Category Archives: Headlines

Occupy Atlanta has had an encampment set up on the doorsteps of AT&T’s corporate offices here in Atlanta since February 13. We are committed to staying there until AT&T rescinds every single one of the 740 layoffs, and comes to the table to negotiate a deal that will leave every worker with the same wages and benefits that they had before. Please sign this petition and pass it along to all your networks. Together we can fight corporate greed, and save these jobs!

http://m.ipetitions.com/#petition/att-surplus-petition

 

Occupy Atlanta yard signs are now available.

If you want a sign, please email outreach@occupyatlanta.org.

We hope to have one or more in every neighborhood in the city. Tell your friends! If you have the means to give a donation, that will be helpful for keeping the sign making factory up and running.

Corporations are not people
Stand with us; reclaim democracy

We are the 99%
Occupy Atlanta.org

They are two sided with two colors (green and black)

In a state which lays credible claim to being the cradle of the Civil Rights movement, State Senators Don Balfour, Ross Tolleson, Bill Hamrick, and Bill Cowsert have just demonstrated palpable disrespect for Georgia’s rich history of protest and activism. They are the sponsors of Senate Bill 469 which, had it been law in 1960, would have made Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Rev. Dr. Joseph Lowery, John Lewis, Joe Beasley, Minnie Ruffin, and many other luminaries of the Civil Rights movement into felons.

Along with provisions intended to stealthily de-fund and weaken unions, the law as proposed would make picketing illegal “at or near any place where a labor dispute exists in such number or manner as to obstruct or interfere with or constitute a threat to obstruct or interfere with the entrance to or egress from any place of employment or the free and uninterrupted use of public roads, streets, highways, railroads, airports, or other ways of travel, transportation, or conveyance.” That is, you don’t have to actually block the entrances or sidewalks; you merely have to seem like you might. The “offense” of picketing…protected under the First Amendment and enshrined in our history as far back as the public outcry against the Tea Act which led to the Boston Tea Party protest and the American Revolution…would be punished by a $1000 fine per day per person, and a $10,000 fine per day for any organization participating.

Even more egregiously, SB 469 would make “conspiracy to commit criminal trespass” into a felony. Criminal trespass is a misdemeanor; it is also the crime with which sit-down protesters at a place of business are typically charged. In other words, SB 469 seeks to turn peaceful demonstrations into felonies.

If that law had been on the books during the Civil Rights era, then the people who organized and participated this sit-down protest of the downtown Atlanta McCrory’s and F.W. Woolworth in November 1960, this protest of Leb’s Restaurant and S&W Cafeteria in May 1963, this protest of Toddle House Restaurant in December 1963 at which John Lewis was arrested, would all have been in danger of being charged with felonies merely for organizing a peaceful protest. At the beginning of an interview from October 1960, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. speaks of the usefulness of sit-down protests in bringing about the end of segregation. (All clips from the Civil Rights Digital Library, University of Georgia).

The time-honored approach of peaceful sit-down protest has been used by Occupy Atlanta during the raid on our park encampment in October, at Chase Bank on February 10, and most recently at AT$T on February 13 along with members of Georgia Communication Workers of America and Jobs With Justice. A week and a half after the AT$T action, SB 469 was introduced by four corporate lap-dogs in the state legislature. This is blatantly targeted legislation, in violation of all of our traditions of democracy, free speech, equality before the law, organized labor, and individual rights. SB 469 is corporate rule and political corruption in action.

Join us on Wednesday, February 29 at the Georgia State Capitol Building at 9:30 am to let your voice be heard. If you can’t afford your own state senator like AT$T, bring a sign.

Facilitator Training for the Restorative Circles model of conflict mediation this March! Please fill out the doodle poll to say which evenings work for you – please commit to four sessions, deadline for answers Monday (2/27/12), 11:59PM, please! Let’s learn how we can help heal the Movement and the world!

#table" title="Restorative Circles Facilitation Training Dates">

“A Restorative Circle is a community process for supporting those in conflict. It brings together the three parties to a conflict – those who have acted, those directly impacted and the wider community – within an intentional systemic context, to dialogue as equals.

Participants invite each other and attend voluntarily. The dialogue process used is shared openly with all participants, and guided by a community member. The process ends when actions have been found that bring mutual benefit.

Restorative Circles are facilitated in 3 stages designed to identity the key factors in the conflict, reach agreements on next steps, and evaluate the results. As a circle form, they invite shared power, mutual understanding, self-responsibility and effective action.”

This training is completely free to everyone! But to help pay for this training, which will likely be a minimum of $1,300, please donate to this WePay account. Someone has already agreed to pay for the training but they would love help paying for it.

