A New Day but Same Old News: Protest at El Nuevo Dia Ends In Brutal Arrest

There is a cop right behind me as I write this in the 24 hr. Amerikkkan chain dinner. Hi cop, ACAB. HE is just chilling and having breakfast. I am in this breakfast shop because there really was nothing else and after tonight I have a lot less fucks to give. It was supposed to be just a night of documenting a protest at EL Nuevo Dia’s distribution center. I got there in the taxi to find the protestors already set up. They had set up a blockade at both entrances, preventing any of the trucks from leaving. The motivation for disrupting the shipment of the Monday paper came from the papers owners, the Ferrers. Support for PROMESA and the fiscal control board or La Junta.

Photo; Stevie Elepan

I hope this cop is enjoying his breakfast. I kind of hope he is reading this. I can’t do a damn thing to stop him but I won’t give the asshole the satisfaction of seeing me split. Ill rub one out here in front of him if I thought it was pertinent.

The protestors reportably arrived at 1am sharp. Around 2am and 3pm a motorcade showed up with some high ranking police officers in tow. There were discussions between the head of El Nuevo Dias security and the protestors. Then some talks between high ranking officials and protestors. There had already been a few actiones that received a mild response from local law enforcement. 

Everyone has been waiting for things to get rough like they were in 2010 during the student/teacher strikes at UPR. I was even asked by the head of security if I was from UPR. Apparently everyone involved in any sort of activism is “accused“ of being a public university student, as if carried some sort of criminal stigma. If that is the case then sign me up. The whole legal system in the US is garbage and in a colony it is garbage in a very small space.

Photo; Stevie Elepan

That asshole is having eggs. I hope he gets salmonella.

The riot police showed up. The stormed through the crowd and made way for the delivery trucks at 5pm. All the trucks made it through but the protestors tried. Those motherfuckers held the line the best they could and whatever ground they lost to turned right back around to take it back.

The first arrest was a young lady, she was tiny and quiet. Somehow I want to remember her with braids. She was dark skinned and huge eyes. Maybe they were wide because she was scared.

That’s it. She was scared but she kept pushing the cops back. She was not alone, there were a few bigger people there also pushing but they singled her out like low hanging fruit. She got loud then. She didn’t scream, she didn’t cry, she kept it together and shouted to her name and what was happening to her. She exactly what to do. She knew exactly what she was getting into.

Photo; Stevie Elepan

I don’t know if it is exhaustion, or stress or the despair of seeing so many beautiful people I have spent almost two months with get arrested and roughed up and I all did was watch. You don’t really get used to that. You can act hard against it but you don’t get used to that. Certainly, one does not desensitize to that sort of thing when they put so much love into trying to tell their story.

I wish I knew that woman’s name. I want to tell her I am jealous of her. I want her to know I wish I had that strength. That’s the person you want next to you when shit gets real. Never gave up, never cried when the cops squeezed her wrist and raised her arms up behind her back with her elbows pointing to the sky. She never cried for help. I lost her in fray. I ran to the other side of the police perimeter to see if I could find her and film her arrest, and give her chance to say her name and describe everything.

One of the black blocked got my attention and directed towards the woman that got arrested. The cops where getting a lot rough but started easing up when I showed up narrating everything I was seeing.

Ok the asshole is gone but I am not feeling safe yet. I have not slept and my adrenaline is draining.

Photo; Stevie Elepan

They carried off into El Nuevo Dia. This whole time the crew form the second gate is marching towards us with the Puerto Rican flag in the front. Not the dark blue one but the beautiful sky blue flag.

The cops were shifting their formation to push the crowd away. They were kind of overreacting considering that no one was armed, no one was actually violent, but when aren’t police overreacting. The precious shit rag of a newspaper had to be protected. That’s is fair. I won’t let those fuck wads stop y signal. I remember one of the older ladies at the camp saying that you can cut all the flowers you want but you cannot stop the spring.

Photo; Stevie Elepan

Fuck El Nuevo Dia and fuck the police. Sorry folks, but I never said I was objective. These last few days have been days of revelation. The true face of things have been revealed, maybe I need to drop the charade and be the asshole I really am.

There is no more reason to keep pretending with any one. I am a journalist and I will fight with words and pictures but I will make sure my skills and tools serve the people that have allowed me to document them. I will serve this resistance for as long as I am her and for as long as I can.

El Nuevo Dia had their own news team there to put a spin on things. These folks are big and the Ferrers have enough power to call upon the shock troops.

