Below is a video of the Berkeley Police beating and teargassing protesters on Telegraph on Saturday night. Following is the BPD's account of what they've been doing. 

Over the past few days, a series of demonstrations have happened in the City of Berkeley in response to recent incidents in Missouri and New York. With its rich history in the Free Speech movement, the City of Berkeley is and remains committed to ensuring the public’s right to peacefully assemble and protest. 

On Tuesday night the police department facilitated peaceful protest throughout the City, helping block traffic and escorting marchers with officers on bicycles. 

As a mid-sized city, the size and scope of these demonstrations have presented unique challenges and the Berkeley Police Department has required assistance from agencies throughout Alameda County, Solano County, and San Mateo County. 

In previous peaceful demonstrations, demonstration organizers often worked with the Berkeley Police Department develop pre-planned routes or points of assembly which has allowed BPD personnel to redirect traffic to increase the safety of protesters. The Berkeley Police Department welcomes contact with organizers and will continue to try to make constructive contact. 

Over the past few days, the Berkeley Police Department has made several arrests. Below is a list of arrested persons over the past few days. As some of the arrested persons were not booked at the Berkeley City Jail, the list is only preliminary. 

Here is a summary of arrests thus far: 

· 27 arrest total 

· 21 men, 4 women, and 2 juvenile 

· 19 of 27 arrests are from outside of Berkeley 

We have had more than 13 officers injured over the course of the past four days. Three required treatment in a hospital. A small number of protesters have thrown rocks, bottles, a crowbar, a bag of gravel and other debris at our officers. Here are a couple of photographs of injuries officers received from items thrown at them during the recent demonstrations: 

The Ashby BART station has been closed due to a protest march in Berkeley tonight, according to BART officials.  

A group of around 150 protestors marched from Bancroft Street and Telegraph Avenue in Berkeley this evening around 7 p.m. at that time on the University of California at Berkeley campus. At 8:35 Berkeley Police reported 150 marchers going west on Dwight from Benvenue, the south side of People's Park. At 9:02 they were spotted going south on Shattuck from Russell, a few blocks from the Ashby BART station.  

Social media reports indicate the marchers entered Wheeler Hall on campus, where a talk by entrepreneur and venture capitalist Peter Thiel is in progress.  

Tonight's march is the fifth in as many days, and follows on a well-organized and peaceful protest in Berkeley earlier this afternoon led by Berkeley High School students.

Numerous Bay Area schools are closing Thursday because of a potentially dangerous wind and rainstorm moving into the area. 

All San Francisco Unified School District schools and school districts in Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin and Sonoma counties have canceled school for Thursday. 

In Alameda County, public school districts in the cities of Alameda, Berkeley, Oakland and Hayward have announced closures. The West Contra Costa and New Haven school districts have also announced closures. 

Most schools in Marin County are closed. A full list of closures is available at www.marinschools.org/SafeSchools/Pages/EmergencyServices/school-status.aspx 

Several schools in Sonoma County are closed as well. A list of Sonoma County closures is available at www.scoe.org/pub/htdocs/storm-update.html 

In addition the Novato Unified School District has already announced schools will be closed Friday.  

Most school districts anticipate being open on Friday, though San Francisco Unified officials said a final decision will be made before 5 p.m. Thursday. 

Oakland district officials said in a statement, "This is not a decision we make lightly, but given the severe weather predictions and the safety implications for students and staff, we want to take every precaution in order to safeguard our community." 

District officials said that what the National Weather Service refers to as a "powerful Pacific storm" with heavy rain and wind gusts "poses a significant safety risk for our students and staff." 

It will be a workday for Oakland schools central office staff but they will work from home, district officials said. 

SFUSD Superintendent Richard Carranza said in a statement, "We don't want to risk having our students injured or seriously delayed transporting to and from school. In addition to student absences, the storm could result in large numbers of staff absences, which could then lead to inadequate supervision of our students." 

ScottMorris0525p12/10/14 

CONTACT: Oakland schools spokesman Troy Flint (510) 473-5832 SFUSD (415) 241-6565 Novato Unified School District, Leslie Benjamin (415) 897-4259 

Copyright © 2014 by Bay City News, Inc. -- Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited. 

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A protest march through three East Bay cities devolved into a burglary and robbery spree in Emeryville Tuesday night after Berkeley police arrested six people and the California Highway Patrol arrested 13 people blocking a highway in Oakland, law enforcement officials said today. 

CHP officers used less-lethal munitions to clear crowds who blocked state Highway 24 after crossing into Oakland at about 9:30 p.m. The CHP has not confirmed what munitions were used but numerous reports indicated the use of pepper spray, rubber bullets and beanbag rounds on crowds of protesters and journalists. 

Some protesters on the highway hurled rocks, incendiary devices and other projectiles at officers, CHP officials said. 

After marching through Oakland, protesters went up San Pablo Avenue into Emeryville, where police said businesses including a Pak N Save, 7-Eleven and CVS were vandalized and looted. Emeryville police made no arrests. 

The protests are the latest in weeks of near-daily protests nationwide over police killings of unarmed black men, including the shooting death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, and the death of Eric Garner in New York from a police chokehold. 

Berkeley's march Tuesday was the fourth in as many days. Protests Saturday quickly grew out of hand, with police deploying tear gas early in the evening and protesters hurling objects at officers. 

On Monday, the CHP arrested more than 150 demonstrators after they blocked Interstate Highway 80 in Emeryville. 

Tuesday's march began peacefully in Berkeley. Protesters had initially planned to attend a Berkeley City Council meeting scheduled for that evening but the meeting was canceled due to the large anticipated crowds. The protesters then gathered outside of Berkeley City Hall, where they were joined by City Councilmen Kriss Worthington and Jesse Arreguin, who briefly addressed the crowd. While in Berkeley, six protesters were arrested, according to the CHP. Protesters then marched into Oakland via Martin Luther King Jr. Way and Telegraph Avenue, taking over Highway 24 near the MacArthur BART station for 23 minutes at 9:17 p.m. CHP officials said that protesters were hurling rocks, incendiary devices and other projectiles at officers and the officers responded with the less-lethal munitions. The majority of the group on the highway dispersed, but CHP officials said "several aggressive protesters" remained on the freeway. Thirteen people were arrested on suspicion of charges including obstruction, creating a public nuisance and battery on a peace officer, CHP officials said. "The motoring public can expect the CHP to use whatever force necessary to clear the roadway and keep people safe," CHP Golden Gate Division Assistant Chief Ernie Sanchez said in a statement. "Our fear, and what we are trying to prevent, is someone getting seriously injured or killed by choosing to march onto the freeway." 

The protests moved into downtown Oakland, then west and up San Pablo Avenue into Emeryville. Police estimated there were about 300 demonstrators marching into Emeryville at about 11:30 p.m. when about 100 rushed the Pak N Save at 3889 San Pablo Ave., broke windows and looted the store. 

Between 30 and 40 people stole liquor bottles, cash from the register and a coin dispenser. Police tried to stop them but they rejoined the crowd, continuing north on San Pablo Avenue. 

Protesters also smashed windows at the nearby 7-Eleven, threatening the clerk with chunks of concrete and bottles, Emeryville police spokesman Brian Head said. Cartons of cigarettes and other items were stolen from the store. 

The protesters threw "softball-sized" chunks of concrete and beer bottles at officers who moved in to stop them, Head said. 

Further up San Pablo, the Bank of America had all of its windows smashed but it appears that protesters did not enter the bank. A CVS store's windows were smashed and the vandals entered the store, stealing more liquor bottles and other items, Head said. 

The protesters then marched back to Oakland on 47th Street, smashing parked car windows along the way. Mutual aid officers advanced on the protesters, who mostly dispersed, Head said. 

Emeryville police were not injured and made no arrests during the demonstrations. 

Head said investigators are looking at video surveillance footage in the area to identify any possible suspects. They are investigating the incidents at the Pak N Save and the CVS as burglaries and the 7-Eleven as a robbery. 

Surveillance footage may be released to the public later today, Head said. 

Oakland police reported few problems as the protesters moved through that city, saying in a statement today that only one window was broken and scattered trash containers were set on fire.

With heavy rains and strong winds expected to hit the Bay Area Thursday and Friday, the Department of Insurance is urging residents to review their insurance policies today. 

"Today as Northern Californians prepare for extreme wet weather conditions, it's important that they remember to make sure their financial affairs are in order," Commissioner Dave Jones said in a statement. "Taking the time to update your home inventory, and understanding your insurance policy are just as important in preparing for this storm as having an emergency go kit and securing outdoor items." 

Department of Insurance officials urged resident to update their home inventory and store pictures or videos of clothing and personal belongings on a digital cloud server.  

Homeowners and renters should understand their policy and what is covered or excluded before the storm hits, insurance officials said.  

Officials cautioned that flood damage is not covered in most policies, but roof damage caused by wind or falling trees may be covered.  

For help filing an insurance claim or interpreting an insurance policy, residents can call the Department of Insurance's consumer services branch at (800) 927-4357.

Hundreds of people have made their way into Oakland after walking through city streets in downtown Berkeley tonight to protest decisions to not indict white police officers in the deaths of unarmed black men. 

The protests started around 6:20 p.m. when police said about 100 people were marching through the University of California at Berkeley's South Campus area.  

About an hour later, the group grew to a larger crowd at Center Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Way, near Civic Center Park, in Berkeley, police said. 

They gathered at the front of City Hall where they heard remarks by City Councilmen Kriss Worthington and Jesse Arreguin. 

The Berkeley City Council had a meeting scheduled for 7 p.m. today but it was canceled this afternoon due to protesters who had planned to disrupt the meeting. 

"We have postponed tonight's City Council meeting because the Council chambers, which hold about 125 people, could not accommodate the large turnout expected to attend. One estimate placed the number as high as 1,500 people," Mayor Tom Bates said in a statement. 

Shortly before 8 p.m., the protesters left City Hall and were marching south on Martin Luther King Jr. Way from Allston Way, police said. They then went south on Telegraph Avenue to Oakland. 

The Downtown Berkeley BART station was closed at about 7:10 p.m. due to the protests but reopened about an hour later, according to a BART dispatcher. 

Trains were only be running through the station located at 2160 Shattuck Ave. during the closure, BART officials said. 

Shortly after 9 p.m., the MacArthur BART station at 555 40th St. was closed due to the protests but reopened as of 10:20 p.m., the dispatcher said. 

California Highway Patrol officers in riot gear were seen blocking state Highway 24 ramps at Telegraph Avenue in Oakland around 8:45 p.m. 

At about 9:15 p.m., protesters were seen on Highway 24 near the MacArthur BART station blocking traffic in both directions, CHP officials said. 

CHP officers were able to clear people from the freeway and lanes were reopened to traffic about 30 minutes later and have reopened the ramps. 

The transition from Highway 24 to Interstate Highway 980 was closed but reopened around 10:45 p.m., while officers continue to guard ramps from Highway 980 to downtown Oakland, CHP officials said. 

The protesters made their way into downtown Oakland where they were gathered outside Oakland City Hall around 10:30 p.m. 

Amtrak train service has been suspended on the Capitol Corridor line between the Oakland Coliseum stop and Richmond due to the protests, transit officials said. 

Trains serving the San Joaquin and Coast Starlight routes will also experience delays, Amtrak officials said. 

Alameda-Contra Costa Transit buses have been detoured from their regular routes due to the protests in Berkeley and may reroute other lines in the area if needed, AC Transit officials said. 

Some protesters were heard yelling "Indict, convict, send those killer cops to jail," while others were seen playing drums and holding signs while in the crowd on Berkeley city streets.  

On Nov. 24, a grand jury's decision was announced to not indict then-Officer Darren White in the fatal shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. 

Last Wednesday, New York City police Officer Daniel Pantaleo was not charged in the chokehold death of 43-year-old Eric Garner in Staten Island. 

Protesters took to downtown Berkeley on Saturday, Sunday and Monday nights that resulted in vandalized businesses and multiple arrests, police said. 

On Saturday, police tear gassed demonstrators, who also threw bottles and rocks at officers. 

Portions of the freeway were also closed on Sunday and Monday nights.

Numerous Bay Area schools are closing Thursday because of a potentially dangerous wind and rainstorm moving into the area. 

All San Francisco Unified School District schools and school districts in Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin and Sonoma counties have canceled school for Thursday. 

In Alameda County, public school districts in the cities of Alameda, Berkeley, Oakland and Hayward have announced closures. The West Contra Costa and New Haven school districts have also announced closures. 

Most schools in Marin County are closed. A full list of closures is available at www.marinschools.org/SafeSchools/Pages/EmergencyServices/school-status.aspx 

Several schools in Sonoma County are closed as well. A list of Sonoma County closures is available at www.scoe.org/pub/htdocs/storm-update.html 

In addition the Novato Unified School District has already announced schools will be closed Friday.  

Most school districts anticipate being open on Friday, though San Francisco Unified officials said a final decision will be made before 5 p.m. Thursday. 

Oakland district officials said in a statement, "This is not a decision we make lightly, but given the severe weather predictions and the safety implications for students and staff, we want to take every precaution in order to safeguard our community." 

District officials said that what the National Weather Service refers to as a "powerful Pacific storm" with heavy rain and wind gusts "poses a significant safety risk for our students and staff." 

It will be a workday for Oakland schools central office staff but they will work from home, district officials said. 

SFUSD Superintendent Richard Carranza said in a statement, "We don't want to risk having our students injured or seriously delayed transporting to and from school. In addition to student absences, the storm could result in large numbers of staff absences, which could then lead to inadequate supervision of our students." 

ScottMorris0525p12/10/14 

CONTACT: Oakland schools spokesman Troy Flint (510) 473-5832 SFUSD (415) 241-6565 Novato Unified School District, Leslie Benjamin (415) 897-4259 

Copyright © 2014 by Bay City News, Inc. -- Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited. 

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Richmond police Chief Chris Magnus and other police department brass stood shoulder to shoulder with other community members during a peaceful protest against police brutality in the East Bay city today. 

The last-minute demonstration organized by the RYSE Youth Center drew more than 100 people, including city council members and police officials, along MacDonald Avenue near 41st Street today protesting deadly police force against unarmed "black and brown men," said RYSE Executive Director Kimberly Aceves.  

While other Bay Area cities have erupted into sometimes violent or disruptive protests following the recent grand jury decisions not to indict the police officers who killed 18-year-old Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri and 43-year-old Eric Garner in Staten Island, New York, today's demonstration was the first in Richmond and was free of any damage, traffic disruption or arrests, according to police and organizers. 

Aceves said her organization decided to hold the protest to give community members a "space to grieve and have a conversation" about the recent events. 

"For us, it was building on a national momentum," she said. 

The protest was also notable for the direct, non-confrontational involvement of police officers, including the city's police chief, who stood for several hours alongside protesters holding signs and chanting, according to Aceves. 

Richmond police Capt. Mark Gagan said police wanted to attend the demonstration not only to keep the peace, but also to show solidarity with the demonstrators. 

"People have a real need to have their voices heard, and when that is stifled, it magnifies the problems," said Gagan, who was among the officers who took part in today's demonstration. 

Aceves said seeing some of the department's top brass participating in today's protest came as a surprise but that she believes their sentiments were genuine. 

"I think symbolically, when there's some much division between communities and police departments, to have the highest ranking members of the department hold signs for 4.5 hours...I felt like it was definitely legitimate," she said. 

The police even ordered pizza for some protesters, including many who stood for nearly five hours to symbolize the length of time Michael Brown's body lay on the sidewalk following his fatal shooting, Aceves said. 

While she credited Magnus's progressive approach to policing and his commitment to building a positive relationship between the city's youth and police, she cautioned that there is still work to be done. 

"This is a good symbolic step, but we have to continue to roll up our sleeves and figure out how young people can stay safe in our communities and feel like RPD is there to protect them as well," Aceves said. 

She said the RYSE Center plans to hold future actions regarding police brutality against people of color

Thank you all for reaching out to me regarding the recent protests of the killings of Michael Brown, Eric Garner, and police brutality in general.

I am personally outraged over these killings and strongly support overall goal of these protests which is to raise awareness of the inequities in our criminal justice system and to make it clear that black lives matter. I have participated in these protests over the last two days to show my solidarity for this movement. However, as the Councilmember for the Downtown, I am concerned over incidents of vandalism and violence by a small fringe segment of these protests whose goal is confrontation and damage not advancing the broader movement.

I understand that these protests have elicited a wide range of feelings on all sides, which is why even though the Mayor has cancelled tonight’s City Council meeting, Councilmember Kriss Worthington and I will be on the steps of Old City Hall (2134 MLK) tonight at 7 pm to hear from the protestors and from residents about their views. 

Hopefully through non-violent action and through dialogue we can heal as a community and a country, and make positive change to prevent these incidents of police brutality from happening in the future. 

- Jesse Arreguin, Berkeley City Councilmember, District 4 

Below is my official statement in regards to the recent events: 

First, it is important that the message that black lives matter does not get lost in the unfortunate events of the last 48 hours. 

I strongly support the overwhelming majority of protesters who are peacefully opposing the racial inequities in our criminal justice system. Unfortunately, there is very small and antagonistic fringe engaging in senseless destruction and violence that undermines the legitimate demands to reform our justice system. This fringe cares about mayhem, not the message. 

I also support our officers to the extent that they have been working to keep our community safe and apprehending violent agitators. However, their indiscriminate reaction in such a stressful situation has not been perfect and may have added fuel to the fire by targeting both peaceful and non-peaceful protesters alike with tear gas and rubber bullets. Witnessing firsthand the protest at its early stages last night, it is unfortunate that many innocent participants and members of the media have been literally caught in the middle of a cycle of violence. 

