On October 27th, the City of Fresno and Caltrans did what they said they were going to do — they attacked the homeless encampment on Santa Fe street in downtown Fresno. But, they did not destroy the encampment without being confronted with significant resistance by community members who protested the eviction. Evictions at all of the other encampments — The Hill, G street, Santa Clara street, F street, and at San Benito/H street — are scheduled for Tuesday, November 1st.

Early on October 25th, expecting a police raid at Occupy Oakland in Oscar Grant Plaza, occupiers began to erect barricades along the perimeter and access ways to the plaza. At 4:30am, over 500 police surrounded the plaza. Police fired projectiles and tear gas shells and hand-lobbed at least one flash-bang grenade over the barricades before marching through the camp tearing down tents and pulling down almost everything that stood in the plaza. Over 70 people were arrested during the raid. Later in the day, Alameda County Sheriff's deputies repeatedly deployed massive amounts of tear gas and fired projectiles into a crowd of marchers throughout the night. Numerous people were injured, some seriously when projectiles were fired at the heads of protesters. On October 26th, occupiers removed fencing and again took Oscar Grant Plaza, holding their daily General Assembly which voted 1484 to 46 for an Oakland general strike on Wednesday, November 2nd.

On Saturday, October 22nd, over a hundred people from across the Central Valley participated in the Caravan of Resistance against police brutality both inside local jails and on the streets. Participants from Modesto, Stockton, Manteca, Davis, Sacramento, and Merced all converged to participate in a string of actions in a total of three cities. The Caravan brought together over a hundred people: blacks, Chicanos, and working class whites joined with victims' families to protest murder and brutality at the hands of the police.

The City of Fresno has announced a plan for the massive evictions of the homeless, starting at 7 a.m. on Thursday, October 27th. Speaking in front of City Hall on Wednesday, homeless people and their allies said the planned eviction was heartless and cruel. Community Alliance newspaper editor Mike Rhodes said “destroying their modest shelter and chasing them with a stick from one vacant lot or sidewalk to another will do nothing to help their lives or to end homelessness in Fresno.”

On September 17th, over one thousand demonstrators poured into New York City's financial district to confront corporate greed by establishing an ongoing presence, day and night, in lower Manhattan. The idea was to create an American Tahir Square on Wall Street. Police blocked marchers from reaching Wall Street, but hundreds persisted and set up camp in Zuccotti Park, now dubbed Liberty Plaza. In San Francisco, demonstrators likewise called for an occupation of the financial district starting the same day, outside of 555 California Street. The SF occupation is currently located in front of the Federal Reserve building on Market Street, although after midnight on October 6th, SFPD and city workers raided the site and took away the kitchen, tents, and truckloads of other occupier supplies. Several were beaten by SFPD and one was arrested during the raid. Occupations began in San Jose on Oct. 2nd, in Santa Cruz and Sacramento on Oct. 6th, Berkeley on Oct. 8th, Fresno on Oct. 9th, in Oakland on Oct. 10th and one is planned to start in Santa Rosa on Saturday, Oct. 15th.

Protests that began on the plaza at San Jose City Hall on October 2nd continue around the clock. The San Jose Police Department has issued many arrests and citations in the middle of the night, mostly for illegal camping. On October 24th, a demonstrator climbed atop a wall estimated to be 36 feet high and five feet wide to protest the continuing police raids. As of 1:00am Wednesday he remains on his perch.

October 22nd 2011 was the 16th National Day of Protest to Stop Police Brutality, Repression, and the Criminalization of a Generation. In San Francisco protest took place at 12pm in the Bayview, near where Kenneth Harding was killed this year, to draw attention to Harding's death as well as many other deaths at the hands of law enforcement. In Modesto, participants gathered at 2pm at the H St. Jail for a Day of Action Against Police Brutality. In Fresno, a No More Stolen Lives took place at 5 p.m. at Eaton Plaza. Everyone at the protests, as well as supporters who can't make it, wears black in solidarity with people whose loved ones have died in custody.

On October 10th, the former Cathedral Hill Hotel at 1101 Van Ness Avenue in San Francisco was occupied by demonstrators led by the squatters' collective Homes Not Jails and reinforced by the activists of Occupy San Francisco. At 7pm, approximately 30 occupiers were inside the building, which contains 600 housing units. They report that most if not all of the rooms remain furnished and in habitable condition. Activists demand that habitable housing stock be put into use for people not profits, and point out that enough residential units exist in San Francisco to eliminate homelessness in the City.

At noon on Monday, October 10th — Indigenous People’s Day — members of the Elem Pomo tribe will march to the offices of millionaire businessman John Nady in Emeryville to demand that he immediately halt his planned desecration of Rattlesnake Island. The Elem Pomo have invited supporters to join the protest and tell Nady that from the Bay Area to Lake County, people will stand up to oppose the desecration of sacred native sites.