I am in this struggle now 100% or not at all. I still have a few months left and need to make the most of it. I am an angry Filipino/Afrikan/Borikua Journalist and I am not required to put up with fuckery. Fuck capitalism, fuck patriarchy fuck white supremacy and everything that come with that. From the Philippines to Palestine, from Puerto Rico to Portland, there is not stopping us from getting heard.

Photo; Stevie Elepan

Today every one that was asleep woke up. This fight is very real. There is no safety for the disobedient. If there is a struggle where you are that you want to be part of, stop thinking about. You have given it plenty of thought. Get in it. Do the work. The more you keep waiting for others to succeed the deeper into untenable territory you will find yourself in. Get involved, get organized, get educated, get agitated and help others do the same. Revolution won’t happen when it is convenient for you. Be part of the work. There are lovely people you know and lovely people that you have yet to know being put in danger because of your reluctance and indifference. DO not do it out of guilt either, just decide what side you’re on. Choosing to do nothing is a choice. There is no neutrality other than dead or inert.

Every moment is the moment of truth. Who are you really?

LUCHA SI, ENTREGA NO!

Photo; Stevie Elepan

Photo; Stevie Elepan

Photo; Stevie Elepan

Photo; Stevie Elepan

Photo; Stevie Elepan

Photo; Stevie Elepan

Photo; Stevie Elepan

If you enjoyed this article check out Through Our Own Eyes at KBOO 90.7 FM and get a post card from Puerto Rico when you make a donation to our project before the 1st of November 2016.

The Principles of CCLJ ENGLISH, TAGALOG, ARABIC, KURDISH,PORTUGESE and HAWAIIAN Translation

Campamento Contra La Junta

Our Principles:

NO TO THE BOARD

Project S2328, also known as PROMISE, which establishes a Fiscal Control Board, is an anti-democratic measure imposed by the US Congress; which it aims to charge an illegitimate public debt above and at the expense of human rights and basic services for people. In turn, the Board is a symptom of our colonial condition and explicit evidence of the farce of ELA. Last but not least, the Fiscal Control Board is not intended to eliminate corruption, much less bring to justice those responsible for having generated no ability to repay debt.

NO TO DEBT

The public debt of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico consists of three dimensions: illegal (unconstitutional), the illegitimate (misleading), and colonial (which some mistakenly considered legal) which contracted within a framework disadvantageous for our people as a result of economic  impositions and prohibitions that benefit the US. Through misinformation, the present and the future of our youth, our working class and our retirees has been bought. All of this odious debt should be paid by those who created it, with the full knowledge of the creditors, that created the conditions to indebt our people in the first place.

DECOLONIZATION

Our colonial condition limits the individual and collective capacities of self-government and prevents the right to self-determination. Colonialism is a violation of human rights and an affront to freedom, outside and inside the Puerto Rican archipelago. Aside from being recognized by the United Nations as a crime against humanity; colonialism restricts social justice and empowerment of people. We need a decolonization process; we understand that independence is the key to exercise the right to self-determination step.

‪

#‎CampamentoContraLaJunta
‪#‎NoALaJunta
‪#‎NoALaDeuda
‪#‎DescolonizacionAhora
‪#‎LaGenteAntesDeLaDeuda
‪#‎FuckPromesa





مبادئ تنظم اللجنة
ضد كامب مجلس

لدينا مبادئ:

لا للمجلس

مشروع S2328، المعروف أيضا باسم وعد، الذي يحدد المجلس الرقابة المالية، هو إجراء غير ديمقراطي المفروضة من قبل الكونغرس الأمريكي. التي تهدف إلى تهمة الدين العام غير شرعي أعلاه وعلى حساب حقوق الإنسان والخدمات الأساسية للشعب. في المقابل، فإن المجلس هو أحد أعراض حالة الاستعمارية لدينا، ودليل واضح من مهزلة ايلا. وأخيرا وليس آخرا، لا يقصد مجلس مراقبة المالية وللقضاء على الفساد، ناهيك عن تقديمهم للعدالة المسؤولين عن بعد ولدت لسداد الديون أبيتثر لا.