My heart goes out to those peaceful protesters who were injured by both aggressors and the police, and to the many businesses who were vandalized and whose property has been damaged. I hope going forward that the police will partner with peaceful protesters to proactively identify, isolate, and arrest those who have no respect for our community by committing violence and destruction

The Mayor’s office has just released this statement:

Dear members of the news media,

The regular Berkeley City Council meeting scheduled for 7 p.m. tonight, December 9, has been postponed, as well as the special Work Session scheduled for 5:30 p.m. this evening. The Council Chambers can hold about 125 people, and we understand substantially more people are interested in attending the meeting due to recent events in Berkeley. We want to ensure that the community has as much access as possible to public meetings. The Agenda for the December 9 meeting will be rescheduled for a future date and public notice will be given prior to that meeting. A notice of meeting cancellation will be issued by the City Clerk and publicly posted. We apologize for any inconvenience.

The Berkeley City Council has postponed its scheduled meeting for this evening because of planned disruptions by protesters, Mayor Tom Bates' office announced this afternoon. 

A protest announcement posted online had called on demonstrators to shut down the meeting and demand Bates' resignation over the police response to protests in Berkeley on Saturday, Sunday and Monday. 

The protests were the latest in a series over the police shooting death of 18-year-old Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, and the death of Eric Garner, 43, by a New York police officer's chokehold. 

While demonstrations in Oakland last week had been largely peaceful, protests in Berkeley Saturday quickly led to police tear-gassing protesters, who vandalized various businesses and hurled rocks and bottles at police officers. 

Sunday night's protests saw more vandalism before protesters marched to Oakland and blocked a freeway, where they were tear-gassed by the California Highway Patrol and eight were arrested. 

There was little vandalism in protests Monday night, but protesters again blocked a highway and Amtrak trains. Eventually the CHP arrested more than 150 demonstrators. 

With as many as 2,000 people attending Monday night's demonstrations and the call-out for protesters to attend this evening's City Council meeting, this evening's meeting was postponed. 

"The Council Chambers can hold about 125 people, and we understand substantially more people are interested in attending the meeting due to recent events in Berkeley," the mayor's office said in a statement. 

"We want to ensure that the community has as much access as possible to public meetings. The agenda for the December 9 meeting will be rescheduled for a future date and public notice will be given prior to that meeting," Bates' office said.

James Chang, aide to Berkeley Councilmember Jesse Arreguin, confirmed today that Mayor Tom Bates informed him that tonight's City Council meeting is being cancelled because there might be protesters in attendance, and the council chambers would be too small to hold them all. Chang said that Bates as the council's presiding officer under the city charter, has the power to cancel meetings at his sole discretion. Councilmember Kriss Worthington told the Planet that his aide, Alejandro Soto-Vigil, had been told the same thing, but he pointed out that the city of Berkeley could use some larger meeting rooms in buildings owned by the Berkeley Unified School District or Berkeley City College if the size of the council chambers in Berkeley's Maudelle Shirek Building (Old City Hall) is really the problem which Bates fears. A call to the Mayor's press aide, Charles Burress (who used to cover Berkeley for the San Francisco Chronicle) has not been returned.

2000 protesters surged onto the freeway and stopped traffic in both directions for hours in my neighborhood. They drove a vehicle onto the train tracks and stopped all the north-south train traffic. We figured they hated cars, but who knew they hated trains, one of my neighborhood's best features. 

My neighbors and I at University and San Pablo formed a perimeter line around our building making sure nobody stopped near our doors or windows. They apparently hate our co-tenant Wells Fargo, whose door they smashed in and tried to burn Saturday night, but they sure love its bank machine; dozens of protesters with their faces obscured in typical Berkeley protester fashion stopped for cash. I asked one of them to take the kerchief off of her face and she immediately did, claiming she was "peaceful." When I asked her why she was obscuring her face she said, "the police..." and that's all she had. 

The protesters were almost all on the phone, staring into lighted screens in the darkness, walking like zombies past the drunks and stoners on the corner while getting instructions, according to one, from some Twitter feed. So much for "organic" community rage. I'm not sure little hand-held gadgets make modern-day mobs any different than mobs of old, but they sure make them funnier to watch. It's clearly hard to walk in the dark while staring at them and gosh, texting must be a nightmare. 

I've worked on police accountability issues for over twenty years, and went to a meeting earlier in the evening hoping to enlist some support in dialing back the gratuitous vandalism, clarifying the message, channeling energy into more productive and creative expression, but there were no takers. People were bent on disrupting the next city council meeting to present a list of demands. Oh, and one young white student wanted to trash "the mall." 

Where's the mall? I didn't even know we had a mall. I excused myself and left. The only thing locally that resembles a mall are the beleaguered businesses under the Sather Gate parking structure which include Revolution Books. 

So don't say I didn't warn you when the protesters come for Revolution Books. Expect them to claim they were "provoked" by some title or other. Just sweep up the glass and imagine living next door to Wells Fargo

Berkeley police have announced this morning they arrested nine people in a "relatively peaceful" protest Monday night.  

Of the nine individuals, one is a juvenile. 

Monday's event marks another day in which people in the Bay Area have demonstrated to protest the treatment of unarmed African American men by white policemen.  

Berkeley police spokeswoman Jennifer Coats said demonstrators were relatively peaceful throughout the event. She is unaware of any looting or damage to property in the city. 

Also, Coats said there are no reports of injuries to Berkeley police officers or community members.

The California Highway Patrol has announced that it arrested more than 150 protesters in Monday's standoff that blocked traffic in both directions on Interstate Highway 80 in Berkeley for about 90 minutes. 

At about 8:30 p.m., a group of protesters broke through the perimeter fencing on the south side of the highway at Aquatic Park, officials said, and flooded onto the highway.  

Traffic stopped and the protesters began walking west in the eastbound lanes of traffic. CHP officers attempted to clear the highway of demonstrators and were met with violence, including assaults on officers with rocks and other objects, CHP officials said.  

Officers were able to stop the westward movement of protesters on I-80 at Powell Street and CHP officials report that the freeway reopened about 10 p.m. 

The law enforcement agency says it took the more than 150 individuals into custody for a variety of offenses including resisting/delaying/obstructing a peace officer. Officers booked the individuals into the Santa Rita Jail in Dublin without incident.  

The protest started before 8 p.m. in Berkeley and drew upwards of 1,500 people who marched on University Avenue before entering the highway. The CHP says it respects the right of people to peacefully assemble and demonstrate, but "the freeway is not the place to express one's opinions."  

Officials say a collision with a car at freeway speeds has the same effect on a person as if they fell from a five-story building.

When I first read Linda Maio’s statement about the protests, what I wanted to say was this. If you don’t want violence to occur on these demostrations, all you have to do is send the police home. There will be peacefulness. But then someone convinced me that that wouldn’t be enough. What you, Linda, and the rest of the city council need to do is get out there with the demonstrators, make yourselves known, march with them, and offer some solidarity with their cry for justice. You do believe in justice, don’t you?

Do you know the difference between a police department and an occupying army? The role of a police department is to protect people's rights, especially their right to call for justice from their own government. The role of an army of occupation is to insure that people obey the rule of power, and that any disobedience be squelched. And that inherently implies violence.

But after the people took over interstate 80 and shut down the Bay Bridge I realized that you have a bigger job. In fact, the job you have is so big I don’t think you can even see it. It is, as they say, too big to see. 

And that job is, to sit down with the demonstrators, and negotiate with them. And by negotiating with them, show that the city of Berkeley can do something that no other governmental entity in the entire US is up to doing. That is, being responsive to the demands made by the people. 

Can you dig the difference between being responsible (to whom?) and being responsive (to the people)? 

To negotiate will mean going among the demonstrators, calling them to a meeting right where they stand (or sit, or walk), and through discussions, figure out how Berkeley as a city can play a role in getting justice for the many victims of police violence (including our brother Oscar Grant, our own Kayla Moore, the young Michael Brown, the distressed Eric Garner, and the some 20 odd others that have been shot and killed by police since Aug. 7, 2014. 

The demonstrators are calling for justice for all these victims of police violence. These victims were all shot by members of the same Fraternal Order of Police to which the Berkeley police also belong . Your cops are members of the same organization as those that murder people all across the country. That is a place to start. Get the FOP to take a stand against murder. Get the FOP to declare murder a crime, no matter who commits it.

Dear residents,

This message follows the City Manager’s statement I forwarded to you yesterday. This one is from me.

The injustice that came to national attention in Ferguson and then Staten Island has deep roots, characterized by racism and fear, and it is widespread. It cannot, must not, be tolerated any longer. The police from these communities report they are feared and hated. They have the weaponry, authority, and power. Like apartheid in South Africa, there are two different realities, one far more powerful than the other. The question before all of us, as a community and as a nation, is where do we go from here to advance meaningful change.

I respect and support the demonstrations’ intent, but the violence and vandalism cannot be tolerated. I am extremely dismayed by the level of destruction and loss visited upon our city and its merchants. A small group of people have wreaked havoc on our Downtown, the Martin Luther King Jr. Civic Center, and businesses in other areas of our city. It is cowardly and senseless, accomplishing nothing but enmity toward the legitimate and peaceful protests, and their intent, which I support. 

Berkeley has an exemplary police force that is here to protect us. They have had to request mutual aid given the potential for violence. That means other police jurisdictions respond alongside our force. The mood was tense last night at the public safety building, where I was observing the protest, yet there was no violence at the early evening march. The late evening march was another matter. 

Some people have written about police abuses on Saturday and late last night. You have my word that we will look into every one. I trust our police will act in concert with Berkeley’s values. That does not mean that we will tolerate violence and looting in any form, and those participating in such acts will be arrested. 

Berkeley has a strong history of citizen protest coupled with nonviolence. We have heard there will be another demonstration tonight. Our goal is to support peaceful expressions of solidarity. 

--

Protesters continue to snarl traffic in Berkeley tonight on city streets, the freeway, public transit and train tracks.

They have blocked both directions of the Eastshore Highway near University Avenue twice tonight within an hour.

About a hundred protesters were seen entering eastbound lanes of the Eastshore Highway near University Avenue and some jumped over the center divide to westbound lanes around 8 p.m. CHP officers were able to quickly take the protesters off the freeway.

The off-ramps to University Avenue from the freeway where Interstate Highway 80 and Interstate Highway 580 intersect have been closed.

At about 8:45 p.m., protesters were seen walking on eastbound and westbound lanes of the freeway near University Avenue bringing cars to a halt.

The approaches to eastbound Highway 80 from Highway 580, Interstate Highway 880 and the Bay Bridge have been closed due to the protests, CHP officials said. 

Motorists have been advised to take state Highway 24 and Interstate Highway 680 as an alternate route, according to the CHP. 

Around 10:15 p.m., protesters were being cleared from both directions of the freeway but traffic was still backed up, CHP officials said.  

Near midnight, Ali Winston reported on Twitter that protesters were being arrested behind the Ross for Less store in the Emeryville shopping center adjacent to Powell Street, near the Powell freeway exit. He said that he himself had been detained for several hours by police who he said wouldn't look at his press credential, which was a message from a local editor on his phone. 

Demonstrators were also seen walking on a pedestrian overcrossing above the freeway south of University Avenue and were blocked by police. 

Berkeley firefighters have responded to a report of a woman in labor while stuck on the freeway shortly before 10 p.m., a fire dispatcher said. She has since been removed from the freeway and transported a hospital, according to a dispatcher. 

The large group has gathered in the city's downtown area against decisions made by grand juries to not indict white police officers in the deaths of unarmed black men Missouri and New York. 

Ferguson, Missouri police Officer Darren Wilson fatally shot Michael Brown, 18, in August and last month a grand jury did not indict Wilson, who has since resigned from his position. 

Garner, 43, was held in a chokehold by New York City police Officer Daniel Pantaleo and died in July. The grand jury's decision to not indict Pantaleo was announced last week. 

The march started around 5 p.m. at Bancroft Way and Telegraph Avenue near the University of California at Berkeley campus. The group then walked to Shattuck Avenue and reached the city's Police Department headquarters at 2100 Martin Luther King Jr. Way around 6:30 p.m. They then continued marching west to University Avenue, according to police. Police said the demonstrators have been peaceful, though some threw objects while at police headquarters. 

The Downtown Berkeley BART station at 2160 Shattuck Ave. was closed shortly before 6:30 p.m. due to the protests and trains were not stopping at the station, a BART dispatcher said. 

The station reopened at about 8:25 p.m., the dispatcher said. 

A line of police officers in riot gear attempted to block protesters from reaching Interstate Highway 580 in Berkeley this evening. 

The protesters were heard chanting "Hands up, don't shoot," as officers were assembled on Sixth Street at University Avenue at about 7:30 p.m. to prevent hundreds of protesters from entering the freeway. 

There were also demonstrators at San Pablo Avenue and Addison Street as of about 8 p.m., police said. Traffic is heavy in the downtown area including University Avenue and Martin Luther King Jr. Way, according to police. 

Around 8:30 p.m., protesters were seen blocking an Amtrak train near Addison and Second streets and remained there at about 10:15 p.m., police said. 

Protesters have also made their way to Emeryville near the Powell Street Plaza shopping center. 

Alameda-Contra Costa Transit officials said some buses have been detoured due to the protests and there may be delays on its Transbay lines such as the F and LC lines. 

Protests on Saturday and Sunday nights turned violent resulting in multiple arrests, vandalized businesses and injured police officers, according to police.

Berkeley police are reporting this morning that the protest Sunday night and earlier this morning over the failure of a New York grand jury to indict a white officer in the death of an unarmed black man has ended.  

Police officers made five arrests for various charges, said spokeswoman and Berkeley police Officer Jennifer Coats.  

One of the protestors arrested is allegedly responsible for the damage to Trader's Joes that occurred in Saturday night's protests. Police said the protestor used his skateboard to do the damage to the grocery store. 

Police said they arrested another person for throwing a heavy object that injured an officer in Saturday's protests. Both were arrested for those individual offenses as well as alleged offenses during the demonstrations Sunday night through this morning. 

Police did not say what those offenses are. 

Two officers suffered minor, non-life threatening injuries Sunday night, police said. 

A protestor was injured when he was assaulted with a hammer as he tried to stop other protestors from looting a Radio Shack on Shattuck Avenue. The injured protestor was taken to the hospital with injuries that were not considered life threatening, according to the police.  

Demonstrators smashed windows and looted stores, mainly along Shattuck Avenue and Telegraph Avenue in Berkeley, police said. The City of Berkeley's Department of Public Works is helping businesses affected by Sunday night's protests board up their windows to secure their property.  

Protests in the Bay Area have been frequent during the past week, and have occurred in Berkeley, Oakland, San Francisco and other locations.

It appears the demonstration has concluded. We are sending our officers home. We would like to thank the many agencies that assisted us this. I wanted to provide you with a brief update, before I head home this morning. I will be in late tomorrow.

We made five arrests connected with the demonstration for various charges (I don’t have a specific list of charges at this time). One of the arrested individuals was also the responsible who damaged Trader Joes the previous night using his skateboard. Another individual was arrested, was responsible for throwing a heavy object on Saturday, injury one of our officers. They were arrested for those offenses as well as additional charges for last night’s demonstration.  

We had two officers injured during last night’s demonstrations, both suffered minor non-life threatening injuries. 

We are aware of one protester who was injured when he was assaulted with a hammer when he attempted to keep other protestors from looting a Radio Shack on Shattuck Avenue. He was transported to a local hospital for his injuries, which were consider non-life threatening.  

There was significant damage cause to several business in Berkeley. The main focus of the damage appears to be along Telegraph Avenue as well as Shattuck Avenue. The City of Berkeley Public Works Department is in the process of helping secure, by boarding up windows for the business effected by last night’s demonstrations. Many of the businesses had windows smashed out and several stores were looted.  

Not sure when the next update will occur. I will be in later this afternoon.

Follow on Twitter for live updates #Berkeleyprotests,

12:20 a. m. Demonstrators have continued to march south on Shattuck Avenue near Oregon Street.Vandalism reported at Any Mountain and Walgreens. (BPD via Nixle). For full details, view this message on the web.

12:31 a.m. Demonstrators are now in the area of Telegraph Avenue and Ashby Avenue. Receiving reports of vandalism and looting at Whole Foods Market on Telegraph. (BPD via Nixle).



Related Searches: #oaklandprotest, berkeleyside, berkeley, #berkeleyprotests tonight, #berkeleyprotests livestream

Entered 4 minutes ago: Demonstrators now at Allston and MLK. Berkeley Police Department 

Entered 13 minutes ago: Demonstrators in the area of City Hall, 2180 Milvia Street

Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates this afternoon released the following statement about the recent protests in Berkeley:  

“I believe Berkeley citizens share in the nationwide concern over the events in Ferguson and New York City and recognize the need to address problems in police-community relations. I fully support the right of citizens to peacefully protest and exercise their First Amendment rights, but the violence we’ve seen the past two nights in Berkeley is unacceptable. 

“While the overwhelming majority of the demonstrators were non-violent, we have had numerous reports of masked demonstrators as the main perpetrators of the damage and destruction. We don’t know who they are, but they are not welcome in Berkeley. 

“We have also received accusations of police use of unnecessary force. Berkeley has one of the best police departments in the nation with an exemplary record of conduct. It’s possible that one or more officers may have exceeded what was required under the circumstances and could face discipline, but that determination requires an impartial review that we have not had an opportunity to complete yet. 

“Free speech and public dialogue are the cornerstone of Berkeley history. I urge protest organizers to communicate with City officials, as we have successfully done in the past, so that police can play a supportive role in diverting traffic from the protest route and helping to avoid possible confrontations with peaceful demonstrators. I hope tonight’s protest will follow in this tradition of Berkeley and be non-violent.”

(Saturday, December 6, 2014) -- It has just turned 10 o'clock. The sound of helicopters continues to rattle the night sky over North Berkeley. It's been like this for hours. 

What began as a rally on the UC Berkeley campus has morphed into a roving protest against police murders of unarmed civilians. It seems to be open season on young men of color from coast-to-coast in the Land of the Free. 

