OCCUPYLONGBEACH BOISTEROUSLY DISRUPTS LB CITY COUNCIL MEETING
By Dave Wielenga
Participants in OccupyLongBeach cranked up the volume on their ongoing protest during Tuesday night’s meeting of the Long Beach City Council by calling upon city officials to permit camping in local parks and establish a so-called “free-speech zone.” When those demands were not immediately met, disrupting the meeting to the extent that it was temporarily adjourned.
Ironically, the confrontation began during the council meeting’s closest thing to a free-speech zone—the period when members of the public can comment on any item not on the agenda. But although this period is oriented toward free speech, it is not free of time constraints; speakers must finish in three minutes or less.
When one woman did not stop on her own after three minutes, Vice Mayor Suja Lowenthal—presiding because Mayor Bob Foster is occupying Italy on vacation—asked her to stop. When the woman kept talking, officers came to the podium, and the woman peacefully allowed them to escort her from council chambers.
Meanwhile, however, OccupyLongBeach participants began to chant, “The whole world is watching.” Besides giving a gross exaggeration of the reach of the cable service that televises Long Beach Council meetings, the chanting was loud and disruptive, prompting Lowenthal to call for order.
When the chanting did not stop, City Attorney Robert Shannon recommended to Lowenthal that she temporarily adjourn the meeting, and she obeyed.
After several minutes, Lowenthal resumed the meeting by indicating that OccupyLongBeach’s suggested free-speech zone would be considered at a future meeting. The OccupyLongBeach participants in the audience shouted their demands that the issue be considered immediately.
It remained for Council member Rae Gabelich to provide the explanation—it is illegal for the council to consider an item without giving the public adequate notice that it will be on the agenda—and the promise (she will put the question of a free-speech zone on the agenda for the Nov. 15 council meeting) that convinced the crowd to leave council chambers and permit the meeting to continue.
18 Comments
the whole country is a “free speech zone” afaic.
The group appears to be as dysfunctional as the Council!!!!
Ken and John had an interesting view on the Occupy Los Angeles
circus which seems to me holds true for those in Long Beach.
TO WIT:
While there might be one of two who have some valid views;the majority
are essentially clueless aimless, wanderers, disconnected from reality-
but drifting through life-who would attach themselves to anything-be it
good times or bad.
There have been high school kids that show up to Council who
demonstrate a more astute awareness of how to achieve their
goals.
At the end of the day the impact of Occupy Long Beach will be
equal to the size of the whole left in a bucket of water after one
puts their hand in it-then pulls it out.There will be a few ripples when
goes in and when it comes out. All one has to do is listen to them
and it becomes apparent why they are drifting through life.
Larry, are you sure you’re not talking about yourself?
What a bunch of BS. Items can be added to City Council meetings. I’ve seen this occur many times in the past. Take for instance the in-depth City Council discussion on the Wetlands Bulldozing by Sean (the destroyer) Hitchcock days after the incident occurred. There was no agenda item for that discussion. The city manager and city attorney were tasked by city council to investigate the matter and report back to City Council.
Refusing to discuss the matter is City Council’s delay tactic and is total BS. If City Council can not discuss matters brought up by the public, then why do they have a public comment period for non-agenda items specified on the agenda?
The meeting was expertly handled by the vice-leader: be dismissive and haughty, then be quick to shut it down and call in the troops.
“Besides giving a gross exaggeration of the reach of the cable service that televises Long Beach Council meetings,” = funny
Nice that the Council is now in play. Their actions will be instructive.
OWS is about uncovering the present political truth of this country and helping people to understand how their own lives have been lessened through power and financial structures that disproportionately benefit the 1%.
Lots of people don’t want to believe that their lives are getting worse, or that their children or grandchildren will be living in intractable poverty (through no fault of their own) if we continue down the path planned for us by the 1%. It can be heartbreaking to see this reality, and monied opposition knows this — it will divert us with Christmas tree taxes and celebrity divorces to distract us from the financial violence aimed at 99% of Americans every day. Anything to keep us from waking up and seeing clearly.
Take a close, careful look at those who demand sound bite demands or instant solutions from Occupy people. If they are employed by corporate media, understand that their job may be to manufacture distractions. If they are not, help them to understand the magnitude of the stakes. It took a long time for the 1% to bamboozle and deceive the 99% — it will take some time to overcome and reverse the deception. Much of that time will be spent waking people up.
good post!
Poor things (Occupy), a few more council meetings and they will get used to the elected officials leaving their seats, playing on the internet, shopping at Amazon, bathroom breaks ala Garcia selectively avoid voting, ignoring pleas from residents affected by port pollution, eating pizza or watching cartoons in the backroom…. anything to avoid listening to the public.
Funny they all seem to be in their seat and attention when either a union official or Randy Gordon make presence. Sorry Occupy unless you contribute $$$$$$$$$$$$ to their campaigns or can organize voters you will be ignored.
The LBPost censored my above comment when I attempted to post it to Greggory Moore’s article at that media. The LBPost also censored my comment asking WHY they were censoring my comments.
Why is city council willing to bend ordinances to allow cars to be parked and tents to be errected on the beach for Grand Prix, numerous events to be staged at public parks, entire city blocks shut down to film movies. Yet Councilwoman Gablich stated “the ordinance prohibiting camping in the park is not going to change,” and that OLB should “look for an alternative site.”
Who the hell is Gablich to state anything so definatively without even discussing the topic in public? She’s starting to sound and look a lot like Mayor Foster and apparently thinks she is the sole ruler of Long Beach.
Why would she say, “I’m with you”, and then deny them their petition to camp overnight, and then say, “you need to find another place”.
Sorry, why would she pre-deny them ahead of their petition that she will allow them next week?
Why would she say, “I’m with you”, and then deny them their petition to camp overnight, and then say, “you need to find another place”.
Because Suja Lowenthal is a phony grandstander who should NEVER be taken at face value, whose words and motives are ALWAYS suspect, and neither says what she means nor means what she says.
Thanks, but why Gablich?
im looking forward to boisterously disrupting truck and rail traffic out of the port…nuff said!
Long Beach City Govt is so self-serious. How would Monsieur CEO Le Mayor have handled it?
http://belmontshore.patch.com/announcements/i-can-haz-speech-zone
why is it ok to camp out for the premiere of the new twilight movie but not for free speech?