لا للديون

الدين العام لكومنولث بورتوريكو تتكون من ثلاثة أبعاد: غير الشرعيين (غير دستوري)، وغير شرعي (مضللة)، والاستعمارية (أي بعض القانونية عن طريق الخطأ يعتبر) أي تعاقد ضمن إطار ملائم لشعبنا نتيجة الإملاءات الاقتصادية و المحظورات التي تعود بالنفع على الولايات المتحدة. من خلال التضليل والحاضر والمستقبل من شبابنا، و-تم شراء لدينا الطبقة العاملة والمتقاعدين لدينا. كل من هذه الديون البغيضة أن تدفع من قبل سوفت أولئك الذين إنشائه، على مرأى ومسمع من الدائنين، وهذا خلق الظروف ليغرم شعبنا في المقام الأول.

إنهاء الاستعمار


لدينا حالة الاستعمارية يحد من القدرات الشخصية والجماعية من الحكم الذاتي والحق في تقرير المصير يمنع حق تقرير. الاستعمار هو انتهاك لحقوق الإنسان وإهانة للحرية، خارج وداخل الأرخبيل بورتوريكو. بصرف النظر عن كونها معترف بها من قبل الأمم المتحدة على أنها جريمة ضد الإنسانية؛ العدالة الاجتماعية الاستعمار وتمكين الناس يقيد. نحن بحاجة إلى عملية إنهاء الاستعمار. ونحن نفهم أن الاستقلال هو المفتاح لممارسة الحق في خطوة تقرير 



Ang aming Mga Prinsipyo:

NO TO THE BOARD

Project S2328, na kilala rin bilang PROMISE, Aling Nagtatatag ng isang Fiscal Control Board, ay isang anti-demokratikong panukala ipataw sa pamamagitan ng US Congress; Kung saan ito Nilalayon upang singilin isang hindi lehitimong pampublikong utang sa itaas at sa kapinsalaan ng mga karapatang pantao at mga pangunahing serbisyo sa mga tao. Kaugnay nito, ang Board ay isang palatandaan ng ating kolonyal na kalagayan at tahasang katibayan ng komedya ng ELA. Huling ngunit hindi bababa sa, ang Fiscal Control Board ay hindi inilaan alisin katiwalian, higit na mas mababa dalhin sa hustisya Ang mga responsable para Nagkakaproblema nabuo upang bayaran utang Abitur hindi.

NO TO UTANG

Ang pampublikong utang ng Komonwelt ng Puerto Rico binubuo ng tatlong mga sukat: illegal (unconstitutional), ang hindi naaayon sa batas (nakaliligaw), at kolonyal (Aling ilang nagkamaling legal Itinuturing) Aling kinontrata Sa loob ng isang framework disadvantageous para sa ating bayan bilang isang resulta ng pang-ekonomiyang mga imposisyon at pagbabawal na Makinabang sa US. Sa pamamagitan ng maling impormasyon, sa kasalukuyan at sa hinaharap ng ating mga kabataan, ang aming uring manggagawa at ang aming retirees ay-ay binili. Ang lahat ng ito kasuklam-suklam utang na binabayaran ng Dapat Bang mga Sino lumalang nito, na may buong kaalaman sa creditors, Na nilikha ang mga kondisyon upang indebt aming mga tao sa simula pa lamang.

decolonization


Ang aming kolonyal kalagayan naglilimita sa personal at sama-Capacities ng sariling pamahalaan at ang karapatan sa sariling Pinipigilan pagpapasya. Kolonyalismo ay isang paglabag sa karapatang pantao at isang paghamak sa kalayaan, sa labas at sa loob ng Puerto Rican kapuluan. Bukod sa na kinikilala ng United Nations bilang isang krimen laban sa sangkatauhan; kolonyalismo katarungang panlipunan at empowerment ng pinagbabawalan tao. Kailangan namin ng isang decolonization proseso; • Naiintindihan namin na pagsasarili ay ang susi sa ipatupad ang mga karapatan sa sariling pagpapasya hakbang.


Na loina o JFTC
Ku Camp Board

Ko kakou mau kumu:

NO ANA I KA Papa

Project S2328, no hoi i ike ia e like me ka olelo mua iaʻi, Ka mea e hoʻokau i ka hikiāloa Na Makuahine Papa, he Anati-aupuni ana hookauia iho e ka US Ahaolelo Lahui; A he AIM e kauoha aku i illegitimate na aie ma luna, a ma ka lilo o ka pono kīvila a me ka walaʻauʻana lawelawe i pili no na kanaka. I huli, ka Papa, he symptom o ko kakou colonial ana a me ka pelapela hoike o ka farce o Ela. Hope aka, aole uuku loa, ka hikiāloa Na Makuahine Papa, aole e manaoia e hoʻopau i ka palaho,ʻaʻole loa hoʻi e lawe mai i ka hoopai mau ke kuleana o ia la ua loaʻa i ka uku aie abitur ole.