For more information, e-mail Conflict Mediation at mediation@list.occupyatlanta.org

Last week, a new bill was introduced in the Georgia Senate titled SB 469. This bill is an attempt to bankrupt unions in our state, and make it even more difficult for workers to organize and gain collective bargaining rights. The bill also intends to impose strict penalties and fines on those who are willing to take on the 1% and their corporate greed. Non-violent direct action has been a force for change throughout our history, from the women’s suffrage movement, to the civil rights movement and beyond. This new bill attempts to strip that power away from the people, criminalizing dissent.

Not coincidentally, this bill comes on the heels of effective actions Occupy Atlanta recently organized, such as a peaceful sit-in at Chase Bank to demand that they keep a family in their home of 57 years, or the sit-in and encampment set up at AT&T’s headquarters here in Atlanta to try to save 740 jobs. It seems as if the heads of these corporations find it easier to buy off our legislators and change our laws, rather than fix these problems that can help save our communities from further despair.

Please help us put an end to SB 469. Join us on February 29 at the Georgia State Capitol building at 9:30 AM to protest this bill and retain our right to do so.

You can also contact the sponsors of this new bill at the information below.

Bill Hamrick (R)

Senator, District 30

301 Bradley Street
Carrollton, Georgia 30117
Bill.Hamrick@senate.ga.gov

 

Don Balfour, (R)

 

2312 Waterscape Trail
Snellville, GA 30078
Phone: (770) 729-5764

 

don.balfour@senate.ga.gov

 

Bill Cowsert (R)

 

Senator, District 46

 

 

P.O. Box 512

 

Athens, GA 30603

 

Phone: (706) 543-7700

 

bill.cowsert@senate.ga.gov

 

　

 

Ross Tolleson (R)

 

Senator, District 20

 

P.O. Box 1356

 

Perry, GA 31069

 

Phone: (478) 998-1206 (O)

 

(478) 987-0325 (H)

 

ross.tolleson@senate.ga.gov

Today AT&T workers have been summoned to
a meeting at AT&T’s Atlanta headquarters, located at 675 West Peachtree St.
It is there, in this meeting, where they will be given notice of their official
layoff date. Being told you are being laid off is almost always devastating, but
in these economic times it can be downright terrifying. With unemployment,
foreclosures, and homelessness at record rates, being jobless in this city is no
easy feat. To add insult to injury, AT&T had record profits last year,
pulling in over $127 million in revenue, and compensated their CEO, Randall
Stephenson, over $27 million.

Last week, Occupy Atlanta set up an encampment in
front of the building at 675 West Peachtree St to demand AT&T put a stop to
these layoffs. We are committed to staying put until all the layoffs are
rescinded, and/or all 740 workers will have wage/benefit protection if they are
moved to new positions. AT&T has claimed that these workers will be given
new job offers, but according to many of the workers, this is news to them.
Those who are aware of the new offers, are being asked to take positions with
considerably less pay and benefits.

This is exactly how wealth consolidation
works. What’s happening at AT&T is symbolic of what has been happening all
over the country for decades. The 1% wants to lower the standard of living for
the average American worker, all so that they can pocket some extra cash. We can
no longer allow them to squeeze every penny they can out of the 99%. The 99%
creates the wealth; it is made on our backs. It’s time these big wigs stop
getting handouts they don’t need while everyone else suffers.

 

Please take some time today to send AT&T a
message to

STOP ALL THE LAYOFFS!

 

Email CEO Randall Stephenson at

rs2982@att.com

or

call Michael Matthews, VP of Labor Relations
at

(205) 977-0722

Day 5: Why We Occupy AT&T

Grandmothers for peace came out to 675 West Peachtree Street today to serve food to the 20+ occupiers holding down the fort at the AT&T building.  The delectible homemade dishes from the grandmothers included teriyaki glazed baked chicken legs, vegetarian lasagna, bread, and greens. There was also a delicious sweet tea to wash it all down. The general response from the occupiers was, ‘MMMmMMMmmmMMMmmmMMMM!!!! Good!!!’.

Once the grandmothers had fed the mass at AT&T, they took the remaining food to the home occupation at 404 Glen Iris.  The grandmothers stayed and talked there for a while, the occupiers enjoyed their company and conversation, and then the ladies went about their days.

They brought tasty food, huge smiles, and some more positive energy to an already beautiful day.

Thank you grandmothers.

Love,

Occupy Atlanta

The occupiers at AT&T are protesting 740 layoffs of land line workers by AT&T in the southeast. Many of these union workers are being offered to be rehired at half the pay and no benefits; meanwhile AT&T remains the worse telecommunications company in customer service across the board.  They also had record profits and record CEO pay last year.  Make the right call AT&T, Rescind the Layoffs!

Minnie Ruffin, Little Copper, Dot Shaw, and Gloria Tatum

 

 

Minnie, Gloria, and Dot