Approximately 150 supporters of Occupy Santa Cruz marched on banks the afternoon of October 7th. The march wound its way through the downtown, and stops were made at Chase, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo. Protesters attempted to gain entry in order to close their bank accounts as a group, but even though it was normal business hours, all three of the establishments visited had locked their doors to prevent the group from entering. A second march was held on October 12th.

The Oakland General Assembly decided on October 4th that the people of Oakland should occupy Frank Ogawa Plaza at the corner of 14th and Broadway on Monday, October 10th starting at 4pm in solidarity with Occupy Wall Street, the many occupations underway across the country, and Indigenous Resistance Day. Organizers say, "Come ready to spend the night or just swing by to say hello. Let's do this Oakland style!" Nearly 1000 people gathered on the first day, with around 50 tents set up overnight, including one tent occupied by Oakland city council member Desley Brooks. The plaza has been dubbed "Oscar Grant Plaza" by Occupiers.

On Friday, October 14th, Jeff Halper, director of the Israeli Committee Against House Demolition (ICAHD), will be speaking at UC Berkeley. Halper, who has been arrested many times for his nonviolent direct action against house demolition, is the author of three books and was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006.

The Freedom of Information Committee of the Society of Professional Journalists, Northern California Chapter, has sent a letter to the BART Board condemning the "wrongful treatment of journalists by BART police," including the arrest of an Indybay reporter, during the September 8, 2011 protest at Powell Station. The Committee requests "assurances that such actions will never be taken again, and new training for officers to ensure that their interactions with the press remain appropriate and lawful."

Disorientation Guide Collective writes: The UC Santa Cruz Disorientation Guide is an annual student publication to incite critical thought and action through radical grassroots education. This is an introduction to the side of this school that you might have heard about but won't find in your glossy orientation materials. This guide is designed as a resource, inspiration, and catalyst for you as you discover and get involved in the creative, radical communities and projects that thrive here in Santa Cruz.

Free Radio Santa Cruz 101.1 FM, a pirate radio station celebrating 16 years of unlicensed broadcasting, was recently shutdown by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on August 12th when agents served a “notice of unlicensed radio operation” to the owner of the house from which the station had been broadcasting from for the last year. The commercial-free, community station continues to air on the internet 24/7 at freakradio.org while programmers search for a new home to host the transmitter and antennae.

On September 27th, thousands of members of the four employee unions of the United States Postal Service joined forces with allies and community members to send a message to the nation and its Congress. All around the country, protesters demonstrated against proposals to close thousands of post offices, eliminate Saturday deliveries, lay off workers, cut postal workers’ pay, and end collective bargaining rights.

On September 8th, 2011, an art exhibit of children's drawings was banned by the Museum of Children's Art in Oakland (MOCHA). Much of the artwork was drawn by children participating in a "Let the Children Play And Heal" project. It was developed to address the needs of traumatized children after the 2008/2009 Israeli assault on Gaza. Zionist organizations are suspected of having intimidated MOCHA into canceling the show, despite the fact that MECA had been working with the museum for months planning the local exhibit. On September 23rd, a demonstration was held in front of MOCHA to protest the censorship. On September 24th, supporters first gathered in the courtyard outside of the MOCHA building, displaying reproductions of the Gazan children's artwork, until an announcement was made about a new venue for the exhibit around the corner. The exhibit is set to show through November 30th.

On September 22nd at UC Berkeley, between 100 and 200 students marched from a rally in front of Sproul Hall and entered Tolman Hall to protest austerity measures cutting public education throughout the state of California. Demonstrators entered the lobby of the building only to be met by police batons and pepper spray. Police claim that pepper spray was used in response to someone grabbing a magazine clip from one of the officers, but at least one witness says that these were two separate events, and that the magazine clip was only found later after a police officer dropped it. Students were able to hold room 2308 and other parts of the first floor through the afternoon and into the evening until police evicted them from the building. Two protesters were arrested and remain in jail.

Redwood Curtain CopWatch writes: Four years ago, Martin was 26 years old, unarmed and living on the streets when he was killed by the Eureka Police when they pummeled his body in broad daylight, in front of a homeless shelter, then brought him to the jail to die.... The case, Siehna Cotton et al v. City of Eureka is being heard before U.S. District Court Judge Saundra Brown Armstrong and a seven person jury.... Marty Cotton, Sr. says, “We want to expose the truth, ideally, so those cops can never wear a badge and weaponry and never do this to anyone else again.” On September 23rd when the verdict was announced, the City of Eureka and three Eureka police officers lost as the jury awarded the Martin Cotton family over $4.5 million.