According to a recent posting on The Daily Kos, "Every 28 hours a black man, woman, or child is murdered by police or vigilante law enforcement." 

The public response to such an outrage was predictable: marches in the streets. The police response also followed a long tradition: form a police-line that blocks the path of the public march and invites a confrontation. 

But there is a modern addition to the decades-old bully-boy tactics of urban policing. Helicopters. 

On one hand, a police helicopter circling overhead during daylight hours can be seen as providing a public service—i.e., identifying, at a safe distance, a section of the city where holiday shopping might be temporarily inconvenienced or rendered inaccessible. 

At night, however, the rumble of circling choppers becomes an endless annoyance. But when cop-choppers are scrambled into the nighttime sky, this produces something more than an irritant. Though the police community would be loath to admit it, the presence of these helicopters actually helps fuel public anger and escalates the potential for community protests. 

What Good to Police Choppers Do? 

There is little strategic advantage to be gained by filling the evening air with the noise of spinning rotors and the din of hydrocarbon-spewing engines. The advantage is mainly psychological. Police helicopters are iconic: They are akin to flying cudgels. Helicopter sorties are designed to remind the people on the ground that they are less significant than the powerful few who control the weapons of civil repression. Pistols, rifles, batons, tear gas and helicopters all magnify the message: "We are as gods; We are all-powerful; We look down on you; We control your fate at our whim." 

Police choppers mainly serve as a high-flying show-of-force but they are self-defeating. Why? Because the very presence of these aircraft is a provocation—a bullying challenge that promotes anxiety and anger from below. 

One of the two helicopters droning overhead is equipped with a searchlight powerful enough to illuminate the proceedings on the ground. The brilliant spotlight cuts through the night sky accusingly, like God's index finger, pointing to the scene of any potential riot. 

A band of protesters walking down a city street has no way of announcing its presence to the broader community. Police helicopters do that work for the protesters. It's like having a tax-supported flying billboard constantly assaulting the eardrums and directing attention to small isolated acts of protest that would otherwise remain largely invisible. The racket—which is impossible to ignore—inevitably draws the curious and the rebellious alike toward the officially "forbidden" activity. 

Flying Billboards of Provocation? 

Do police helicopters really act as a beacon, attracting mobs and feeding rebellion? Are they, in legal parlance, an "attractive nuisance"? 

I decided to put my theory to the test. 

I put on my walking shoes and set out in the direction of the circling choppers. I assumed a delegation of protesters might have descended on the North Berkeley BART station and blocked train traffic. When I arrived at the station, however, there were no shouting crowds. But there were no trains to board, either. 

Berkeley police had shut the station down. A police officer on the other side of a locked metal grate explained that there were no protesters inside; the station had been locked down as a preventative measure. In short, the police had shut down the station to prevent the protesters from shutting down the station. 

Turning my eyes to the sky, I could see a helicopter armed with a searchlight zeroing into a location that appeared to be in the vicinity of University Avenue. Walking toward University, I found Acton closed off by police. The intersection at Berkeley Way was filled with a dozen motorcycle officers straddling their parked Harleys. 

As I passed, I gazed at them with curiosity. They glared back with suspicion. 

Approaching University Avenue, I could see lines of helmeted police officers decked out in riot gear. A tall BPD officer spun around, faced me and demanded to know where I was going. I was told that I would be allowed to pass through the police line only if I was not going to linger in the area and he made it very clear that I had no right to wander about behind the police line. 

Impasse at University and Acton 

As I passed through the BPD's Black Picket Fence, I was surprised to see a number of officers who were really quite small physically. Although it was difficult to tell (given the uniformity of their bulky black outfits), I concluded the smaller officers – a few barely topping 5 feet -- must have been women. 

Once through the police line, I could see another line of Berkeley police blocking all four lanes of University from one curb to the next. They were standing shoulder-to-shoulder with facemasks down and truncheons at the ready. Scores of additional riot-equipped officers lined both sides of the street. 

A small number of local residents and students (some of whom had stopped on their bicycles to observe the proceedings and snap photos) looked on. There appeared to be more police on the scene than there were protesters. Nonetheless, a police officer picked up a loudspeaker, identified himself, and began to warn the crowd that "under the laws of the State of California" their presence constituted an "illegal assembly." 

Unfortunately, his comments were difficult to hear because the loudspeaker interrupted his remarks with shrieks of feedback. At other times it cut out all together. Even the words that did manage to make it out of the bullhorn were rendered inaudible every time a helicopter passed overhead. 

The officer's half-delivered warning did not explain why the small crowd's Constitutional First Amendment rights had been rescinded. (It may have been because protesters had earlier blocked traffic on University Avenue. However, at that moment it was not protesters but the police who had made it impossible for traffic to move in either direction on University. Moreover, a wall of three motorcycle officers had taken up a position at University and Sacramento to block any cars from entering the area.) 

After a period of time, the officer made a second attempt to address the crowd. This time he had a new, more powerful bullhorn. But, ance again he failed to get the message out. He repeated that the gathering had been deemed an "illegal assembly" and had reached the point where he was supposed to spell out the consequences for "failure to disburse." If people failed to leave peacefully, he announced, "You will be subject to arrest and other consequences of police response, which may include the use of less-than-lethal…." 

At this point, the bullhorn's battery apparently gave out. The sentence remained unfinished and, as far as I could tell, no further warnings were issued. 

Repositioning 

I decided to leave the area. As I walked east toward the UC campus, I was passed by a half-dozen college-aged students who were laughing among themselves about the fact that the police gathered at the intersection apparently did not realize that "Everyone has already left the area!" and protesters were already headed to a new protest site. 

About 10 minutes later, this development apparently reached the "higher-ups" and the helicopters abruptly left the airspace over Ledgers Liquors and headed east to towards Telegraph Avenue. 

While it is a simple matter to redeploy a helicopter, it was clear that it would be a much more cumbersome chore to gather all the riot-helmeted and motorcycle-straddling police assembled in and around the University-Acton intersection and ship them across town to a new theater of operations. And, of course, if the protesters continued to be nimble (instead of confrontational), they could play this scenario endlessly, forcing the police to break camp time and time again. 

It is now nearly 11 o'clock and the monotonous drumming of the helicopters has finally left the skies. It looks like we will finally be allowed to get a good night's rest. 

Here's hoping that no tear gas canisters will be launched, no heads will be banged in by truncheons, no storefront glass will be shattered and everyone will be able to head home without breaking a sweat.

From: Northern California Society of Professional Journalists Freedom of Information Committee Sent: Sunday, December 07, 2014 04:50 PM To: Berkeley Mayor's Office; Meehan, Michael Subject: Urgent - Police assault journalists in Berkeley

Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates

Berkeley Police Chief Michael K. Meehan

By Email

Dear Mayor Bates and Chief Meehan:

The Northern California chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists condemns, in the strongest terms possible, the outrageous conduct of law enforcement officers who assaulted members of the media during last night’s (Saturday, Dec. 6, 2014) demonstrations in Berkeley, California. You have an obligation to ensure that all officers, including those providing mutual aid, respect the constitutional rights of the press.

SPJ has been in touch with a number of working journalists who say they were struck with police batons while working and clearly displaying press credentials. In one incident, a journalist who was on assignment tells SPJ that he was holding out press credentials and telling an officer he was a news photographer when struck. This same journalist also reported seeing a colleague take “serious blows” from police who “hit him with impunity,” despite the fact that the colleague was “obviously press.” Other reporters also described witnessing or experiencing similar assaults. 

Even more disturbing, several journalists confirm that an officer struck a news photographer in the head with a baton. As you know, this can constitute deadly force and is only justifiable under extremely limited circumstances.[1] (As the California Court of Appeal noted in an unpublished 2010 opinion, even when using a baton as deadly force, “officers should avoid striking a suspect's head because of the potential for serious injury or death.”)[2] 

We are sure that you agree attacks on journalists are entirely unacceptable. Reporters are on scene to report the news as it happens. They are not participants in the protests. Under no circumstances should members of the press be subject to such gratuitous and potentially deadly police violence. 

Word is being spread of plans for another protest to begin in Berkeley at 5 p.m. today, Sunday Dec. 7, 2014. We implore you to ensure that all law enforcement officials working tonight’s protest, including those providing mutual aid, adhere to their constitutional obligations and respect the freedom of the press. We also call for a thorough investigation into inappropriate uses of force by officers against members of the news media. 

We look forward to your response. 

Lila Lahood 

President, SPJ Nothern California Chapter 

Geoffrey W. King 

Thomas Peele 

Co-Chairs, SPJ Norcal Freedom of Information Committee

Currently, the demonstrators are in the area of Shattuck Avenue and Center Street. Several businesses are being damaged and looted. As a safety precaution please avoid the area.

(Saturday, December 6, 2014) -- It has just turned 10 o'clock. The sound of helicopters continues to rattle the night sky over North Berkeley. It's been like this for hours. 

What began as a rally on the UC Berkeley campus has morphed into a roving protest against police murders of unarmed civilians. It seems to be open season on young men of color from coast-to-coast in the Land of the Free. 

According to a recent posting on The Daily Kos, "Every 28 hours a black man, woman, or child is murdered by police or vigilante law enforcement." 

The public response to such an outrage was predictable: marches in the streets. The police response also followed a long tradition: form a police-line that blocks the path of the public march and invites a confrontation. 

But there is a modern addition to the decades-old bully-boy tactics of urban policing. Helicopters. 

On one hand, a police helicopter circling overhead during daylight hours can be seen as providing a public service—i.e., identifying, at a safe distance, a section of the city where holiday shopping might be temporarily inconvenienced or rendered inaccessible. 

At night, however, the rumble of circling choppers becomes an endless annoyance. But when cop-choppers are scrambled into the nighttime sky, this produces something more than an irritant. Though the police community would be loath to admit it, the presence of these helicopters actually helps fuel public anger and escalates the potential for community protests. 

What Good to Police Choppers Do? 

There is little strategic advantage to be gained by filling the evening air with the noise of spinning rotors and the din of hydrocarbon-spewing engines. The advantage is mainly psychological. Police helicopters are iconic: They are akin to flying cudgels. Helicopter sorties are designed to remind the people on the ground that they are less significant than the powerful few who control the weapons of civil repression. Pistols, rifles, batons, tear gas and helicopters all magnify the message: "We are as gods; We are all-powerful; We look down on you; We control your fate at our whim." 

Police choppers mainly serve as a high-flying show-of-force but they are self-defeating. Why? Because the very presence of these aircraft is a provocation—a bullying challenge that promotes anxiety and anger from below. 

One of the two helicopters droning overhead is equipped with a searchlight powerful enough to illuminate the proceedings on the ground. The brilliant spotlight cuts through the night sky accusingly, like God's index finger, pointing to the scene of any potential riot. 

A band of protesters walking down a city street has no way of announcing its presence to the broader community. Police helicopters do that work for the protesters. It's like having a tax-supported flying billboard constantly assaulting the eardrums and directing attention to small isolated acts of protest that would otherwise remain largely invisible. The racket—which is impossible to ignore—inevitably draws the curious and the rebellious alike toward the officially "forbidden" activity. 

Flying Billboards of Provocation? 

Do police helicopters really act as a beacon, attracting mobs and feeding rebellion? Are they, in legal parlance, an "attractive nuisance"? 

I decided to put my theory to the test. 

I put on my walking shoes and set out in the direction of the circling choppers. I assumed a delegation of protesters might have descended on the North Berkeley BART station and blocked train traffic. When I arrived at the station, however, there were no shouting crowds. But there were no trains to board, either. 

Berkeley police had shut the station down. A police officer on the other side of a locked metal grate explained that there were no protesters inside; the station had been locked down as a preventative measure. In short, the police had shut down the station to prevent the protesters from shutting down the station. 

Turning my eyes to the sky, I could see a helicopter armed with a searchlight zeroing into a location that appeared to be in the vicinity of University Avenue. Walking toward University, I found Acton closed off by police. The intersection at Berkeley Way was filled with a dozen motorcycle officers straddling their parked Harleys. 

As I passed, I gazed at them with curiosity. They glared back with suspicion. 

Approaching University Avenue, I could see lines of helmeted police officers decked out in riot gear. A tall BPD officer spun around, faced me and demanded to know where I was going. I was told that I would be allowed to pass through the police line only if I was not going to linger in the area and he made it very clear that I had no right to wander about behind the police line. 

Impasse at University and Acton 

As I passed through the BPD's Black Picket Fence, I was surprised to see a number of officers who were really quite small physically. Although it was difficult to tell (given the uniformity of their bulky black outfits), I concluded the smaller officers – a few barely topping 5 feet -- must have been women. 

Once through the police line, I could see another line of Berkeley police blocking all four lanes of University from one curb to the next. They were standing shoulder-to-shoulder with facemasks down and truncheons at the ready. Scores of additional riot-equipped officers lined both sides of the street. 

A small number of local residents and students (some of whom had stopped on their bicycles to observe the proceedings and snap photos) looked on. There appeared to be more police on the scene than there were protesters. Nonetheless, a police officer picked up a loudspeaker, identified himself, and began to warn the crowd that "under the laws of the State of California" their presence constituted an "illegal assembly." 

Unfortunately, his comments were difficult to hear because the loudspeaker interrupted his remarks with shrieks of feedback. At other times it cut out all together. Even the words that did manage to make it out of the bullhorn were rendered inaudible every time a helicopter passed overhead. 

The officer's half-delivered warning did not explain why the small crowd's Constitutional First Amendment rights had been rescinded. (It may have been because protesters had earlier blocked traffic on University Avenue. However, at that moment it was not protesters but the police who had made it impossible for traffic to move in either direction on University. Moreover, a wall of three motorcycle officers had taken up a position at University and Sacramento to block any cars from entering the area.) 

After a period of time, the officer made a second attempt to address the crowd. This time he had a new, more powerful bullhorn. But, ance again he failed to get the message out. He repeated that the gathering had been deemed an "illegal assembly" and had reached the point where he was supposed to spell out the consequences for "failure to disburse." If people failed to leave peacefully, he announced, "You will be subject to arrest and other consequences of police response, which may include the use of less-than-lethal…." 

At this point, the bullhorn's battery apparently gave out. The sentence remained unfinished and, as far as I could tell, no further warnings were issued. 

Repositioning 

I decided to leave the area. As I walked east toward the UC campus, I was passed by a half-dozen college-aged students who were laughing among themselves about the fact that the police gathered at the intersection apparently did not realize that "Everyone has already left the area!" and protesters were already headed to a new protest site. 

About 10 minutes later, this development apparently reached the "higher-ups" and the helicopters abruptly left the airspace over Ledgers Liquors and headed east to towards Telegraph Avenue. 

While it is a simple matter to redeploy a helicopter, it was clear that it would be a much more cumbersome chore to gather all the riot-helmeted and motorcycle-straddling police assembled in and around the University-Acton intersection and ship them across town to a new theater of operations. And, of course, if the protesters continued to be nimble (instead of confrontational), they could play this scenario endlessly, forcing the police to break camp time and time again. 

It is now nearly 11 o'clock and the monotonous drumming of the helicopters has finally left the skies. It looks like we will finally be allowed to get a good night's rest. 

Here's hoping that no tear gas canisters will be launched, no heads will be banged in by truncheons, no storefront glass will be shattered and everyone will be able to head home without breaking a sweat.

Demonstrations in Berkeley against police brutality have moved into Oakland this evening and breached state Highway 24 at 51 Street, according to police and protesters.

A California Highway Patrol officer said eastbound Highway 24 was closed due to police activity. Reports and photos on Twitter showed protestors on the freeway blocking traffic.

Demonstrator Alessandro Tiberio said the protest began at Bancroft and Telegraph avenues around 5 p.m. with only 50 people. Soon, the crowd swelled to 500 or more, according to Tiberio and police.

Tiberio said the march started with "very positive energy." He came to the demonstration to support black people who are protesting, he said.

"I'm an ally," Tiberio said. "It's important to stay focused on the fact that black lives matter. It's not that all lives don't matter but I'm here to support especially the black people who are most often the ones victimized by the police."

Berkeley police Officer Jennifer Coats said at least one demonstrator sustained minor injuries when he tried to prevent a business's windows from being broken by someone at the demonstration. 

"One protester was trying to stop another protester from looting and he was struck with a hammer," Coats said, adding the man was transported to the hospital with injuries not considered life threatening. No Berkeley police officers were injured tonight, Coats said. 

The demonstrators left Berkeley and marched into Oakland around 8:30 p.m. Coats said the group splintered into two groups and accounts on Twitter indicated they met up again near the freeway entrance to Highway 24. 

Six people were arrested Saturday night during demonstrations in Berkeley, which coincided with dozens of protests in the Bay Area and across the country this week against police brutality.  

Demonstrators have taken to the streets every day in Oakland since a Wednesday grand jury's decision not to indict a white New York police officer in the chokehold death of Eric Garner, an unarmed black man.  

The demonstrations this week follow similar protests the week prior stemming from a Nov. 24 grand jury decision not to indict Ferguson, Missouri, police Officer Darren Wilson in the death of 18-year-old Michael Brown.

We live on Regent St. and were at home when we started having burning eyes, skin and lungs. It seems that the police had started firing tear gas at the demonstrators on Telegraph Avenue. This is the most densely populated area in the city and the result of this police action had a direct impact on the residents living up here. When I called the 911 number and reported the problem and asked them to stop the tear gassing, the dispatcher said it was the protestors who had used tear gas and missiles against the police. They did not seem to care that the police action of gassing Telegraph Avenue was harming residents. Shades of the 1960s and James Rector.

Protesters tried to set fire to my apartment building last night, white people in masks who were stopped by my young Latino neighbors. The protesters brought a tank of gas with them to the march. We had to rescue a recycling bin, which they wanted to use as a barricade or perhaps burn. All this does is hemorrhage overtime pay into police pockets and frighten people away from joining marches.

