to get events up on the website
• Newly formed assembly at 2pm to try and accomplish stuff Task Assembly.

committee report backs 15 min

• Logistics reports contacted port a potties companies with quotes to get them to the park at some time tomorrow.
• Action reports tomorrow at 11 am press conference, Afrika Bambaataa, Killer Mike and Stafford family will report then march the 11th circuit court of appeals
•  Opposition to Koch brothers, capitulation and levitation Spread the Word! 5 pm
•  Making posters for the events following the GA meeting
•  Elija will flyer tomorrow
• Thursday Pine’s water will be shut off and a march will be scheduled in solidarity need lots of people
• action committee meeting at 5 pm
• Tuesday on WRFG will be doing an announcement about the Koch brothers at 4 pm
• Finance announces they will release financial status multiple times a week and will refine allocation of funds. Process meeting at 5 on even days of the month
• Medics report Mental health we must all make a concerted effort to take care of ourselves and our people mentally, we cannot give into the fear or feed it, Basic hygiene and public health is in jeopardy because the Mayor took away the porta potties. Willfully creating a public health threat and nuisance. he need to correct it,
• Tactical unity report back
• Outreach and welcome reports we are ramping up outreach Welcome is also starting an orientation to teach them about the park before they get integrated into the community tues  and thurs at 6. they want more people at the front table.
• Media reports that they have been discussing we need more people to talk to the press.  Demands and process experience is also needed.
• Demands reports that GA cannot block decisions by demands committee when is the next meeting? no one knows….maybe tomorrow night after GA.
• Anti racist committee reports they meet on Wednesdays at 7 but that will most likley be revised. they work to get more involvement from people in color and in leadership positions.

Committee related proposals  10 min

• Proposed that Jack and Hector be Bottom Liners to TU because of strong personalities and these guys know how to run it.

•  Point of process we are not allowed to make decisions for committee in GA
• TU is in the process of eliminating some of the difficult members
• There was a plan that went out and was given to individuals for ideas to get unity bw TU and other committees and this has not been set up.
• Lots of points of process about dissolving the committee rather than making decisions via the GA.
• Proposal refomulated to dissolve TU and reformulate it with Jack and Hector as bottom liners
• Pof P
• Proposal to disovle TU and then reform it
• Blocked
• Direct response that the TU has formed leaders which is not acceptable
• There is a unilateral power structure with a confrontational power structure.
• Counter proposal: We create a new committee called conflict resolution with primary responsibility for resolving all conflict in the park
•  Call it Peace keepers
• Point of process Occupy Atlanta has NO LEADERS
• clarifying questions:

• separate committee for conflict resolution as security team
• the primary purpose of something called security is to maintain order. IDk if all of us believe in order. TU has a similar purpose. the new committee’s primary focus is resolving conflict and maintaining peace
• We still want to dissolve TU and call it Peace keepers?
• The first proposal was dropped in favor of the second one
• Concerns
• TU should be maintained and Peacekeeping should be separate
• TU serves a good purpose of keeping property safe
•  Direct response: when TU was first made nothing in the proposal to be a security or do preemptive security measures to stop stealing. While necessary it has gone to far.
• If we have separate units for the same job then the job will be confused and will be done differently. The point of TU was to keep peace and keep conflict from happening and this can be done by one committee of peace keepers.
• Hector has been chill and thats what we need controlling this family and he is good at what he does. He does a great job but has been pushed out.
• Proposal re read.
• Those part of TU have a personal conflict with this vote should not be able to block it.

• If moderator yells at you its because you’re not listening to her and if you listen she will become quiet
• We have no precedent for handling the dissolution of a committee given that those in the committee will certainly block it.  Tabled to Process in order to figure something out/ask New York how they do it.

• We have 3000 dollars in the we pay account. there must be several ways to access the account, sent a paper check, do an email, withdraw money a bank account, order a we pay prepay visa card. We must remain fully transparent. Preliminary guidelines: anyone can make a proposal to GA but the proposal must say how much money and how it will be spent, if and when the GA has consensus then the finance committee or whoever elected must have access to the account, would be tasked with withdrawing the funds with one of the previous methods. We propose that Letron, tech and logistics one from each would all have access to the we pay account. what is spent will be posted on the blog. The person who makes the proposal would not be able to draw form the account. All receipts should be kept to maintain transparency.
• Direct response: what to do in emergency? we may need money more quickly then how GA can respond.
• redirect to finance committee.
• There is a way to allocate funds through a request form.  We don’t have money for everything. Everything is limited.
•  Perhaps we can have money set aside for emergency
• revised proposal
•  Currently John has access to the we pay account and he wants to pass it off, he wants something more thorough and transparent first.  He wants to have a clear proposal before he passes off the log in information. he wants 3 people. He wants everything else to be tabled because he leaves Wednesday.
• we need 3 people with access to carry out the task of administering funds.
• One of those people should be from legal and another from finance.
• Friendly amendment that the person be an established occupier to maintain stability.  Active for a good amount of time.
• This decision must be made tonight. Because John is leaving.
• Proposal to choose two people has been refereed to committee then brought back to GA.
• Concern that if things are not made transparent before GA then things will be corrupt.
• Proposed that legal, finance and tech committees will come back with one candidate from  each to assume logins access to the Occupy Atlanta WePay account to be elected by consensus at the GA.
• CONSENSUS THANK YOU PEOPLE!

Occupy Atlanta General Assembly Minutes 11/8/2011

I. CALL TO ORDER

Positions: Meredith – Facilitator, Hayley – Moderator, Megan – Stack, Tripp -Minutes

II. ANNOUNCEMENTS

David: By next Wednesday, we will have a bike shop

Misty: Need numbers for Demands meeting. I am also working on making a movie for OccupyAtlanta and want to have all voices included

Tyler: Beltiline discusssion at 5pm in the park tomorrow.

III. COMMITTEE REPORTBACKS

LOGISTICS, Will: Sent food to Occupy Snellville group.Sorting of laundry, will be distributed at GA tomorrow. Will Octavious, Siri, and Ryan and the new bottomliners.

IV. OTHER BUSINESS

Colin: Planning another bail/legal fundraiser at 7 stages this Friday. Also looking for new venues to help out.

Alexander: Want feedback on the best way to form strategies for new Occupations. Information – Radical Caucus has been considering strategies. Also check Facebook

Rob: Livestream class tomorrow at 6 PM.

Robert: March on banks 4pm on 11/11/11

Russell: Going to Vets’ Day Parade, looking for others to help represent Occupy Atlanta.

Shelby: Outreach meeting Thursday 5:30 pm in the park.

Avery: Phone number for the Occupation! 404 720 6060. Committees can get numbers and extensions too. Talk to IT about it.