USA Solidarity

Last week the USA occupation movement took a heavy blow as many camps were evicted, shocking and appalling occupiers in London. Camps in New York City, Portland, Oakland, and Denver amongst others had been raided by police in the last week, while hundreds of American protestors had been arrested.

In a move of solidarity last Tuesday, OccupyLSX protesters went to the American Embassy in London to protest the actions against the USA raids. Most prominent in participants’ minds, was the raid earlier last Tuesday in New York City, where police forcibly evicted occupiers from their Zuccotti Park camp.

Five American citizens, with their passports in hand, demanded to be let into the Embassy to voice concerns over the USA evictions, there was a crowd of about 30 protesters at the Embassy, who were out-numbered by a heavy police presence. Occupier Adam Fitzmaurice, from LA was one of the US citizens to speak to the Embassy representatives. He felt the USA was hypocritical about human rights. “I want to know why Secretary of State Clinton feels comfortable demanding dictators such as Mubarak and Assad respect and allow peaceful protest while the NYPD, Oakland PD, Denver PD, and others across the US brutally gas, pepper-spray and beat peaceful protesters to suppress dissent.”

Emma Davies, an American now living in London was outside the Embassy to express “solidarity with all the occupy protests across the world.” She said she was heartened to see “the brilliant displays of resistance -people going back to reoccupy, it’s clear the protester aren’t giving up they will carry on demonstrating.”

Another American supporter, Taryn Ladendorff was visibly shaken by the New York events. “I got really emotional about it I could hardly believe it had come to this. “One of the most important things about being an American is the right to protest and the right of freedom of assembly – the right to let your voice be heard especially in a peaceful way.’’ She said the actions in the USA went against everything she was taught about freedom as a child. “They really hammer these kinds of rights into you as a child, when you grow up you realise they are not real but there is something visceral about seeing them being taken away from you over and over again.’’

By Stacey Knott