We have children in this building. We have dozens of residents who stood in front of our apartments astonished at being targeted, watching the circling helicopters in the moonlit sky. We have everything in common with people who oppose police brutality and support police accountability. We are old and young, we are black, white, latino, asian, and pacific islanders. We are a rainbow community with stories of our own about police misconduct.

What do you masked protesters prove with broken windows? What message do you send by smashing into a grocery store, a yarn store, or even the local Wells Fargo branch, which is right under my neighbors' apartment homes?

I'm not someone who has not marched, sat in, gone to jail. But I will not provide cover for cowards who exploit a peaceful effort to join the national voice against police corruption at a crucial moment. Broken windows might catch a photographer's or reporter's attention momentarily, but whatever ambiguous message vandalism sends is not nearly as powerful as numbers, which masked vandals never seem to master. Peaceful, nonviolent tactics don't just sound nice; they are the practical path to change.

Police this morning said six people were arrested during an overnight protest that turned violent in Berkeley. 

Berkeley police spokeswoman Jennifer Coats said five adults and 1 juvenile were arrested. Police did not immediately release information on what the people were arrested for. 

The protest started peacefully Saturday but turned violent and lasted well into the morning hours. 

Police said a small group of protestors started hurling bricks, pipes, smoke grenades and other items at officers. 

The protest, one of several in the Bay Area over the past few nights, was in response to a New York grand jury's decision on Wednesday to not indict a white police officer in the chokehold death of Eric Garner, an unarmed black man. 

The protest mostly followed the along the Telegraph Avenue area and on nearby streets. 

Coats said at least one police officer was transported to the hospital after suffering a dislocated shoulder after being hit with a large sandbag. Several officers reportedly were hit with projectiles thrown by protestors. 

Some protestors made their way through several Berkeley neighborhoods and vandalized cars, broke windows and looted businesses. 

Coats said police ended up using smoke and tear gas to disperse crowds as protestors continued to vandalize businesses. 

Several police vehicles were also vandalized during the protests. 

Hundreds of protesters marched from the UC campus down to west Berkeley and stopped traffic briefly at the corner of University and San Pablo Avenue Friday night. Protesters smashed glass and vandalized property at the intersection's largest building which has several commercial properties as well as 26 residential apartment units, some housing families with children, which are part of a low-income housing co-op. They tagged the front wall of the building with the traditional anarchist symbol of the letter A in a circle. The protesters attempted to set the building on fire until two young Latino tenants of the building, physically stopped them. 

One of the other tenants encountered a protester she described as a middle-aged long-haired white man as he was rolling their recycling bin away from the building. When she remonstrated with him, he told her it belonged to Wells Fargo and he was taking it to block the freeway. She told him it belonged to the apartments, and insisted that he put it back in place, which he did reluctantly. 

One observer said that most of the protesters she saw at this location were white and probably at least 40 years old. 

The police were absent during the vandalism and arson attempt, arriving fifteen minutes later in full riot gear when the protestors had moved north on San Pablo, and took no reports from witnesses.

In Berkeley about midnight tonight a line of unmarked white vans, SUVs and large sedan equipped with flashing red and blue lights moved across Bowditch adjacent to the First Church of Christ Scientist and People's Park, turning down Channing to park in the block between Bowditch and Telegraph.

At about 12:30 a group of demonstrators was contained on Telegraph at Channing between two lines of police in riot gear, with additional police lines a block away in either direction.

It seems very likely that mass arrests are imminent, and these vehicles have been assembled to transport arrested persons. 

A live stream that appeared to be coming from outside the line of police at Dwight showed a crowd of observers who looked like most of them were young, student-age white people. Some were taunting the police, with occasional chants of "Hands up, don't shoot" accompanied by upraised hands.

A protest in Berkeley turned violent Saturday night when a small group of protestors began hurling bricks, pipes, smoke grenades and missiles at officers, police said. 

The protest, one of several in the Bay Area over the past few nights, is in response to a New York grand jury's decision on Wednesday to not indict a white police officer in the chokehold death of Eric Garner, an unarmed black man. 

Police spokeswoman Jennifer Coats said the protests began peacefully, moved from Telegraph Avenue into the downtown area and then to the front of the Police and Fire Public Safety Building. 

Coats said small splinter groups then broke from the peaceful demonstrators and began throwing rocks, pipes and bottles at officers. 

The projectiles struck numerous officers, and one officer hit with a large sandbag was treated at a local hospital for a dislocated shoulder. 

Coats said the groups went through several Berkeley neighborhoods and vandalized cars, broke windows and looted businesses. 

The crowd continued marching to Martin Luther King Jr. Way and University Avenue, where protestors vandalized businesses on University Avenue, including Trader Joe's, Radio Shack and a Wells Fargo Bank. 

The crowd moved west, splintered and regrouped several times as it moved to University Avenue and then to east of San Pablo Avenue and nearby streets. 

Coats said Berkeley police used smoke and tear gas after crowds refused to disperse and protestors continued to vandalize local businesses and pelt officers with rocks, bottles and pipes. Several police vehicles were vandalized as the crowd moved through the south campus area. 

Police were still working to disperse the crowds just before midnight. 

More than a hundred officers from the Alameda County Sheriff's Office, Oakland Police Department, Pleasanton Police Department, Hayward Police Department, Alameda Police Department, California Highway Patrol and BART Police Department responded to support Berkeley police. 

The exact number of arrests and injuries during the protest was not immediately available. 

Copyright © 2014 by Bay City News, Inc. -- Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited. 

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A standoff with police and protesters in Berkeley Saturday evening continued with police firing teargas and smoke at protesters to disperse them, police said.  

Berkeley police officer Jennifer Coats said the group is a smaller splinter group from the protests, and members of that splinter group are being violent. Members are throwing rocks and bricks at officers, Coats said.  

Officers have given several orders for the crowd to disperse, but without effect, forcing officers to use the tear gas. Two officers have reported being injured in the protests, with one officer requiring treatment at a hospital for a shoulder injury.  

A police van has been vandalized.  

As of about 11 p.m., protesters were marching in the vicinity of 66th Street and Telegraph Avenue. 

The protests in Berkeley began peacefully around 5 p.m. as roughly 400 people marched down Shattuck Avenue towards downtown Berkeley.  

The group turned violent in the area of University Avenue and Martin Luther King Jr. Way, with some people smashing windows and vandalizing businesses, Coats said. 

Some of the demonstrators fought and argued with the vandals, putting themselves in front of store windows, according to accounts and photos on Twitter. 

Coats said at least one officer sustained minor injuries after demonstrators threw rocks and other projectiles at police. Berkeley police Officer Byron White said on Twitter that the demonstrators also released gas into the crowd.  

"So far, protesters have thrown sandbags, pipes, bricks, sideview mirrors, and smoke grenades at officers," White said on Twitter at 9:39 p.m. 

Multiple reports on Twitter showed pictures of windows broken at the Trader Joe's grocery store on University Avenue along with produce crates strewn in the street and wine bottles smashed on the ground. 

There were also reports on Twitter of protesters marching near the University Avenue entrance to Interstate Highway 80 in an effort to breach the freeway. A California Highway Patrol officer said protesters did not make it onto the freeway and only caused temporary delays. 

The downtown and North Berkeley BART stations were both shut down due to the protests but were open as of 11:15 p.m. BART officials said there are no delays in the system. 

After shutting down the BART station, protesters were eventually blocked in by police at the intersection of Durant and Telegraph avenues, according to Twitter accounts.  

The protesters refused to leave and police fired tear gas to disperse the crowd, which police had declared an unlawful assembly.  

Photos and accounts on Twitter showed garbage cans pulled out into the street and set on fire on Telegraph Avenue.  

The demonstration started around 5 p.m. in response to a New York grand jury's decision on Wednesday to not indict a white police officer in the chokehold death of Eric Garner, an unarmed black man.  

The protest is one of dozens that have taken place across the Bay Area and the country in the past two weeks, including protests Saturday afternoon in Oakland and San Francisco, against police brutality.  

The demonstrations in Oakland were very peaceful and police said they did not even respond to the crowd, which moved through businesses in the retail corridors of the Rockridge neighborhood.  

An Oakland police watch commander said there were no reports of arrests Friday night after demonstrations shut down Interstate Highway 880 and the West Oakland BART station before returning to downtown Oakland, where it dissipated.  

In San Francisco, demonstrators marched down Market Street and staged a "die-in" at Powell Street, according to accounts and photos on Twitter. Eventually, police arrested protesters on Market Street, but Officer Gordon Shyy said he would not be able to say how many people were arrested until Monday. 

San Francisco police responded to a report of a person who threw a large firecracker near a construction site in the unit block of Fifth Street during the demonstrations, Shyy said. 

The firecracker detonated but no one was injured, Shyy said. 

Police stopped the suspect vehicle, where officers found a second firecracker. Shyy said the department's bomb squad responded and handled the explosive at the scene.

FERKELEY-- This evening, a peaceful protest turned violent when several splinter groups broke off and began hurling bricks, pipe, smoke grenades, and other missiles at officers. 

The protest began peacefully, and moved from Telegraph Avenue into the downtown area, and then to in front of the Police and Fire Public Safety Building. There, a small portion of the group splintered from the peaceful demonstrators and started throwing rocks, pipes and bottles at officers. Numerous officers were struck, and one officer was struck with a large sandbag, and treated at a local hospital for a dislocated shoulder. These splinter groups also ran through several Berkeley neighborhoods vandalizing cars and breaking windows and looting businesses. 

The crowd continued marching, arriving on Martin Luther King Jr. Way and University Avenue. Members of the crowd began vandalizing businesses on University Avenue, including Trader Joe’s Radio Shack, and Wells Fargo Bank. 

The crowd moved west, splintered and regrouped several times, as they moved to 6th/University, then back east to San Pablo Avenue and nearby streets, and eventually east up University Avenue, through the downtown area, and up Bancroft Way to Telegraph Ave. 

Berkeley Police used smoke and tear gas after crowds refused to disperse and continued to vandalize local businesses and pelt officers with rocks, bottles, and pipes. 

Numerous police vehicles were vandalized as the crowd moved through the south campus area. 

This event is ongoing at this time.  

The Berkeley Police Department is being supported by over a hundred officers from the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office, Oakland Police Department, Pleasanton Police Department, Hayward Police Department, Alameda Police Department, California Highway Patrol and the BART Police Department. 

The total number of arrests and injuries is not known at this time.

Protestors in Berkeley block an Amtrak train and then face off against police in a demonstration to protest the murders of Black men by police around the country, and the impunity of police who commit these crimes.

Market Street in San Francisco has cleared and traffic resumed following a protest in response to a New York City grand jury's decision not to indict a police officer in the death of Eric Garner, an unarmed black man who died while in a police chokehold restraint. 

The protest in San Francisco, in which protestors staged a "die-in" at Powell and Market Streets, blocked traffic for more than an hour.  

In Oakland, hundreds of protesters gathered near the corner of 14th Street and Broadway at about 5 p.m. this evening, chanting "Justice for Eric Garner," only about 10 days after massive protests in the city began over a similar grand jury decision in Missouri. 

In the Missouri case, a grand jury chose not to indict police Officer Darren Wilson for shooting and killing 18-year-old Michael Brown in August.  

In the New York case, a grand jury today declined to indict Officer Daniel Pantaleo for using a chokehold that led to Garner's death. 

In Oakland this evening protestors marched down Broadway and were stopped by a line of officers in riot gear before reaching police headquarters. They then moved through downtown, with smaller marches converging on the main protest, and down Broadway to the Piedmont Avenue business district area.  

Some protesters hold signs that read "I can't breathe," evoking Garner's words as he was choked by Pantaleo. Garner's arrest and death were captured on video. 

"We got a lot of issues we need to handle. They're killing us and it's not just black people it's all people of color, " Satima Flaherty, 27, said to the gathered crowd. "They're killing us back to back and they're laughing at us -- it's a mockery." 

As of around 9 p.m. remaining protestors had reportedly gathered again near Oakland City Hall.  

Protests have been held nationwide since Brown's death against the use of lethal force by police officers, particularly against black men. 

Similar protests went on for three days last week following the Missouri grand jury's decision. About 2,000 people participated on Monday with smaller crowds gathering on Tuesday and Wednesday. Oakland police made a total of 169 arrests as freeways were blocked, fires were set, windows were broken and businesses were looted.  

U.S. Rep. Barbara Lee issued a statement today expressing outrage at the grand jury's verdict and calling on the U.S. Justice Department to investigate. 

"We cannot allow the senseless murders of black men to continue," Lee said. "These tragedies have been happening for many years," she said.  

"But the recent high profile cases of injustice for the families of Eric Garner and Michael Brown have and should spark a national debate and long overdue action to address the structural and institutional racial biases in our nation." 

Oakland City Council member Desley Brooks also issued a statement today saying that today's "collective outcry against injustice" comes from an expectation that everyone deserves an environment that is "safe and conducive for the pursuit of happiness, as our Declaration of Independence promises. 

"I'm proud to call Oakland home," Brooks said. "I'm proud of the deep-rooted culture here that always calls for justice and fairness and the protection of all of our citizens."

Officers are seeking the identities of two suspects who vandalized and stole from a University of California at Berkeley building last month, university police officials said. 

Police responded to reports of vandalism and theft at Haas Pavilion at 11:21 a.m. on Nov. 16, according to Detective Harry Benningson. 

Video surveillance captured images of the two suspects at 2:25 a.m. that day. 

The suspects cased for unlocked doors, removed a fire extinguisher, emptied its contents on the main event floor and dropped the extinguisher, causing damage to the wooden floor, Benningson said. 

The suspects also stole two video cameras, UC credentials and a scarf, which they were seen wearing on camera. 

Anyone who spots these suspects or has information about their identities is asked to contact UCPD at (510) 642-4909 or (510) 642-6760.

Two of three suspects in the armed robbery and kidnapping of a couple sitting in a car at an overlook in the Berkeley hills on Thanksgiving have been arrested for similar crimes in Oakland, University of California at Berkeley police said today. 

Police said the victims, a 26-year-old woman and a 23-year-old male, were parked at a dirt turn-out on Grizzly Peak Boulevard around 2 a.m. last Thursday, sitting in their vehicle looking out toward the Bay, when three suspects approached them. 

The suspects, two of whom were armed with guns and one with a baseball bat, demanded money, campus police said. 

The victims didn't have any money, so one suspect got into their vehicle and ordered them to drive to an ATM while the other suspects drove behind them in a second vehicle, according to police. 

The victims took money out at an ATM and gave it to the suspects, who then left the area. 

The victims, who are not affiliated with UC Berkeley, were not injured. 

The suspects' vehicle is described by police as a 2005 orange and gray Honda Element. 

UC Berkeley police Lt. Eric Tejada said two of the suspects have been arrested by Oakland police for similar crimes in their city but one suspect remains at large. 

Tejada said police believe the two suspects were involved in the incident on Grizzly Peak in Berkeley but haven't yet formally arrested them for that incident or turned the case over to the Alameda County District Attorney's Office for charges. 

Tejada said police have reason to believe that the suspects committed additional crimes in the Berkeley and Oakland hills last Wednesday night and early Thursday morning and are asking other people who may have been victims to come forward. 

Campus police said people who have any information about the Grizzly Peak incident or any other similar incidents should call Detective Brendan Tinney at (510) 642-6760.

A man who was found dead at Aquatic Park in Berkeley on Sunday afternoon was identified by an Alameda County coroner spokeswoman today as 51-year-old Gary Baker. 

The spokeswoman didn't immediately have information about where Baker lived. 

Berkeley police said officers found Baker after they responded to a report of a man lying motionless on his back in the south side of Aquatic Park at 4:12 p.m. Sunday. He was pronounced dead at the scene. 

Police said homicide detectives are investigating the case as a suspicious death. 

Berkeley police couldn't immediately be reached for comment today on the status of their investigation into Baker's death.

On the 50th anniversary of Mario Savio’s famous speech on Sproul steps during the height of the Free Speech Movement, The Open University will be hosting a Speak Out and Rally on Sproul on Dec. 2 at noon.  

Students speakers from various groups including a student-parent from the Village Residents Association, students from environmental coalitions, and more will be speaking. Campus and community workers including AFSCME 3299, Teamsters 2010, and fast food workers from the movement fighting for $15 hourly wage will be speaking. Professors including Khalid Kadir - lecturer in International and Area Studies and Global Poverty and Practice - and Leopold Podlashuc - visiting lecturer from South Africa in the History Department - will be speaking. Community activist Ellen Choi from Movement Generation will be speaking. We will all be speaking out about the tuition hikes. Our voices have power and we will use them to not only commemorate the legacy of the FSM, but also to defend our public education.  

Our movement is not over, and we will continue to speak out against the tuition hikes that have continued to deny Californians the right to an affordable education and against the privatization of our public education. Join us in our fight. 

"There's a time when the operation of the machine becomes so odious, makes you so sick at heart, that you can't take part! You can't even passively take part! And you've got to put your bodies upon the gears and upon the wheels…upon the levers, upon all the apparatus, and you've got to make it stop! And you've got to indicate to the people who run it, to the people who own it, that unless you're free, the machine will be prevented from working at all!" - Mario Savio

Police are investigating the death of a man in his 50's in Berkeley this afternoon as a homicide, police said. 

Officers responded to a report of man lying motionless on his back in the south side of Aquatic Park at 4:12 p.m.  

Police said officers found him deceased at the scene. 

Homicide detectives are investigating the incident as a suspicious death, police said. 

No further information was immediately available.

Only 40,301 ballot were cast in Berkeley in the November 4 election. This is the smallest number in any November election going back to 1980.

Only 50.4% of those registered to vote in Berkeley cast ballots, also below previous lows of 55% in 1980 and 58.9% in 2002. Turnout in Berkeley in gubernatorial elections has typically been 60% or higher since 1980. In presidential election years turnout has been even higher, with a peak turnout of 77.5% in 2008. In that year, 66,703 ballots were cast in Berkeley, 66% more than the number cast this year.

