KathyPaterno_Megaphone_Web

December 5, 2011 - Portrait of Occupy Bend protestor Kathy Paterno speaking before a crowd gathered at Brandis Square. -

 

Clyde Keller photo, www.clydekeller.com

 

Ray Duray Article--

 

Police Arrest 14 At 'Occupy Walden' Events

 

David Nogueras | December 6, 2011 | Bend, OR

[AUDIO available at OPB website.]

 

Police arrested a total of 14 protesters in Bend and Medford Monday night after they refused to leave the offices of Representative Greg Walden.

 

The "Occupy Walden" rallies drew inspiration from the Occupy Wall Street Movement.

 

In Bend and Medford, protesters set up shop in Walden’s offices for the better part of the day, refusing to leave until their demands were met. Protesters also gathered in La Grande and Hood River where they shouted slogans and carried signs saying "we are the 99 percent."

 

Chris Lawler is a student at Central Oregon Community College. He says the group wants Walden to hold 5 town halls in 5 months, including one during the Christmas recess. He says announcements for previous town halls were given with too little notice.

 

"He never gives people who disagree with some of these things a chance to speak. And if you don’t listen to people who do disagree with us, then you’re not going to understand why it’s not working for a lot of people," he said.

 

A spokesman for Walden says the congressman held 14 town hall meetings in the district this year. The last one was held this past August in La Pine.

 

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BEND, Ore. -- Rep. Greg Walden, R-Ore., met with a group of about two dozen Occupy protesters at his office in the nation’s capital Tuesday, the day after 14 demonstrators were arrested at his Bend and Medford offices for refusing to leave as they demanded a series of town halls in the 2nd Congressional District.

 

Here's a release from Walden's office on what transpired.

 

The group arrived at his office without an appointment, but Walden rearranged his schedule to meet with the protesters. Some identified themselves as residents of the Second District, while others noted they were from areas like Portland and Vancouver.

 

Following the cordial and impromptu 15-minute meeting between Walden and the Occupy group, the congressman continued with his schedule of appointments and the group left his congressional office.

 

The Occupy group is participating in a larger, national week-long “Take Back the Capitol” retreat that, according to the SEIU’s website, is “organized by community, labor, Occupy, and other groups…[and] will feature three full days of spirited actions, speak-outs, protests, and entertainment.” The itinerary includes a plan to “occupy” congressional offices Tuesday until closure.

 

Walden discussed with the protesters strategies to boost private sector job creation, including Rep. Walden’s efforts to add about 100,000 telecommunications jobs through his Jumpstarting Opportunity through Broadband Spectrum (JOBS) Act, and his bipartisan work with Reps. Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) and Kurt Schrader (D-Ore.) to develop a forest health and jobs plan that would put Oregonians back to work in the woods.

 

Several members of the group asked for continued unemployment insurance. Walden said he had just come from a meeting with Speaker John Boehner, where members were working toward a solution to extend and reform unemployment insurance by the end of the year.

 

The Medford Mail Tribune reported (bit.ly/rWpqqH) that six out of eight people who took over the conference room at Walden's Medford office were arrested shortly after the building closed at 6 p.m. Monday.

 

Around the same time, Bend police moved in and arrested by citation eight protesters who refused to leave voluntarily, charging them with second-degree criminal trespass.

 

The "Occupy Congressional District 2" movement kicked off with marches and rallies in Bend, Hood River, La Grande and Medford. Protesters said they were pressing their demand that Walden hold at least five town halls by next April.

 

The Second Congressional District is made up of 20 counties, mostly east of the Cascades, and covers more than two-thirds of the state.

 

Walden's aide said the congressman makes frequent speeches and visits to events around the district during trips back home, but the protesters said they are upset that they have not been in a town hall format, where everyone is invited to ask questions.

 

They said they've tried to get in touch with him for months -- and have been denied. Monday, protestors got a response from the congressman's aide who said Walden will have town halls in Rufus and Fossil.

 

The Bend group says that doesn't meet their demands.

 

"The response from the people here gathered is that that's not accessible," said Kathleen Paterno, the Bend organizer. "Accessibility is one part of our demand, that he needs to be able to be in places where enough people who are experiencing problems can come to the town halls. So we are asking that he schedule something in a population center in within the district."

 

Lt. Paul Kansky said about a dozen people had showed up at Walden's office around 11:30 a.m. and were allowed to stay and peacefully protest. He said they had sought to meet with Walden and would not leave until they did, and were told he would not be available to do so.

 

The office building usually closes around 5 p.m., but the protesters were allowed to stay an hour later, when they were warned they could be subject to arrest if they did not leave on their own.

 

When officers showed up and spoke to the protesters, they agreed to walk out on their own, under escort, and didn't have to be forcibly removed, Kansky said.

 

Shortly before 7 p.m., four teams of officers entered the Jamison Building at 1051 NW Bond St., where Walden's office is Suite 400, and escorted eight protesters out of the office building and briefly onto a police bus for processing and citing on second-degree criminal trespass charges, then released pending a later court date.

 

Kansky said all were cooperative, and a ninth person had left voluntarily when advised a final time they would be arrested if they didn't gather their belongings and leave.

 

The eight arrested protesters were listed by Kansky as Foster Fell, 63, of Bend; Ann Havill, 61, of Bend; Barbara Fontaine, 58, of Powell Butte; Emilie Marlinghaus, 64, of Bend; Christopher Lawler, 22, of Bend; Rebecca Ince, 27, of Redmond; Susan Parks, 59, of Bend, and Frances Lamb, 73, of Bend.

 

"This is what democracy looks like!" a crowd gathered outside chanted, cheering the protesters as they came out of the building with police.

 

"Whose streets? Our streets!" was another chant among the protesters outside Walden's office, holding the now-familiar "99 percent" protest signs.

 

Kansky said, "We want a peaceful outcome," adding that a large number of officers were called in to make sure that would happen, for the safety of all involved. He said they were aware of incidents in other recent Occupy protests around the country and wanted to take a safe, cautious approach.

 

"We don't want to provoke a violent response," he said, "but we do want enough officers to ensure the safety of all concerned."

 

"We try to respect their freedom of speech, right to protest," Kansky said, until it's determined a crime has been committed. "We don't want to violate anyone's constitutional rights."

 

Betsy Lamb said after leaving the office, "And what we want to do, hopefully, today is to have started a movement that will catch on in other congressional districts throughout the country, where people will be occupying their congressmen's offices and saying, 'We want to be heard.'"

 

Walden aide Andrew Whelan said the the congressman makes it a top priority to meet with his constituents and will have had 14 town halls throughout his 20-county district this year, including in Crook and Deschutes. He also said Walden has visited Deschutes County 12 times this year alone, including several trips to Bend.

 

But the protesters say they want more, and will continue to speak out like this until they're satisfied.

 

The protesters have also said Walden's office has been responsive to their requests. Whelan agreed, saying interactions with occupiers have been peaceful.

 

Paterno said she was part of another Walden office occupation back in March 2007, when six women were cited for trespassing -- and one was accused of urinating into a water bottle, rather than leave a conference room and not be allowed back in. In fact, Paterno said she was the one who did so during that earlier anti-war protest.

 

 

- KTVZ News Article, www.ktvz.com/news/29928771/detail.html

 

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