Tuesday Sep 20th, 2011: Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles has OK'd Troy Davis execution for 7pm EST September 21st. Read more: 1 | 2 | San Francisco Rally/Vigil at 1pm, 9/21

Troy Davis has been on death row in Georgia for twenty years. He is set to executed by the state on Wednesday, September 21st, despite the fact that there was no physical evidence presented against him during his trial and since then seven out of the nine "witnesses" who testified against him have recanted, many claiming that they were pressured by police. On September 16th, supporters rallied in cities across the country. A solidarity rally was held in Oakland in front of the Federal Building. As the courts are no longer an option to establish Troy Davis' innocence, his last hope is the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles which will hold a clemency hearing in Troy’s case on Monday, September 19th, in Atlanta. A "Save Troy Davis - Stop the Death Penalty" event was held at Laney College on September 20th.

In this eleventh installment in the series “Hidden in Plain Sight” Peter M writes about Maureen Gosling. Gosling is a documentary filmmaker who worked for many years with Les Blank of Flower Films. On her own she made the award-winning film Blossoms of Fire, which deals with a community in the Mexican Isthmus were women play a special role. She is currently working on a film about fabric hand-dyed by women in Mali that is becoming a cultural phenomenon.

No Justice No BART called for an action to be held on Thursday, September 8th, at the Powell Street Station in San Francisco. The plan announced was that if enough protesters were mobilized, in order to keep riders moving into and out of the station, BART would have to open the emergency exits and let folks ride for free, just as they have for other large events in the past. On September 8th, protesters gathered at Powell station, chanting and holding signs. No fare gates were ever blocked. Within a half hour, BART riot police kettled dozens of protesters and reporters. BART police handcuffed numerous journalists, requesting that SFPD confiscate their SFPD police press passes. Two Indybay journalists were arrested, along with over 22 protesters, and charged with violating Penal Code 369i, which deals with interfering with train operations.

In San Francisco, members of UNITE HERE Local 2 and their supporters in the labor movement marched on Labor Day, September 5th, to draw attention to Local 2's ongoing struggle with the Hyatt Regency and Grand Hyatt. The march began at Union Square and proceeded to Hotel Frank on Geary, then on to the Grand Hyatt on Stockton Street. Similarly in Santa Clara, hotel service workers of the union UNITE HERE Local 19 marked Labor Day by picketing the Hyatt Regency Santa Clara, which has been the target of a boycott campaign launched by the union six months ago. Hyatt workers, who have been without a contract with the hotel, have been demanding recognition of the union through a card-check/neutrality agreement.

On August 24th, family and supporters of Raheim Brown Jr. once again gathered at Oakland Unified School District headquarters to demand that OUSD police officers Barhin Bhatt and Jonathan Bellusa, the officers responsible for the murder of Raheim Brown, be fired and charged with the killing. This time, though, the anger was even more intense as it was learned less than a week earlier that the superintendent and school board had not only ignored the repeated previous pleadings of community members, but had promoted Barhin Bhatt to interim chief of the school police upon the previous chief's sudden retirement when racist and threatening comments of his became public. On September 6th, James Williams, a former Oakland Housing Authority police officer, was appointed as the new interim chief to replace Bhatt.

The Bay Area is now the first place in the United States to have had its electronic communications deliberately disabled to preempt a political protest. On August 11th, BART cut power to the underground mobile phone antennas within their system for several hours, denying tens of thousands of evening commuters access to the Internet, telephone service, and even 911 calls. The protest BART claimed as the reason for disrupting mobile service never happened, but Anonymous called for online and offline protests in "remembrance [of] the blood that is on the hands of the BART police" and to "stand up for your rights and those of your fellow citizens." Both the myBART.org and BART Police Officers' Association websites have been hacked. On August 15th and 22nd, protests were held in San Francisco that shut down downtown BART stations during the evening commutes. Over 40 people were arrested on August 22nd. A third demonstration was called for August 29th and two were arrested. No stations were closed by BART but two people were arrested for speaking out inside of Embarcadero station.

On August 17th, opening night of the 2011 Ringling Brothers Circus in San Jose, nearly a hundred activists gathered to protest and to inform circus-goers about the cruelty involved when wild animals are forced to live in small cages and perform for audiences across the country. Ringling Brothers has a history of maltreating the animals under its care, from physically abusing them as part of their training to failing to adequately meet basic medical needs. Animal activists encourage others to help keep the heat on Ringling to drop the use of animals in their live shows. Demonstrations are planned for Ringling Brothers appearances in San Francisco and Oakland from September 1st through 11th.

Charles Hill writes: In solidarity with everyone fighting against police brutality and the police state, molotovs were thrown into the parking lot of the Fresno SW substation where police cars and pigs' personal vehicles are parked. At least two cars burned. This action is done in solidarity especially with those in the East Bay standing up against the murderous BART police.