While turnout was down citywide compared to the last gubernatorial election in 2010, when 49,640 votes were cast, a sharp drop off in student voting is responsible for this year's vote falling below the previous citywide low of 41,363 votes in 2002.

Countywide, turnout was only 45.0%, and the Chronicle reported on Monday that turnout statewide was 42%, well below the previous statewide low of 50.5% in 2002.

The drop-off in votes in Berkeley is even more remarkable when you consider that between 1980 and 2010, the local population grew 9%, from 103,328 to 112,580. It has continued to grow since 2010 according the Census Bureau. So the number of people voting was down despite an increase in the number of those eligible to vote.  

Student Turnout  

The decline in student voting can be seen clearly in the pitifully low vote in District 7, the newly created student supermajority district south of the UC campus. Only 1805 votes were cast there. This represents a turnout of 21.0% of registered voters. The number of votes cast in District 7 is less than half the number cast in District 4, the central Berkeley district, which has a significant but smaller student population, and less than a quarter of the votes cast in District 5, a predominantly homeowner district located east of Spruce and north of Cedar, with few student residents. 

Student turnout has always been lower than non-student turnout in Berkeley, but his year it reached new lows not previously seen in November elections. In presidential elections a lot more students vote than in gubernatorial elections. 2008, the year that Obama won his first term, was a year of record high turnout in Berkeley. That year over 75% voted in two student dormitory precincts, and there was an average turnout of two-thirds in student precincts north of Dwight Way. But even at its peak in 2008, student turnout was below the citywide average turnout of 77.5%. 

Comparing the student vote this year to previous elections, the number of votes cast in seven precincts located north of Dwight Way near campus was down 59% compared to the 2010 gubernatorial election and down 83% compared to the peak-turnout 2008 presidential election. In excess of 85% of the residents of these precincts are students. 

The drop off is student voting was not confined to District 7. Precincts with substantial student populations like the Downtown precincts in District 4 and on the Northside precincts in District 6 also saw a sharp drop in voting that exceeded the citywide drop of 18.8% compared to 2010. In the absence of exit polls or surveys, it's impossible to say whether the students in these more mixed precincts turned out in different proportions to the precincts' non-students, but there is a clear correlation between percent of students in a precinct and the extent of the drop off in voting. 

Redistricting resulted in substantial changes to district boundaries which makes district-level turnout comparisons with previous elections problematic. But it is possible to compare turnout in clusters of precincts that kept the same boundaries. Based on that, the number of votes cast in non-student areas of the city, compared to 2010, dropped by amounts ranging from 10% for four District 5 precincts near Solano and Marin to 16% for five District 4 precincts west of MLK, with groups of precincts in Districts 1 and 8 experiencing drops of 11 or 12%. 

Why was student turnout so low this year? First and foremost, because it was not a presidential election year. But it was also low in comparison to other gubernatorial years. The absence of any hot races at the top of the ballot may help to explain it. Few people doubted that Jerry Brown would be re-elected governor and he won easily by 60%-40% according to the not quite final count. There was no U.S. Senate race this year which, with control of the Senate being hotly contested, might have inspired more students to go to the polls. This year's relatively small batch of propositions weren't as likely to stimulate voting as more controversial propositions have done in the past such as Prop 8 (anti-Gay Marriage) in 2008 or Prop 187 (anti-immigrant) in 1994. To really know the answer, you would need to survey students about their reasons for not voting. 

City Council District 7 

18 year incumbent Council member Kriss Worthington was reelected in District 7 over Sean Barry by a vote of 832 to 662, or 55.7% to 44.3%. 

Within District 7, precincts closest to campus, those north of Dwight Way, had a much lower turnout than those south of Dwight. Consolidated precinct 400/430 which includes part of the LeConte neighborhood south of Dwight and a small piece of the Willard neighborhood had a turnout of 50.2%. Together with Precinct 460, also south of Dwight, it accounted for 43% of all the votes cast in the district, which consists of 9 regular precincts (five of them consolidated) and two smaller vote by mail precincts. 

By contrast, only 12.3% of the voters in consolidated precinct 251/252 voted. That precinct, located east of Piedmont between Bancroft and Dwight, includes numerous fraternities and sororities and apartment buildings. 

Barry defeated Worthington by 11 votes (117-106) in two consolidated precincts comprising most of the area east of College where a large majority of UC's fraternities and sororities are located. Barry also won consolidated precinct 400-430 by 2 votes. It's likely that he won in the Willard portion (precinct 400), where Worthington has not done well in past elections, and lost in the LeConte portion (precinct 430) where he has always come in ahead of his opponents. 

In 2012, voters approved Measure R, which allowed the City Council greater leeway in changing council district boundaries during redistricting, which takes place every ten years after the release of Census data. Effectively, whoever has a majority on the Council at the time of redistricting can gerrymander district boundaries in an effort to reduce the re-election chances for council members not in the majority. When district elections replaced at-large elections in 1986, the amendment to the charter required that new district boundaries necessitated by population changes would preserve, to the extent possible, the boundaries established in 1986. Measure R ended this requirement. 

As part of the deal that won unanimous Council support for the measure, it was decided that no district boundary changes could be made that would result in two sitting Council members being in the same district. So, in District 7, a small piece of the Willard neighborhood (part of the old precinct 400), where Kriss Worthington's apartment is located, was kept in District 7. As noted above, this is the only part of District 7 that had a somewhat respectable turnout this election. Without the requirement that sitting Council members not be put in the same district, District 7 might have had an even larger student supermajority and an even smaller turnout. 

The changes made to District 7 during redistricting that were approved by the Council majority led by Mayor Tom Bates, added the fraternities, sororities and apartment buildings in precincts east of College to the district. A couple of small vote by mail precincts, not big enough to rate a polling place, near the UC campus between Ellsworth and Fulton were also moved into District 7 from District 4. At the same time the Halycon and Bateman neighborhoods south of Ashby were removed as were most of the Willard neighborhood east of Telegraph, a sizable chunk of the LeConte neighborhood west of Telegraph and a Northside precinct with student coops. Relatively few homeowners remain in District 7. 

With its old, very different boundaries, District 7 had a much higher turnout in the last gubernatorial election; 4862 votes were cast in 2010 compared to this year's 1805 votes. However, the old District 7 also had a larger population that any other district in the city because of the Census undercount of students in 2000 and because the University increased the supply of student housing after 2000. 

Census Undercount of Students 

In 2000, the Census Bureau failed to correctly count the students living in the Unit 1 and Unit 2 dorms located in District 7, counting only 68 residents in two blocks with over 2100 student beds. This and other Census errors in counting students led to the addition of a Northside precinct and to other adjustments to District 7 boundaries that added a net number of new blocks because the Census undercount erroneously showed Districts 7 and 8 with fewer voters than other council districts, and districts are required to have roughly equal populations. 

In 2002, City staff estimated that the undercount in student areas of districts 6, 7 and 8 amounted to 4472 people based on a block by block comparison or 1990 and 2000 Census data. Census Bureau responded by adjusting numbers for some blocks, but for every person they added to one block, they subtracted someone from another block, so that the total count was unchanged. Basically they just shuffled people around. 

Further evidence of the 2000 Census undercount can be seen in the 2010 Census data which shows a population of 16,623 people within the District 7 boundaries that were established based on the official 2000 Census data. Based on the 2000 Census, equal population per district in 2000 was 12,843 and District 7's boundaries allegedly encompassed about that many people. So, the data would suggest that between 2000 and 2010, the population within the 2000 Census-based District 7 boundaries had increased by around 3780 people, or almost 30%, which is quite a big jump. While UC did add beds between 2000 and 2010 and developers built some housing as well, there is no way that this could account for the entire population increase. It's clear that in 2010 the Census Bureau found some of the student housing whose residents they missed in the 2000 count. 

The official 2000 Census data shows a drop in the group living quarters population in Berkeley of 5,197 people, from 11,019 to 5,822, between 1990 and 2000, but it's pretty clear that the UC dorms and other student housing weren't half empty in 2000 as the official Census data would suggest. Clearly the population numbers in the 2000 Census for student areas are pretty worthless. In 2003, city staff modified their estimates after reviewing the Census Bureau's response to their estimates of the undercount. They estimated that the 2000 population in Berkeley was actually 106,354. 

The Census undercount of students in 2000 has created the erroneous impression that there was no real increase in population in Berkeley between 1990 and 2000, followed by a big jump from 2000 to 2010. The official Census figures are 

1990 - 102,724 

2000 - 102,743 

2010 - 112,580 

Using the City's 2003 estimate, a more realistic picture of the change in Berkeley's population looks like this: 

1990 - 102,724 

2000 - 106,354 

2010 - 112,580 

Student Candidates 

Students have always been the majority of the District 7 population since the district was created in 1986 when voters approved the switch from at-large to district elections for City Council. But, in part due to lower turnout by students, no student has ever been elected to represent District 7. 

Two students have mounted serious campaigns for the District 7 Council seat. In 1992, William Shie ran against incumbent Carla Woodworth. In 2002, Micky Weinberg ran against Kriss Worthington. In both elections, the student candidates won in the high rise dorm precincts, where most of the voters are freshmen and sophomores. But the two incumbent progressive council members won in other student precincts that include student coops and apartment buildings largely populated by students, many of them further to the south of campus than the dorms. Students in these precincts are more likely to be juniors, seniors and grad students. Many of the students who voted in those elections apparently didn't think that they would be better off with a fellow student as their representative on the Council. 

Will a student candidate have a better chance of winning now that District 7 has a supermajority of students? Perhaps. About half the people who live in the new District 7 live in group living quarters, that is dorms, student coops, fraternities and sororities. A smaller proportion are students living in apartments . Compared to the old district, the student population is probably younger on average, more closely connected to the campus, and less connected to the larger Berkeley community. 

Students can potentially have a large impact on Berkeley elections. To illustrate their potential impact, take precinct 491 in the Southside, located immediately south of campus bounded by Bancroft and Channing and Ellsworth and Telegraph. The Unit 3 dorms with 1240 beds are located there. In addition to this dorm complex, there are some houses and apartment buildings in the precinct with probably a few hundred residents, including a newly built apartment building at Ellsworth and Durant. Making generous allowance for International students and a few undocumented or under age residents, there are probably conservatively at least 1300 people eligible to vote in this precinct. Yet, there were only 896 registered voters this year. Of this number, some no longer live there. Because of high turnover in student areas, the voter rolls for student precincts typically contain the names of some people who have moved. 

In this November's election, only 151 of the 896 registered voters voted. Of this 151, only 125 voted for someone for City Council; only 114 voted for or against Measure S, the ballot measure that ratifies the existing student supermajority district ostensibly created for the benefit of students. 

2008, a presidential election year with a record high turnout presents a different picture. In that year the same area was divided into two precincts, which together had 1573 registered voters (1333 in the precinct with Unit 3), again some of them undoubtedly people who had moved from the area. 889 people voted in that election. They cast 548 votes for Berkeley mayoral candidates and 877 votes for presidential candidates. 

The number of registered voters could potentially be higher still but some students opt to register to vote in their hometown rather than at their near campus address, though, for the most part, and certainly in years when there is an active voter registration effort on campus, it seems that most students register in Berkeley, if they register at all, since that is where they will be on election day and voting by mail is still not common for students. 

As a student supermajority district, District 7 is likely to remain a super low turnout district, because elections take place in lower turnout gubernatorial election years rather than in higher turnout presidential years. This came about when Berkeley voters approved the switch from two-year terms for City Council, with all council seats up for re-election each election year, to four year terms. Perhaps more students will vote if one or more students run for city council in a future election, though in past elections, the presence of a student candidate for City Council did not lead to a big jump in voting in student precincts. 

If the City really wanted to facilitate the election of students to the City Council, a charter amendment to restore two year Council terms would help, since there are probably more potential student candidates who could commit to serving a two-year term than a four-year one. To increase turnout in District 7 Council races, a charter amendment to move the District 7 Council race to presidential election years would do the trick. 

Looking ahead to the next round of redistricting after the 2020 Census, will Berkeley follow Oakland's lead and establish a new independent commission to draw council district lines or will it continue to allow the politically-motivated gerrymandering made possible by the passage of Measure R in 2012? In March of this year, District 4 Council member Arreguin announced that he intended to circulate petitions for a ballot initiative to establish an independent citizens redistricting commission. However, nothing came of this effort. Will it be revived in the coming years? 

Berkeley Council Districts 1 and 8 

In the four candidate District 8 Council race, the precinct results show that Mike Alvarez Cohen, who finished third, was strongly favored in the hills above Claremont Ave., getting 52% and 44% in the two precincts there. He did poorly in the area west of College, much of which was previously part of District 7, finishing last in all but one of that area's precincts. 

Lori Droste and George Beier both did well in the precincts west of College, with Droste winning in the Halcyon and Bateman precincts south of Asbhy and in one Willard neighborhood precinct. Beier, who lives in Willard and has been active in the Willard Neighborhood Association for years, won the other Willard precincts. Droste, who got the most first choice votes and was elected, also won her home precinct located east of College, south of Ashby with 45% of the vote. Jacquelyn McCormick, who finished fourth, won one consolidated precinct comprising the part of District 8 north of Dwight, an area with a mix of students and Panoramic Hill homeowners. 

The official results show Lori Droste with 1314 votes (29.2%); George Beier with 1193 votes (26.5%); Mike Alvarez Cohen with 1163 votes (25.8%) and Jacquelyn McCormick with 830 votes (18.4%). In the rounds of ranked choice voting that were necessary since no candidate got 50% of first choice votes, McCormick voters favored Droste, adding to her margin over George Beier. Alvarez Cohen voters favored George Beier but not by enough to overcome Droste's lead. The final ranked choice vote count was 2072 for Droste to 2056 for Beier (50.2%-49.8%). 

In District 1 in northwest Berkeley, 22 year incumbent Linda Maio came in ahead of challenger Alejandro Soto-Vigil in 10 of 12 precincts, winning overall by a comfortable 54.7% to 40.8% margin. The remaining vote went to a third candidate, Merrilie Mitchell. 

Soto-Vigil beat Maio by 9 votes in precinct 970, one of three West Berkeley precincts. (West Berkeley is the area west of San Pablo.) For West Berkeley as a whole, Maio won by 49.2% to 45.6%. Soto Vigil also narrowly won precinct 930, an L-shaped precinct immediately east of San Pablo with a substantial tenant population, bounded on the south by University between Sacramento and San Pablo. 

State Candidates and Measures 

There were no surprises in how Berkeley voted in statewide races this year. Berkeley is still a Democratic Party bastion. Jerry Brown got 95.3% of the vote for governor; Kamala Harris got 93.4% for Attorney General. Tom Torlakson's 81.2% share of the vote in Berkeley in the race for the state's Superintendent for Public Instruction was not as impressive, but was still higher than anywhere else in California. 

Berkeley certainly had the highest percentage in the state for Proposition 47, the proposition to reduce penalties for those who commit certain nonviolent and nonserious drug and property crimes. 91.8% voted yes in Berkeley. (San Francisco was 80.1% yes.) Proposition 45, to require the State Insurance Commissioner's approval for individual and small group health insurance rate changes, got 68.9% of the vote in Berkeley, but lost statewide by a 59% to 41% margin. 

Berkeley: Alameda County Measure BB 

Measure BB, the measure to extend and augment the .5% sales tax for transportation, won this time around after a similar measure narrowly fell short of the required two thirds majority in 2012. In Berkeley, the measure won the support of 88.2% of voters. In Oakland the measure had 81.4% supper; in Albany 83.6%.This strong support in the northern part of Alameda County made the difference and offset the weak support in the eastern part of the county. The measure failed to win a majority in Livermore, and fell well short of two-thirds in Pleasanton. 

Berkeley Ballot Measures 

Measure D, to establish a soda tax, passed easily with 76.2% of the vote. It received landslide support of at least 60% in every precinct in the city. And more voted pro or con this tax than voted in any other race on the ballot. Only 1425 did not vote either way, while 1651 voted for no one for governor. The number not voting was higher for Measure R, the downtown zoning measure, with 4156 "undervotes", and for Measure S, the redistricting measure that confirms the current council district boundaries, with 6960 abstaining. 

Measure R was defeated by landslide margins in every precinct. Supporters managed only 37.6% in their best precinct, which was located in a LeConte neighborhood in District 3 between Fulton and Shattuck. 

Measure S, which passed citywide by 63.8% to 36.2%, lost narrowly in 4 precincts, one the Northside student coop and dorm precinct, 2 others in the Southside and one in District 4 west of downtown. Students were divided by the issue with some favoring alternative boundaries for District 7 that would have included the Northside student precinct. Combining the results for eight student precincts north of Dwight Way, including the Northside coop precinct, Measure S won those student areas near campus with 57.4% of the vote. 

Measure F, the increased parcel tax for parks, won with 75.1% of the vote and obtained the required two thirds vote in all but one of the city's precincts, a District 6 hills precinct where it fell short by a single vote. 

Absentee Voting Still on the Rise 

In 2004, 37.2% of ballots cast in Berkeley were vote by mail (aka absentee) ballots . In 2010, it increased to 51.0% and it was 51.7% in the 2012 presidential election. This year, 58.0% of ballots were vote by mail. It appears that many of these were dropped at polling places as most of the absentee ballots this year were counted after election day. 

Students are still much less likely to vote absentee. In eight north of Dwight student precincts (seven from District 7, one from District 6), the percentage voting absentee was only 26%. 

How to Find Out How Your Precinct Voted 

Go to Alameda County Registrar of Voters site. [add link http://www.acgov.org/rov/elections/20141104/ ] Click to open the Statement of Vote in either pdf or xls. Then find the race you are interested in (easier to do in xls). Berkeley precincts come first in the results for each race. Berkeley precinct numbers run from 200100 to 209900. For each precinct, vote by mail results and election day results are reported separately 

Police in Berkeley are investigating a Thursday armed robbery and kidnapping that occurred along Grizzly Peak Boulevard.

