Occupy New Orleans protesters settle in

17th October 2011   ·   0 Comments

By Matt Davis
thelensnola.org

A week after 400 people marched through New Orleans in solidarity with Occupy Wall Street protesters in New York City, about 50 people continue to occupy Duncan Plaza, opposite City Hall.

The group, which has no leaders and strives for consensus in its decisions, voiced a variety of stan­ces during last week’s march, some local, some national. For instance, some want to reform the local criminal justice system, including the ouster of Police Superintendent Ronal Serpas; others aligned themselves with the New York ef­fort, calling for prosecution of those responsible for the financial collapse in 2008.

Protestors meet as a general assembly twice a day to hone their message, which has not narrowed significantly in the past week.

The protest camp has a library, its own composting toilet, and a kitchen and food pantry capable of feeding those among its ranks for several days. They have Internet access, plenty of electrical outlets, and now 17 workgroups to focus on every aspect of the movement, from digital media to sanitation, and security, to the arts.

Nicola Krebill, 31, city farms coordinator for the New Orleans Food and Farm Network, has been using his spare time to coordinate the occupation’s meal service every night. Tired from the effort, but happy about the way things have gone, he said consensus can be exhausting, but that he was happy to be supporting the movement.

Another protester, 29-year-old jazz singer Jo Robin, who insisted she was speaking only for herself, said the entertainment committee is working with a brass band for the second line.

“The celebration of death and rebirth in this city is really important to address,” Robin said. “And the second line is really appropriate for our movement because it’s about the death of our economy and of integrity, but also the rebirth of awareness. And I really think that this is a movement of awareness.”

Mayor Mitch Landrieu greeted the protesters cordially the day after they set up last week, and according to one protester, Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Jerry Sneed encouraged the group to call the New Orleans Police Depart­ment if there is any trouble in the park.

Protesters spoke positively of their interactions with police, who have made no arrests, spokeswoman Remi Braden confirmed.

Robin said she thought the administration and police department were adopting a shrewd policy in their interactions with the occupation so far.

“I don’t think the NOPD can afford to make any missteps in this case because of Danziger, but also in Boston and New York, the thing that has really caught attention is the negative interactions between police and protesters,” Robin said. “And I don’t think the NOPD can afford to get into any more of that.”

Nevertheless the group is still formulating policies about its interaction with the police and media, Robin said. Those discussions take place at the general assembly, which Robin said don’t always go smoothly.

“We’ve got some pretty contentious issues to discuss,” she said.

This article was originally published in the October 17, 2011 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper