Northbay Uprising - Information for the liberated zones of the San Pablo Bay

2011-12-06 "SUPPORT THE WEST COAST PORT BLOCKADE!" from "BAIL OUT THE PEOPLE MOVEMENT - SAN FRANCISCO/OAKLAND"
For up to date information, fliers & posters, see [www.westcoastportshutdown.org]. Watch this video on YouTube for a flavor of what it's all about:  [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OGqncu3wlEI&feature=youtube]
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BLOCKADE ACTIONS PLANNED AT THE FOLLOWING PORTS:
SAN DIEGO, LA/LONG BEACH, HUENEME (central CA),
OAKLAND, PORTLAND, SEATTLE, TACOMA
Battle lines have formed as the West Coast Occupies, from San Diego to Alaska, flex their collective muscle against the federally coordinated, brutal attacks against the Occupy movement across the country. Solidarity actions have been called by OWS in New York and inland locations, as well. 
West Coast Occupies are organizing to support the struggle of the ILWU longshoremen in Longview, Washington. Longshoremen there are waging a ferocious battle against transnational EGT, controlled by Bunge Ltd. —of the grain cartel that controls most of the world’s trade in food products. EGT hired scabs to break the International Longshore and Warehouse Union in an attempt to drive down wages and destroy the union. 
The Occupies are also aligning with the struggle of port truckers, who are fighting for the right to organize for union representation. 26 of them were fired in LA, for wearing Teamster jackets to work. Occupy LA and Long Beach are targeting SSA, an anti-union port terminal operator, majority owned by Goldman Sachs, the notorious Wall Street investment bank. Teamster president Jimmy Hoffa Jr. has publicly expressed support for the Occupy movement. Finally the west coast Occupies are targeting the ports as major commercial centers, showing that they can strike at the institutions which help to aggregate the wealth of the 1%, to disrupt Wall Street on the waterfront. It’s the history of the militant ILWU which enables this attack to have teeth. The ILWU rank and file have historically supported political struggles such as the anti-apartheid movement, the anti-war movement, in defense of Palestine in the face of attacks on Gaza, in support of the Wisconsin struggle against union busting, etc.
The 1%, under the banner of the Port of Oakland, launched the 1st volley of their assault yesterday, 12/4, with full page ads in the San Francisco Chronicle and Oakland Tribune, against the planned Occupy port blockade. They know all too well how powerful this movement has become, evidenced by the historic general strike and blockade of the Port of Oakland on November 2, when the Occupy movement, with the support of the ILWU rank and file and port truckers shut down the entire port.
The battle is just beginning. EGT is planning to bring a huge grain ship to the Port of Longview, sometime this month or early January, to unload the grain piled up there with the use of scab labor. That isn’t going to happen without a major fight. Plans are in the works for phase two of this struggle. Caravans will be heading up to Longview to support the ILWU’s fight to keep their jobs and maintain their union. Port truckers in Oakland have also had teach-ins to help the Occupy movement understand what the conditions they are struggling against.The battle is on!