University of California police officers responded around 2 a.m. to a dirt turn-out along the boulevard after receiving the report of the robbery and kidnapping.

Police said the two victims, a 26-year-old woman and a 23-year-old man, were sitting in their vehicle looking out toward the bay when three men approached them and demanded money.

Police said two of the suspects were armed with handguns, and the third was armed with a baseball bat.

The victims didn't have any money, so one of the suspects entered their car and demanded to be driven to an ATM while the other suspects followed. 

Police said the victims went to the ATM and withdrew money for the suspects, who then fled in their vehicle. 

The victims, who are not associated with the University of California, Berkeley, were not injured in the robbery. 

The first suspect is described as 5 feet 5 inches tall with a slim build, the second is described as 6 feet 3 inches tall with a medium build, and the third is described as 5 feet 5 inches tall with a slim build and wearing a black beanie-style cap and a red hooded sweatshirt. 

The suspects' vehicle is described as a red four-door "square-type" vehicle. 

Anyone with information on the crime is asked to call the University of California Police Department at (510) 642-0472 or (510) 642-6760. 

Copyright © 2014 by Bay City News, Inc. -- Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse

In the news in the last few weeks: multiple incidents where citizens have been killed by police officers for reasons that seem trivial or non-existent. They range in gravity from a policeman shooting a guy in Missouri who might or might not have pinched a few cigars all the way down to a twelve-year-old kid in Cleveland gunned down for flashing a toy gun in the wrong place at the wrong time. The common thread: all were African-Americans, and all had done nothing to merit summary execution. And none of the uniformed killers have been held to account.  

This week, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder spoke out about the latest outrage, the failure of a New York Grand Jury to indict a police officer for homicide (“human killing”) inflicted on Eric Garner, accused of selling single cigarettes.  

“…we seek to restore trust, to rebuild understanding and to foster cooperation between law enforcement and the communities they serve,” he said.  

Congresswoman Barbara Lee noted that “These tragedies have been happening for many years. But the recent high profile cases of injustice for the families of Eric Garner and Michael Brown have and should spark a national debate and long overdue action to address the structural and institutional racial biases in our nation.”  

There’s been a lot of outrage expressed over the failure to prosecute police officers for their role in these deaths. But what also needs to be examined is the continuing accumulation of seemingly trivial incidents where African-Americans and other citizens of color are needlessly harassed by the very law officers who are supposed to be protecting them.  

Holder, whose brother is a retired officer, said that “the vast majority of our law enforcement officers perform their duties honorably and are committed to respecting their fellow citizens' civil rights as they carry out their very challenging work.”  

Well, maybe. But a recent incident I’ve learned about, right here in supposedly liberal Berkeley California, makes me wonder.  

Bobby G’s Pizzeria on University is a very typical neighborhood pizza- and-sports-screens joint a few blocks from the U.C. Berkeley campus. Bobby, the boss, is a former tech executive who thought owning his own business would be more fun. It turns out—no surprise—to be a lot of hard work, but he prides himself on maintaining a convivial atmosphere. The food is great—the place has been a big favorite of my visiting granddaughters and my sports-fan son-in-law since it opened eight years ago.  

But on a Sunday afternoon in late September (September 28, to be exact) the customary gathering to eat pizza and watch a 49ers’ game was disrupted by multiple police officers arriving in force in several cars with lights flashing. They stayed for almost an hour.  

The Planet has gotten a copy of a letter (now a matter of public record) which the proprietor wrote that night to the Berkeley Police, with a copy to his councilmember Jesse Arreguin. Here’s just the beginning of what he said in an eloquent two-page single-spaced letter:  

“I would like to request a meeting with internal affairs, and the officers who came to my restaurant at 2072 University on Sunday afternoon (around 4:30pm), September 28 and used my hallway as an interrogation room to question a man who, with his wife and child, was minding his own business while watching the 49ers game. I was not in the restaurant at the time but the officers did not seek my permission to use my hallway for what seems to amount to nothing but harassment. My manager tried to speak with the officers about the incident and she was completely ignored.  

“While I am a big supporter of the Berkeley Police Department, and always will be, I do not under any circumstances appreciate or condone what went down in my restaurant on Sunday. From what I understand some customer in my restaurant called the police and alleged that this mixed race couple, who are good customers of Bobby G's Pizzeria and who have never once created any problems, were abusing their child by drinking beer and wine in front of the kid.” 

The owner’s letter went on to recount what a witness had told him, that one officer even lectured the parents for taking their son to a “bar”. He pointed out that Bobby G’s is a family friendly restaurant which has the kind of alcohol license that allows children to come in for meals and their parents may order beer and wine—it’s not just “a bar”.  

His letter was accompanied by a list of signatures and phone numbers which Sarah Danley, the manager on duty, had collected from 18 restaurant patrons who were outraged by what they witnessed, including one family therapist. Sarah happens to be trained as a lawyer, so she understood the implications of the scene she was watching. 

“There were at least eight cops,” one witness told me. “It was pretty tense.” 

I learned that the family in question comes in often on weekend afternoons to eat pizza and watch games on the big screens, and the regulars like them a lot. A patron who signed the list of witnesses describes the scene when the boy, who looks to be about 5 or 6, watched his dad being interrogated for the better part of an hour by multiple officers as “heartbreaking”. 

One of the witnesses I spoke to, Jacob Woods, told me he thought the fact that one of the parents is African-American had a lot to do with the disrespectful way the police treated them, and others agreed. Even if some racist busybody had called in a complaint, Jacob said that a two-minute conversation with the manager or anyone in the restaurant should have been enough to show the cops that no child abuse had taken place. 

Instead, according to witnesses, the parents and everyone else in the place (most of whom were white) were essentially held hostage for close to an hour while a pair of police officers exhaustively (and arrogantly) quizzed the African-American father, in the process blocking the hall leading to the restrooms and making it impossible for anyone else to get past. 

This is Berkeley, to be sure, and both the restaurant owner and his patrons were quick to condemn the abuse of authority which they witnessed. But if the officers involved have not been reprimanded, if what appears to be their standing operating procedure, the pattern and practice of their response to complaints against citizens, does not change, it will happen again and again, with eventually tragic consequences.  

The letter I saw concluded this way: 

“I'm not filing a formal complaint against the officers but I think they need to show a lot more respect for people when investigating a complaint that was basically nothing…I am a big supporter of the Berkeley Police Department but that doesn't mean I support this kind of boorish behavior. Nobody should, and Berkeley Police should be above the nonsense of treating everybody like criminals.” 

After I was given a copy of his letter, I asked Bobby what had happened since he wrote it in September. He told me he’d had an inconclusive conversation with someone in the Berkeley Police Department who asked him to supply a copy of his surveillance video. It turned out that wasn’t possible because the recorder had malfunctioned—and he never heard from the BPD again. As far as he knew, none of the 18 witnesses had been contacted either, and that’s where it stands. 

Small businesses like Bobby G’s depend on the services provided by police officers, so the owner has understandably been reluctant to press his complaint any further. It took a good deal of courage to write this letter in the first place. The last thing a struggling local enterprise like his needs is enmity from the police. 

This story might seem like small potatoes when compared with recent incidents where people died, but it’s hostile encounters like this that eventually destroy what Holder describes as “the sense of trust that must exist between law enforcement and the communities they are charged to serve and protect.”  

Why on earth should that little boy who watched his father being bullied trust the police when he’s older? 

And here’s the thing: this happens all the time, everywhere, even—god forbid—in liberal Berkeley. I’ve heard dozens of similar stories from African-American friends and family members, each more or less outrageous than this one. That watching African-American child whose father was harassed by a posse of Berkeley police officers on the basis of a bogus complaint could have been my own mixed-race granddaughter. And nobody, regardless of race, should be treated like that. 

Worse cases, cases where people have been killed by police, seem to be on the news every night, it’s true. But many, many smaller indignities like those visited on that family at Bobby G’s on a September afternoon are daily occurrences. 

What are we, in Berkeley and in the rest of the country, going to do about it, and about all the rest of the situations where persons of color are unjustly accused on a regular basis? I’d be interested in getting comments from Berkeley’s police chief, city manager, mayor and city council on this topic, but I’m not holding my breath waiting for them to call. I didn’t contact the family in question—they’ve been annoyed enough—and I’m not using their name to protect what remains of their privacy, but if they asked me for advice, I might just give them John Burris’s phone number.  

We've gotten so much news and opinion that our columns have gotten too long. We're starting this week's issue tomorrow, a day early. You can see it as it's posted by clicking on "Next Issue", and when that issue is complete it will be "published" so that it's the first thing you see when you go to berkeleydailyplanet.com. You can always go back to the "Previous Issue" if you've missed anything,

Winston's Diary , from "a young American who has been independently reporting from the very front-lines of the Berkeley/Oakland protests for the last week. "

We've just learned from our colleagues at berkeleyside.com that Mayor Bates has dissed us all again:

Breaking: City of Berkeley calls ‘invite-only’ press conference just for TV news

Since the council meeting has been called off, perhaps the Martin Luther King Civic Center Building (New City Hall) would be a good place to exercise "the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances." It's open during the day most days.

Having slacked off over Thanksgiving, we now think it's time to start over with a new issue, since the old one got so long. We have already gotten a couple of outstanding new contributions. One, more of Rob Wrenn's outstanding election analysis, is here, and the rest will be posted as soon as I have a chance. Keep on checking. A new editorial is unlikely, however.

Dan O'Neill

A new replacement energy saving ordinance is about to be enacted in our city of Berkeley, Building Energy Saving Ordinance (BESO). The current system requires upgrades only when buildings are remodeled or resold. If passed, all homeowners and building owners in Berkeley will be mandated to have an outside auditor inspect their home or building every 5 to 10 years. The law would require all building owners to hire a private firm from a city approved list to conduct the assessments. Audits will cost from $200 to $600 for a single family home, up to $10,000 for a large commercial building. A filing fee of $79 -$240, depending on building size will go to the city of Berkeley. 

City staff maintain that they have done community outreach via three workshops, implying that they have adequately informed so-called “stakeholders”, but the public has been left out of the process. If workshops are held and no one knows about them, it is not informing the citizens. 

The attitude of our city officials and staff is undemocratic and disrespectful of environmentally conscious Berkeley citizens. Are homeowners who have worked an honest living to buy a home in Berkeley to be treated as delinquents before the fact? What if a homeowner wants to live a simple life without subscribing to new technology and costly improvements and would prefer to keep their old fashioned windows and wear extra sweaters with no monitoring by a smart meter.? Why does the cure for climate change always involve increased fees, taxes and charges on the citizens, not to mention unhealthy, privacy-invading technology? 

I have been told by a Berkeley official that these audits will not require people to purchase chipped appliances and lights. The staff presenter of the ordinance, when asked at the November 18th special 6:00 session of council, what types of recommendations might be made in an audit, referred to “smart” lights and Energy Star programs. It may not be mandated now, but the final component of the smart grid is for everyone to have smart appliances that will communicate with their smart meter. These technologies are equipped with wireless transmitters. 

This new ordinance is a slippery slope of government intrusion and surveillance in our lives. There needs to be more critique of climate change mitigation measures being fed to the Council by outside corporate interests who stand to gain at the expense of the citizens of Berkeley. 

If you are concerned about our eroding democracy and citizen input in Berkeley city government, be at the City Council on Tuesday, December 16, 7:00pm, when the council will vote on the ordinance.

First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Socialist.

Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.

Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Jew.

Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me

—Pastor Martin Niemoller, speaking about Nazi Germany

First, they’ve come for the people of color.

America’s police forces increasingly serve as a a private corporate army, beyond the reach of the law.

But our nation is distracted by race. And millions of white Americans are under the illusion that what was done to Michael Brown and Eric Garner can’t happen to them. 

These un-prosecuted killings of African-American men go way beyond racial prejudice. 

They are the calling card of an Orwellian state: 

America’s founders established grand juries to protect citizens from frivolous prosecution. But today’s corporate state has twisted the system to protect killer police from public scrutiny, putting them above the law. 

The ultimate message is clear: police can kill American citizens without cause and face no public trial. (Steven Rosenfeld lays out the details at Alternet http://www.alternet.org/civil-liberties/10-ways-system-rigged-protect-cops-who-kill ) 

The current focus is on skin color. Thankfully, Americans throughout the US have risen up in protest, demanding social justice and an end to racism. 

But the larger issue is a police apparatus now inflicting random terror in service of a corporate state that has mutated far beyond public control. 

We are still being assaulted by a cynical 40-year drug war used to disenfranchise and violate the basic rights of millions of Americans with no real recourse. 

In the name of that drug war, and the one on terror, police randomly confiscate (steal) billions in cash from citizens of all races, in direct violation of the Bill of Rights and any sense of a real legal system. Police departments use these officially sanctioned armed robberies to help fund heavy war-time weaponry also coming to them as “surplus” from the federal military. 

Citizens of color, the young, the poor and the elderly are being systematically stripped of the right to vote by a modern electronic Jim Crow. The dominance of a corporate one-party system is furthered by the use of privately-owed, easily-rigged electronic voting machines. . 

The NSA and other official agencies are spying on us without restraint. 

Our ability to communicate through an open, neutral internet is also under attack. Meanwhile a San Diego rapper with no record of violence has been charged with multiple “crimes” based on his lyrics. As anger with America’s billionaire elite spreads, we can certainly expect the counter-attacks on open speech to escalate. 

That the victims of these latest police killings are most often men of color is tragic. It also gives the corporate media the perfect distraction behind which to hide the root problem. 

Throughout our history, race has been the reliably lethal facade for all sorts of political repression. It’s the hate-filled poison perfectly designed to divide and distract us. 

The sickness is real enough. But the ultimate cancer we face is the rise of an all-powerful corporate state and its iron grip on a violent, unaccountable private army licensed to kill---no matter what the race or cause---while knowing that the once-sacred right to a public trial does not apply to them. Should the attacks on the internet succeed, we’ll also be hearing less and less about them. 

Thus we are all in the shoes of Michael Brown and Eric Garner. Those who think themselves somehow above it all by virtue of race or class are simply not paying attention. 

Unless we rise up to secure social justice and our basic legal rights, we’re all just a single cop away from being as dead as the very latest victim of official violence... at any time, for no reason, with no recourse. 

Dear Pope Francis,

As a Muslim I thank you for your message of compassion and peace delivered during your recent visit to Turkey. This visit and your address symbolize the need for a stronger interfaith relation between Christians and Muslims to promote world peace. I thank you for disassociating Islam from violence and that particular statement was parallel to the teaching in the Quran which states “Surely, Allah loves not the transgressors" (2:190). And when you said ISIS is persecuting the Christian in the Middle East, the Quran also condemned this barbaric action as it states, "And if Allah did not repel some men by means of others, there would surely have destroyed cloisters and churches and synagogues and mosques, wherein the name of Allah is oft commemorated" (22:41). 

I know that we cannot eradicate all evils in this world but the fact that you visited a mosque in a Muslim majority country where Christians are a minority symbolizes your endeavor in removing misconceptions between Muslims and Christians. 

Editor's Note: The latest issue of the Pepper Spray Times is now available.

You can view it absolutely free of charge by clicking here . You can print it out to give to your friends.

Grace Underpressure has been producing it for many years now, even before the Berkeley Daily Planet started distributing it, most of the time without being paid, and now we'd like you to show your appreciation by using the button below to send her money.  

This is a Very Good Deal. Go for it! 

Call me sentimental that I wanted Kathleen Turner to look the way she did back in the day last night when I went to see the play Red Hot Patriot at the Berkeley Rep (read Body Heat). My disbelief was not suspended this time - but that she is a forceful talent cannot be denied. What struck me the most however, was the bad manners of the intellectual yet sartorially sloppy audience. In the first few minutes of the play there was hissing when a picture of George W. Bush was displayed onscreen. When crass comments were made about other politicians there was whooping. Note to Berkeley audience - it's ok to be smart - AND - pretty - inside and out. Do not be afraid my fellow theatre enthusiasts. I ask you to consider the perfect storm if the care and pride of intellect is also applied to good manners and perhaps a stylish outfit. And maybe some blush. Studied unstudiedness is not a look. Cat calling is déclassé. Do better. Be better. Just sayin.

I don't like the way protesters are showing support for Michael Brown. The right to speak out and show disapproval of the grand jury's verdict is fine. But what connection is there between the grand jury's bad judgment and destruction of public buildings?  

What connection is there between the grand jury's bad judgment and destruction of commercial buildings? If people have a problem with the grand jury's unjust decision, why hurt those who are not directly involved and who did not harm the murdered teenaged boy? I don't understand the rationale for destroying property and hurting innocent citizens.

A seismic shift is occurring in European capitals increasingly frustrated by Israeli’s intransigence towards Palestinian sovereignty, – building more and more settlements on Palestinian land - and its home demolitions. The European Union has urged Israel to immediately halt its expansionist policies, end its illegal occupation and lift the siege of Gaza. Current Israel policy, driven by right wing ideologues, is fueling much of the intensifying Palestinian rage and the cycle of unending violence. 

Dahlia Scheindlin, an Israeli analyst and pollster, said, “Israel is losing Europe and Public opinion has shifted decidedly against Israel.” There is a growing realization that the soft talk of the US Administration has been an abject failure and must be replaced with European economic sanctions. 

The antipathy towards Israel has heightened after its attack on Gaza last summer which resulted in large number of fatalities of innocent civilians and enormous damage to its basic infrastructure. European leaders fully comprehend that unless the siege of Gaza is lifted, the people of Gaza will live in a perpetual state of suicidal despair. Unlike the US, where images of the attack on Gaza were largely hidden, the Europeans witnessed raw images which reshaped their perception of the conflict. 

If Israel continues on its present course it could seriously jeopardize its lucrative trade with Europe worth about 30 billion euros a year and its tariff-free access to the 28 member states.

Predictably the grand jury’s decision not to indict Officer Wilson triggered outrage in Ferguson and communities across the country who see Brown’s killing as part of a wide-scale pattern of police abuse of people of color. Law enforcement has offered little credible explanation why Brown’s body was allowed to remain on the street for 4.5 hours. There is little doubt that if the teenager had a lighter skin, the outcome would have been different. In an obvious effort to justify the shooting, Officer Wilson described Michael Brown as a raging “Hulk Hogan”. The prosecutor seems to have actively tried for a grand jury result absolving the officer’s actions. This was a show trial aimed at pacifying an angry black community who saw through the charade. 

In sharp contrast to the hyper-vigilant police presence in the predominant white business neighborhood of South Florissant, there was a total absence in the West part of town owned by black businesses. Tragically, every day some black or brown child is subject to the arbitrary violence of the state with little no recourse. In poor neighborhoods, blacks often lament there is little to live for because the odds of obtaining a good life is stacked against them. As President Kennedy observed “Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable.

Today's immigration problem will linger on for a long period of time. Even with deportation attempts to return undocumented people to their native countries, many will stay back with their families or friends. I think we may have to spend thousands of dollars to locate them and deport them.  

We have to screen illegal immigrants well, checking their background. All skilled workers who have clean records may be allowed to stay here. Our laws have to be strict and our borders have to be secured and the guards at our borders have to follow the laws of the land. Nobody should be allowed to enter illegally. It is very urgent to take steps sooner rather than later to save us from many unwanted protests and crowded meetings. Let us rethink important issues like immigration now before more problems result due to negligence on our part.

We are dealing with a nationwide crisis in the misuse of power by police officers and by a corrupt court system. I can in no way belittle the crime that was perpetrated upon Michael Brown. It was one of a series of wrongful deaths in which non-Caucasian people have been killed by police and in which there has been little or no retribution by the courts. My sympathy goes to Michael Brown's family, and I believe that any reasonable person should be outraged by this corruption and by this tragedy.  

However, for me this brings up the wrongful deaths that have been perpetrated upon persons with mental illness, as well.  

Persons with mental illness are often treated brutally by police. Persons with mental illness are often wrongfully shot to death or die while in custody due to excessive restraint or due to the hard conditions of incarceration, such as high temperatures or dehydration. Temperatures in transport vans in the summer may go beyond 110 degrees, and there is no water available. Mentally ill people in custody are targeted for abuse by other inmates. Police often shoot mentally ill people because they believe incorrectly (most of the time) that we are a threat.  

I would take a step further than the protest of unfair treatment of African American people, and I would say that we need a complete revision of law enforcement and of the court system.  

In no way to belittle the injustice perpetrated upon Michael Brown--I also see that when someone with mental illness is wrongfully killed by police, there is no uproar by the public whatsoever. When a mentally ill person (which is also another minority) is killed, why aren't there mobs of fellow psychiatric patients wrecking a town? Perhaps this is largely due to the fact that most mentally ill people are medicated and controlled, and thus to not have the energy or the liberty to get out and demonstrate.  

Secondly, when someone with mental illness wrongfully loses his or her life at the hands of police or while in custody, the mass media often doesn't report it. If you want me to name some names, I'll start by saying potentially me. While I don't have the specific statistics handy, it is very clear that a lot of people with mental health problems are unnecessarily killed by police. A piece that I looked at in KQED News stated that more than half of those killed by San Francisco Police were persons with mental illness.  

Beyond wrongful death, persons with mental illness are dealt with through the court system, and this from the get-go is the wrong way of doing things. Persons with mental illness need help and not handcuffs.  

In the aftermath of the disastrous 2014 midterm election, former Democratic National Committee chairman Howard Dean observed, “You’ve got to stand for something if you want to win.” Before 2016, Democrats must figure out what they stand for and develop coherent messages. Here are four suggestions. 

1. Fight for the Middle Class. 

In 2016, Democrats need to follow the lead of Senator Elizabeth Warren who acknowledges that while the US economy has grown, “the system is rigged” and, therefore, the plight of the middle class hasn’t improved over the past six years. “The stock market and gross domestic product keep going up, while families are getting squeezed hard by an economy that isn’t working for them.” Democrats have to reestablish their identity as the Party that is fighting for the middle class. 

Most political observers believe the 2016 Democratic presidential candidate will be Hillary Clinton (although there are a substantial number of progressives pushing for either Senator Elizabeth Warren or Senator Bernie Sanders to run). If Hillary is the Dems choice, the challenge for liberals will be to get her to adopt a strong populist stance, to convince Hillary to advocate for change that jaded voters will believe in, and to establish Hillary as a champion of the middle class. 

A recent NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll indicated strong national support for specific populist proposals: a. 82 percent of poll respondents supported, “Providing access to lower cost student loans and providing more time to those who are paying off their student loan debt.” b. 75 percent of respondents supported: “Increasing spending on infrastructure projects for our roads and highways.” c. And, 65 percent of respondents supported: “Raising the minimum wage.” 

It’s hard to imagine that Hillary would oppose any of these measures. 

This common-sense populism differentiates Democrats from Republicans. It’s unlikely that any Republican presidential candidate would embrace the slogan “fighting for the middle class” or support measures to lower student loan costs, increase spending on infrastructure, or raise the minimum wage. (In 2012, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s slogan was “Believe in America” and his basic message was a reprise of classic Reaganomics: cut taxes and reduce government regulation and spending.) 

2. Fix the Broken Immigration System 

President Obama’s November 20th speech on immigration ensured that it will be an important issue in the 2016 presidential election. The NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll, conducted just before the President’s remarks, indicated that only 39 percent of respondents supported: “Creating legal status for some immigrants who are here illegally.” Nonetheless, Hillary Clinton said, “I support the President’s decision to begin fixing our broken immigration system.” 

Subsequent polls indicate that nine out of ten Latino voters supported the President’s action. Immigration reform may not resonate with older white Republican voters, but it does with the Democratic base. 

In 2016, immigration is likely to be a critical differentiator between the Democratic and Republican presidential candidates. It’s unlikely that any Republican candidate who is sympathetic to immigration reform – such as former Florida Governor Jeb Bush – can make it out of the no-holds-barred Republican primaries. 

3. Address Global Climate Change 

The NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll indicated strong national support for tackling climate change. 59 percent of respondents supported, “Addressing climate change and global warming by setting specific targets to limit carbon emissions.” (A November Hart Research Associates poll of “Battleground State Voters” found a similar result. In states such as Colorado, Iowa, and New Hampshire, two-thirds of respondents favored candidates who supported the EPA plan to reduce carbon emissions.) 

In a recent speech Hillary Clinton called climate change, “the most consequential, urgent, sweeping collection of challenges we face as a nation and a world.” 

In 2016, climate change is likely to be a critical differentiator between the Democratic and Republican Candidates. It’s hard to imagine any Republican candidate making it out of the primaries based upon his support for tackling climate change. 

4. Defend Affordable Healthcare 

The Affordable Healthcare law, “Obamacare,” remains controversial. The same NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll found that 41 percent of respondents supported, “Cutting funding for the new health care law so that parts of it would not be put into effect or enforced,” while 43 percent opposed such an action. 

While America continues to be divided over the new healthcare system, Hillary Clinton supports Obamacare. In a June interview Hillary said, 

We're going to learn more about how it's working, and if there are adjustments that need to be made as we go forward, wouldn't you rather have somebody who wants to keep the good, and fix what's not working, than somebody who wants to undermine it, and maybe throw it out?

It shouldn’t be difficult for Democrats to remember what they stand for. These four messages support populist values. They also serve to differentiate the likely Democratic presidential candidate from any Republican. 

A while back, my eye was caught by the title of a small volume on the library’s New Books shelves — The Chicken Chronicles. Turkeys have been much in recent news. Dogs, cats, lambs all appeal, but chickens!? I’m not now referring to the sometimes vernacular chicks or hens … Keeping Up Appearances’s Onslow refers to a broody woman. Perish forbid. 

The Chicken Chronicles: Sitting with the angels who have returned with my memories: Glorious, Rufus, Gertrude Stein, Splendor, Hortensia, Agnes of God, The Gladyses, & Babe; A Memoir was published by New Press in 2011. I’m not especially interested in chickens, but The Chicken Chronicles was written by Pulitzer Prize-winning Alice Walker, so into my book bag it went. At the time, I didn’t have in mind a possible Senior Power column connection, other than Walker’s age (70). 

The Chicken Chronicles is about human-animal relationships. Rural northern California too. Walker is Mommy. She reflects on compassion, bullying, death, friendship, meditation, and more in 37 essays about her Girls as they free-range or not. Here are a few titles: What do chickens like to do? — The old fox — St. Michael, lover of animals and children — The song behind the world: the nuns of Dharamsala — From: poems for my girls — Grandfather Gandhi-and mommy’s experiments with reality — A few kind words about stupidity — In the night mommy hears mangoes falling — Mommy writes about Hortensia — Mommy is so thankful to have you appear — The first day — Day two — Even bullies are missed and loved… 

Free-range — not to be confused with open range – is a method of farming in which at least part of the day, chickens in this case, can roam freely outdoors, rather than being confined in an enclosure around the clock. Free range systems usually offer the opportunity for extensive locomotion and sunlight prevented by indoor housing systems. The term may apply to dairy farming, eggs, meat, etc. . 

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I wondered about chickens and old people elsewhere. It appears that in England senior men are really into chicks and hens. Jessica Salter reports on a scheme to introduce “hen keeping” to elderly men in particular that is turning out to have a miraculous effect on their wellbeing by reducing isolation and depression. (“Chickens helping the elderly tackle loneliness.” Daily Telegraph [London], October 31, 2014) 

The idea came about in 2012, when a man at a dementia care center kept telling staff he missed his girls, meaning his hens. Equal Arts, a charity providing creative projects for older people, contacted the Environment Agency and purchased six hens and a secondhand hen house. 

There’s a photo of Owen Turnbull, 84, giving a five-day-old chick a bath in the sink of a communal launderette. The chick, chirping away as he talks to it, is one of four orphans. ‘Their mam died three days ago,’ he says. ‘I found her when I went to feed them. I was sad about losing her – I do get attached to them.’ For the past 9 years Turnbull has lived in Wood Green, sheltered-accommodation bungalows in Gateshead, Newcastle, with his 82-year-old wife, for whom he is the main carer. There are also 70 other residents, 13 hens and 15 chicks. The chickens are all named after women who live at Wood Green. The eggs are sold (£1.25 for six) in the central common room. 

Equal Arts set up the HenPower project in eight pilot sites, ranging from care homes to assisted-living schemes like Wood Green. In addition to practical poultry keeping, there are hen-based activities that include art, dance and singing. 

Although open to women, the project was aimed at men. Equal Arts and HenPower contend that men tend not to have such broad social networks as women and to have very different hobbies, and hen keeping appeals to certain groups of men, who are vulnerable to depression in care homes. Having kept hens before, Thomas ‘Ossie’ Cresswell agreed to get involved, although he didn’t like the idea of keeping them as pets. But he became one of the most vocal supporters. A core group out of the 23 at Wood Green embraced HenPower. They purchased an incubator and went to auction to buy fertilized eggs. 

An important part of HenPower is interacting in the community, so they take the chickens on roadshow trips to schools and retirement homes. ‘You go in and they’re all looking at the wall. We go in with three hens and start chatting and you’d think a bomb had dropped, the place comes alive.’ The project has made a big difference in 87-year-old Cresswell’s life, too. Twice widowed, he has lived in his bungalow at Wood Green for 16 years. Since joining HenPower he has ‘made a lot of friends’ and says, ‘It gives you a purpose for life.’ 

The U.K. Campaign To End Loneliness (“Connections in Older Age”) estimates isolation increases the risk of Alzheimer’s disease by 50%. A study by the University of Northumbria found that male participants all reported improved wellbeing and reduced depression and loneliness. In one dementia care home since the hens arrived, violent incidents by residents were down by 50%, and the use of antipsychotic drugs was so reduced that they were no longer issued routinely. 

The Hen Men is a “Vimeo” documentary from meerkatfilms. Alan, Owen and Ozzy are old men grappling with the challenges of growing old in a modern world. They expose the seldom explored issues of loneliness, depression and dementia but find comfort and company in the new hens at their quirky supported living scheme. 

Clearly, in England, HenPower is manpower. 

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NEWS 

In a move that brings the people of New Jersey one step closer to having the medical option of aid in dying, the New Jersey State Assembly voted 41-31 in a bipartisan fashion to pass the Aid in Dying for the Terminally Ill Act (A2270). “Compassion & Choices’ Death with Dignity Option Wins in Watershed Assembly Vote. Aid in Dying Law Now More Likely for People of New Jersey” November 13, 2014 (Trenton, N.J.)  

CALIFORNIA NEWS 

California’s experiment aimed at moving almost 500,000 low-income seniors and disabled people automatically into managed care has been rife with problems in its first 6 months, leading to widespread confusion, frustration and resistance. "California’s Managed Care Project For Poor Seniors Faces Backlash," by Anna Gorman (Kaiser Health News via WebMD, November 19, 2014). 

The California project stems from the Affordable Care Act, which does not mandate managed care but promotes better integration of the Medicare and Medicaid programs. Managed care is nothing new to California, which already has extensive experience in both the public and private sectors. 

The Los Angeles County Medical Association, concerned that the project is ill-conceived, ill-designed and will jeopardize the health of many of the state’s most vulnerable population – the poor, the elderly and the disabled — filed a lawsuit to block the project. 

There is a lot riding on the pilot — the largest of its kind in the nation. The patients involved are among the most expensive to treat – so-called “dual eligibles,” who receive both Medicare, the health insurance program for the elderly and disabled, and Medicaid, which provides coverage for the poor who are able to locate a physician who accepts Medi-Medi. Over the 3 years of the demonstration project, California is focusing on 456,000 of the state’s 1.1 million dual eligibles. 

Many beneficiaries have received stacks of paperwork they don’t understand. Some have been mistakenly shifted to the new insurance coverage or are unaware they were enrolled. Forty-four of those targeted for enrollment through Oct. 1 opted out. One rejected the managed care program because his doctor said he wouldn’t see him anymore if he was enrolled. Doctors have been among the most vocal critics of the switch, and the state is having trouble getting some to participate. The state has been besieged with questions. In September alone, there were nearly 50,000 calls to the state’s health care services department about the project. 

State officials acknowledge some transition problems but contend the project will provide consumers with more coordinated care that improves their health, reduces their costs and helps keep them in their homes. In addition, officials estimate the program could save the state more than $300 million in fiscal year 2014-2015. Until now, many of these patients have had to maneuver through two massive government bureaucracies, each with separate rules. Medicare pays for most doctor visits and hospitalizations, and Medi-Cal (California’s Medicaid) covers nursing and other long-term care. The patients are more vulnerable than most Medicare beneficiaries, more likely to have Alzheimer’s, diabetes and mental health problems. Many see multiple doctors in different practices, sometimes receiving unnecessary medications or duplicative tests. Old people are typically afflicted with 3 diseases. 

In most — but not all– counties, patients have a choice of plans. The pilot program’s enrollment is occurring on a rolling basis and now includes five counties – San Mateo, Los Angeles, San Bernardino, San Diego and Riverside. The program will begin in Santa Clara County in January 2015 and then Orange County but will not move forward in Alameda County as originally planned. 

I continue to wonder what goes on under the guise of managed care and case managers in what was once the West Berkeley Senior Center building. 

We are dealing with a nationwide crisis in the misuse of power by police officers and by a corrupt court system. I can in no way belittle the crime that was perpetrated upon Michael Brown. It was one of a series of wrongful deaths in which non-Caucasian people have been killed by police and in which there has been little or no retribution by the courts. My sympathy goes to Michael Brown's family, and I believe that any reasonable person should be outraged by this corruption and by this tragedy.

However, for me this brings up the wrongful deaths that have been perpetrated upon persons with mental illness, as well.  

Persons with mental illness are often treated brutally by police. Persons with mental illness are often wrongfully shot to death or die while in custody due to excessive restraint or due to the hard conditions of incarceration, such as high temperatures or dehydration. Temperatures in transport vans in the summer may go beyond 110 degrees, and there is no water available. Mentally ill people in custody are targeted for abuse by other inmates. Police often shoot mentally ill people because they believe incorrectly (most of the time) that we are a threat.  

I would take a step further than the protest of unfair treatment of African American people, and I would say that we need a complete revision of law enforcement and of the court system.  

In no way to belittle the injustice perpetrated upon Michael Brown--I also see that when someone with mental illness is wrongfully killed by police, there is no uproar by the public whatsoever. When a mentally ill person (which is also another minority) is killed, why aren't there mobs of fellow psychiatric patients wrecking a town? Perhaps this is largely due to the fact that most mentally ill people are medicated and controlled, and thus to not have the energy or the liberty to get out and demonstrate.  

Secondly, when someone with mental illness wrongfully loses his or her life at the hands of police or while in custody, the mass media often doesn't report it. If you want me to name some names, I'll start by saying potentially me. While I don't have the specific statistics handy, it is very clear that a lot of people with mental health problems are unnecessarily killed by police. A piece that I looked at in KQED News stated that more than half of those killed by San Francisco Police were persons with mental illness.  

Beyond wrongful death, persons with mental illness are dealt with through the court system, and this from the get-go is the wrong way of doing things. Persons with mental illness need help and not handcuffs.  

Everyone now knows that on August 9 Darren Wilson, a white police officer, shot and killed Michael Brown, an African-American teenager, in Ferguson, Missouri, a suburb of St. Louis. On November 24, a St. Louis grand jury announced that it was not indicting Mr. Wilson. 

The grand jury is made up of twelve jurors. It takes nine to issue an indictment. This grand jury was made up of 6 white men, 3 white women, 2 African-American women and 1 African-American man. The ethnic makeup of the grand jury is similar to the racial breakdown of St. Louis County, which is about 24 percent African-American and 68 percent white. 

It would be interesting to know how each of the jurors voted, especially the African-American jurors. However, the names of the jurors are secret, as is how they voted. Jurors are prohibited from commenting on a grand jury proceeding. 

There is a saying that if a prosecutor wants it, the grand jury would indict a ham sandwich. However, in cases involving police shootings, grand juries tend not to indict. 

Usually the prosecutor has latitude to choose what evidence will be presented to the grand jury. But in this case, the grand jury was given more latitude in calling witnesses and issuing subpoenas. In most grand jury cases, the prosecutor provides a charge or list of charges for the grand jury to consider. In this case, the prosecutor did not recommend a charge or charges. The person who may be charged usually does not testify, but in this case, Officer Wilson testified for four hours, but without any cross-examination. 

Under Missouri law, grand jury proceedings are secret although evidence from it can be released at a later date. In this case, all evidence and testimony were released after the grand jury decided not to indict. I expect the Justice Department will review the evidence and testimony to see if it will file federal civil rights charges against Mr. Wilson. I also expect the pundits, legal and otherwise, will comb the evidence and testimony and much “expert” commentary will result. For example, San Francisco Public Defender Jeff Adachi issued a statement critical of the grand jury’s decision. 

After hearing the grand jury’s decision not to indict, Lesley McSpadden, Michael Brown’s mother, said, “We respectfully ask that you please keep your protests peaceful. Answering violence with violence is not the appropriate reaction.” 

Alas, a peaceful, non-violent reaction was not to be. Rioting and looting in Ferguson and elsewhere, including the City of Oakland, causing hundreds of thousands dollars of damage and some minor injuries, are not the answer. Ironically, the majority of businesses damaged or destroyed are minority owned.

Everyone has the right to health, including health care, according to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Health care is a public good, not a commodity and the U.S. government has a responsibility to ensure that care comes first.

Yet prior to the passage of the Patient Protection Act and the Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare), 48 million Americans were uninsured. Health insurance has been the main mechanism for most Americans to afford health care. Without health insurance a sudden serious illness like cancer or a traumatic even like a car accident could leave the uninsured with immense medical bills, which is a common reason people file for bankruptcy and can ruin your credit history. Health insurers are required to cover annual checkups and preventive care without a co-pay, which means you are more likely to stay healthy and catch health problems early, when they're easier and less expensive to treat.

ObamaCare seems to be working. Admittedly, this is not a universal view. But as of September 18, 2014, 7.3 million are now enrolled. While the percentage of Americans without health coverage has dropped markedly from 22 percent to 15 percent, that still means 15 percent of Americans are still not covered. Among the uninsured, 44 percent are between the ages of 18 and 34, and 33 percent are Latino. 

Despite the success of ObamaCare, we must plan ahead to provide universal health insurance. According to a Forbes article, the Obama Administration and leading Democrats have signaled that ObamaCare was not a final solution to American health care, but rather a first step toward the ultimate goal of a single-payer system administered entirely by the federal government. And Heaven forbid, according to the article, that would be a pathway to socialized medicine even though it would provide health care to all Americans. 

Perhaps, expanding Medicare to cover all Americans could give the U.S. a single-payer system. In fact, there is a bill in Congress put forth yearly by Representative John Conyers (D-MI), the Expanded & Improved Medicare For All Act (H.R. 676). The Act "would create a publicly financed, privately delivered healthcare system that uses the already existing Medicare program by expanding and improving it to all U.S. residents, and all residents living in U.S. territories."  

The bill was first introduced in 2003 and has been introduced in each Congress ever since. It got little attention until Michael Moore's documentary Sicko, which focuses on the status of health care in the only developed country without universal health care. The documentary renewed Interest in the Act. The DVD edition of the film includes a segment (Sicko Goes To Washington) promoting the bill. The bill was last introduced in 2013. Govtrack.us gave it a 1 percent chance of passing. And that's being optimistic. 

Someday, perhaps not in my lifetime, the U.S. will finally have universal health care. Hope springs eternal. 

"But I think I know what you mean. There are some things you remember that never happened."

Nothing much out of the ordinary ... A visit to a couple living in the country from the old roommate of the wife, someone out of the past, not seen in years ... But even before the visit itself, in the first words of Harold Pinter's 'Old Times,' the implications, the allusions of everything and anything that may--or may not--be said loom out of the shadows quite casually in the most banal speech:

"Was she your best friend?"

"What does that mean?"

--and by the end of the play, there's been something of a catharsis for the three "Old-Timers," whether seen as lost in uncertain memories, manipulators of those memories in themselves and each other, or strangers to each other and themselves, run aground on memory and speech ... 

A great deal of that catharsis is through laughter. The absurd humor of snatches of overheard conversations, of catching yourself or someone close saying something out of character, out of tune, is almost a form of punctuation in Pinter's dialogue. And self-contradiction's rampant, giving the play a sense of a faceted crystalline ornament revolved in your hand, revealing different obscure vistas inside. 

But the sense of danger blends in with chagrin, with humor that turns on itself, with one-upsmanship and put-down, unexpected sympathies, something almost like a joke form of elective affinities. Just who are these people? What they tell others? What they seem to believe themselves? 

Robert Estes, who's directed for Actors Ensemble and other theaters roundabouts, has long loved this dark gem of Pinter's, and is producing a short, midweek-only run for it at the Berkeley City Club at the perfect time of year, just as the year's ending, but in the kind of interregnum that falls between Thanksgiving and the social heat of Christmas/New Years, a particularly good moment for both the humor and pause for reflection that 'Old Times' occasions. 

Estes also assembled a team of "the ones I love to work with"--and it shows. Onstage, the three actors are completely different types who complement each other well in this little merry-go-round: acerbic Richard Aiello as Deeley, the husband constantly inserting himself between the women; Jody Christian as his reticent wife Kate; Mary Jo Price as ebullient Anna, now married to a wealthy man in Sicily. ("Do you go barefoot on your marble floors?") 

The three endlessly triangulate, but it's all brought to a head after a bath Kate takes, vanishing from the stage, during which time alone with Anna, Deeley reveals, to Anna's deadpan disagreement, surprise--or distaste--that they met years before at a party he's just recalled. And not long after Kate returns, demure in a robe, she drops her guise of quietude and launches into what can only be described as a tirade, those speeches, usually by leading ladies, from Racine or Corneille, apocalyptic affairs, almost prophecies or reportage of doom and despair, in this case telling how she went from roomie to wedded woman.  

Jody Christian performs Kate's tirade brilliantly, dropping at the end into sphinx-like repose, face like a mask, smile like a rictus, eyes shining under her fixed expression--with the others around her, a truly theatrical tableau. 

(It's good to see her back onstage, after a long hiatus. Jody Christian was always a bright face, a fine physical performer, one with depth, in Actors Ensemble productions of just a few years ago.) 

The shows are just Tuesdays and Wednesdays through December 17--8 p. m. at the City Club, 2315 Durant near Dana. $15-$30; advance tickets through brownpaperticket.com/event/975821

On Sunday, November 30, I journeyed to Hayward’s Douglas Morrisson Theatre for a performance of Leonard Bernstein’s opera Candide. Somehow, this 1956 opera had thus far eluded me, so I jumped at the chance to hear it. My effort was rewarded by a robust performance of Candide featuring a huge cast of soloists, chorus members, and a 14-piece orchestra conducted by David Möschler.  

Bernstein, who had earlier seen his first opera, Trouble in Tahiti, premiered at Brandeis University in 1952, and had not yet completed his score for West Side Story, began work on Candide by persuading Lillian Hellman to write an adaptation of Voltaire’s 1759 novella of the same title. Poet Richard Wilbur was engaged to write the lyrics, and, as the work took shape, additional lyrics were supplied by Stephen Sondheim, John LaTouche, Lillian Hellman, Dorothy Parker, and Bernstein himself. The final libretto for Candide offers a condensed yet faithful adaptation of Voltaire’s original Candide.  

Voltaire, perhaps the most famous of the 18th century French philosophes, intended Candide as a scathing satire of the “All is for the best“ worldview of German philosopher G.W. Leibnitz. Voltaire put his naive principal character, Candide, through a picaresque series of misadventures in many lands on multiple continents. Bernstein’s opera does likewise. In Hayward, the Douglas Morrisson Theatre used the Royal National Theatre Version of Bernstein’s Candide from London in a new version by John Caird, directed by Michael Mohammed. 

After a jazzy overture, Voltaire himself appears onstage, played here by Tom Reilly. His is largely a speaking role, though in Act II he does get a few chances to sing. In this production, his major function is as narrator. Voltaire introduces the character Candide as a young fellow of “unaffected simplicity.“ Candide, sung by tenor Andres Ramirez, offers a brief aria expressing his optimistic view of life. (Voltaire’s title was actually, Candide, ou L’Optimisme/Candide, or Optimism.) Then Candide is joined by his mentor, Pangloss, sung by baritone Geoffrey Colton, who 

leads Candide, his girlfriend Cunegonde, and various other characters in a chorus asserting that “This is the best of all possible worlds.“ (Pangloss is a stand-in for Leibnitz.)  

Among the principals, Andres Ramirez stood out as Candide, singing with a lilting lyricism and vibrant timbre. As Pangloss, baritone Geoffrey Colton gave a vocally assured performance; and, as Cunegonde, soprano Angela Jarosz offered a mixed bag of vocal acrobatics, sometimes reaching great hights of coloratura yet sounding shrill and squeaky in lower passages. One never knew what to expect from Jarosz; and this gave a certain air of mystery and tension to what otherwise might have been devoid of drama. Among secondary characters, soprano Anna Joham was excellent as Paquette, a peasant maid of easy virtue; tenor Johnny Villar gave an arch performance as Maximilian, the gay brother of Cunegonde; and mezzo soprano Tina Marzell was a vibrant Old Woman. Tenor Carlo Olmos ably sang the role of Cacambo, a loyal friend to Candide; and baritone Kenneth Keel sang several roles, most notably the Governor of Montevideo as well as Martin, a misanthropist who tries in vain to disabuse Candide of his optimism.  

Leonard Bernstein, ever the polyglot composer, filched or parodied music of all sorts in this opera. To Cunegonde he gave musical passages right out of Viennese operetta, then inserted Handelian coloratura passages, and even parodied Spanish fandango rhythms, also offering ditties right out of Broadway musicals. Bernstein as a composer is both glib and somehow beguiling. 

The plot begins when Candide is conscripted into the Westphalian army. In battle, Candide is horrified to see his comrades in arms slaughter entire villages of innocent civilians. Candide also learns that the enemy has slaughtered his own village and that Cunegonde was killed. Candide deserts the army and makes his way to Spain. Meanwhile, Cunegonde has survived and is taken to Spain by a soldier who sells her into sex-slavery to two religious clerics of different faiths, a Catholic and a Jew. In true ecumenical fashion, these worthy clerics agree to share Mademoiselle Cunegonde’s sexual favors in strict rotation, They compete with one another by lavishing precious jewelry on Cunegonde. When Candide discovers that Cunegonde is alive but mired in sex-slavery, he tries to rescue her and is violently attacked by both clerics, whom he kills in self-defense. Candide and Cunegonde flee Spain as fugitives, with Cunegonde bitterly lamenting all the precious jewels she left behind, gifts from her rival clerics. Arriving in Lisbon, Candide and Cunegonde are nearly buried alive in the disastrous earthquake of 1756.  

From Lisbon the plot takes Candide’s entourage to South America. In Montevideo, Cunegonde allows herself to be seduced by the governor, with whom she runs off, leaving Candide broken-hearted. Perhaps the musical highlight of this opera was the Governor of Montevideo’s seduction aria, so beautifully and fervently sung by baritone Kennethn Keel that one almost forgave Cunegonde this betrayal of Candide. Wandering broken-hearted in the mountains of Paraguay, Candide encounters a utopian society called El Dorado, where all citizens share equally in the wealth of the community. Candide and his friend Cacambo are treated as welcome guests and given great wealth in diamonds. It’s not clear, even in Voltaire’s novella, if this is an homage to his friend Rousseau’s notion of the “noble savage“ or if this is yet another satire on optimistic utopian visions. Suffice it to say that things end badly for Candide and Cacambo once they depart El Dorado.  

After more sea voyages, including attacks by Barbary pirates and a stop in Morocco, Candide returns again to Europe, eventually making his way to Venice, where his friend Cacambo has promised to meet him with Cunegonde in tow. In Venice, Candide does in fact meet up with Cunegonde, but in the meantime she has grown old and ugly. Candide bitterly reproaches Cunegonde for her many betrayals, and he stalks off saying he wants nothing to do with her. But a sudden epiphany occurs when Candide espies six former kings now reduced to poverty. Realizing how fickle is fate, Candide rouses his friends and leads them into the mountains, where they settle on a plot of land and vow to “cultivate their garden.“ Work on the soil, Candide realizes, is the best man can do in this otherwise sordid world. Candide marries Cunegonde in spite of her now less than beautiful appearance, and he leads his friends in a final chorus, “Make our garden grow.“ Thus ends Leonard Bernstein’s pastiche opera, Candide. It may not be great music; but in a fine pro-duction such as this one in Hayward, it’s good fun and a rollicking journey. In fact, it’s quite a trip.

Susanna Mälkki, who was recently appointed Chief Conductor of the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, returned to San Francisco Symphony to lead the orchestra in two performances, Saturday and Sunday, November 29-30. Featured on the program were Béla Bartók’s Third Piano Concerto with pianist Jeremy Denk, Johannes Brahms’s Second Symphony, and a short piece, The White Peacock, by early 20th century American composer Charles Tomlinson Griffes. 

The program opened with Mälkki conducting The White Peacock, a five-minute work by Griffes originally performed by an ochestra accompanying a solo dance by ballerina Margit Leeras wearing a peacock outfit. Oddly, The White Peacock’s premiere in 1919 was in a New York City movie theatre, sandwiched between screenings of a Civil War romance drama, Secret Service, and the Mack Sennet comedy Hearts and Flowers. Strongly influenced by Debussy, Griffes infused the score of The White Peacock with a freedom from fixed tonalities and a perfumed exoticism. There are lovely exchanges between orchestra and flute and orchestra and clarinet. On hearing this excellent work, one wished that Griffes, who died in 1920, had lived longer and composed more. 

Jeremy Denk, a 2013 MacArthur Fellowship awardee, performed as soloist with the orchestra in Bartók’s Third Piano Concerto. Bartók, who emigrated to the USA in 1940, wrote his Third Piano Concerto in 1945, the last year of his life, and did not live to hear its premiere in 1946 with the Philadelphia Orchestra. In San Francisco, pianist Jeremy Denk gave a robust interpretation of this vibrant work, and the orchestra seemed inspired by the energetic conducting of Susanna Mälkki.  

Unlike Bartók’s first two piano concertos, which begin aggressively, the Third begins gently, with the piano setting forth a meditative melody over a quiet orch-estral accompaniment. This is Bartók sounding like Debussy. Only here there are hints of Hungarian folk tunes. This opening movement, marked Allegretto, exudes a peaceful and nostalgic bent, ending with a lovely exchange between flute and piano. The second movement, marked Adagio religioso, is in effect a hymn of thanks. (Bartók’s illness was in a temporary state of remission when he wrote this movement.) Jeremy Denk’s piano took the lead in this hymn and the orchestral strings provided the connecting tissue. Midway through this movement, Bartók inserted one of his nightmusic interludes, comprised of twittering birdcalls and the buzzing of insects. This too seems something for which Bartók, ever sensitive to nature, was thankful. When the hymn resumes, the choral song is now in the orchestra and the piano offers the rhapsodic accompaniment. 

The third and final movement, marked Allegro vivace, offers a bright and cheery fugue, interspersed with a sweet dance rhythm with hints of a waltz. Bartók, who welcomed the end of World War II, and happy that his family had safely survived the war, brings his Third Piano Concerto to a vibrant, optimistic close. As pianist, Jeremy Denk gave a spirited performance, with only some excessive head lollings and dramatic head snaps to detract, or should I say, distract, from his excellent playing. As for conductor Susanna Mälkki, she led the orchestra in an energetic interpretation of Bartok’s Third Piano Concerto. Conducting without a baton, Mällki used her expressive hands to shape each musical phrase. 

After intermission, the orchestra returned to play Brahms’s Symphony No. 2 in D-major. Where Brahms’s First Symphony, fourteen years in the making, was an epic, Brahms’s Second Symphony, created in a mere four months, was an idyll. The work opens with three notes in the low strings, out of which primary material Brahms built his entire symphony. From this initial grouping of notes, the com-poser spun out a seemingly endless string of gorgeous melodies, each melody sweeping expansively into the next. There are mood swings in this movement as the music shifts from a sunny disposition to a somewhat cloudy wistfulness, then back again.  

The second movement, marked Adagio non troppo, is a densely concentrated piece of music in which two emotional states are explored, one meditative and searching, the other full of optimism. Under the leadership of conductor Mälkki, the orchestra gave a probing, intensely passionate reading of this movement, revealing all its deep emotional underpinnings. Even more than the first movement, this second movement was, for me, the highlight of Brahms’s Second Symphony.  

The third movement, an Allegretto grazioso, is a lighthearted, almost superficial piece of music, in the middle of which the composer inserts a gaily scampering dance theme. After the pensive probings of the previous movement, this Allegretto grazioso shifts back to the sunny side of life. The fourth and final movement begins, as did the opening movement, with the same three notes, as if calling attention to the extreme craftsmanship that enabled Brahms to build this entire symphony out of very simple primary material. Though beginning in a hush, the finale quickly breaks out in a shout, and the orchestra resolutely explores the clouds that lurk behind even the sunniest skies. Conductor Susanna Mälkki, her hair drawn back in a ponytail, her lithe body arched like a tautly strung bow, launched into the spirited passages of this finale with an electrical charge of energy. And the orchestra, drawing inspiration from her conducting, gave its all. Susanna Mälkki is definitely a conductor with a bright future.