NO I ka aie

I ka na aie o ka mokuaina o Puerto Rico he ekolu Ana: 'ino ai (unconstitutional), ka illegitimate (kuleana hūnā'), a me ka colonial (mea a kekahi kuhihewa loio i manaoia) A aelike loko i? Aieao i disadvantageous no ko makou poe kanaka, e like me ka hopena o oicyenoaaiiie ka hoʻokō ', a me kauoha e pomaikai ai ka US. Ma misinformation, i ka makana, a me ka wā e hiki mai ana o ko kakou wa kamalii, ko makou hana papa, a me ko kakou retirees ua-i kuai ai. A pau o keia hoowahawahaia aie e uku ia e ka poe e hana ia mea, a me ka piha ike o na aie, E hana mai ke kūlana e hana hewa mai ko kakou poe kanaka ma ka kahi mua.

decolonization


Ko kakou colonial ano hoʻohaiki ka pilikino a me ka like Capacities o ka hoʻoponopono aupuni, a me ka pono i ka pakiko kāohi 'ia paha-paa. Colonialism he 'aʻe' ana pono kīvila, a me ka affront i ke ku okoa ana, mawaho, a me loko o ka Puerto Rican pae'āina. Ae mai ka ikeia e ke Aupuni Hui Pū 'Ia, e like me ka hewa i ka manaʻo kanaka; colonialism i ka nohona kaulike, a me empowerment o kaʻike haole a kanaka. Pono kākou i ka decolonization kaʻina hana; ua ike kakou ua Kuokoa, oia ke ki e hana i ka pono, i ka hoʻoponopono paa 'anuʻu

Prensîpên ji JFTC
Li dijî Camp Board

Prensîbên me dike:

Na ji bo BOARD

Project S2328, Also wek SONDA tê naskirin, kîjan ava a Lijneya Kontrola Fiscal, ku bergiriyeke antî-demokratîk ferz dike ku ji aliyê Kongreya DYA'yê e; Ku ew bi armanca hisab an deynên dewletê ne rewa li jor û li ser hisabê mafên mirovan û xizmetên bingehîn ji bo gelê. Li dorê, li Lijneya ku ji nîşanên rewşa kolonyal me û delîlên eşkere yên tinazî ji ELA e. Last di heman demê de bi kêmî ve, ji Daîreya Kontrola bacê de ye, lewma nabe ku rakirina gendelî, gelek kêmtir bînin ji bo edaletê yên berpirs ji bo Dengdana bi giştî ji bo bergîdana lîseya deynê ne.

Na ji bo deynê

The deynê dewletê ji Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ji sê aliyan pêk tê: neqanûnî (destûrî), nerewa (ha), û kolonyal (Kîjan hin qanûnî xeletî çavlêkirina) Kîjan di çarçoveyeke dezavantaj ji bo gelê me yê ku wek encameke ji kirinan e, aborî û bi peyman qedexeyên ku Amerîka jê sûd wergire. Bi riya (YÎK), ya niha û pêşeroja ciwanên me, çîna karker me teqawîd û me hatiye-hatine kirrîn. Hemû ev deynê pîstir ji aliyê Beken Yên ku tên dayin, bi zanîna temamî ya deyndêran, ku şert û mercên tên afirandin deyndar gelê me di rêza yekem de.

dagirkeriyê


rewşa kolonyal me digre, bikarêbe şexsî û kolektîf yên self-hikûmet û mafê çarenûsî asteng-determînasyonê. Dagirker a binpêkirina mafên mirovan û coxrafyayî ya ji bo azadiyê, li derve û hundir archipelago Puerto Rican e. Ji xeynî ku ji aliyê Neteweyên Yekbûyî wek sûcekî li dijî mirovahiyê Naskirin; edaleta civakî kolonyalîzmê û libt ji gelê me bi sînor dike. Em divê pêvajoya dagirkeriyê; em fêm dikin ku serxwebûna key ji bo bikaranîna maf heye ku di gava diyarkirina çarenûsa xwe ye.

Os Princípios da JFTC
Contra acampamento Board

Nossos princípios:

NÃO AO CONSELHO

Projeto S2328, também conhecido como promessa, que estabelece um Conselho de Controle Fiscal, é uma medida anti-democrática imposta pelo Congresso dos EUA; Qual pretende cobrar uma dívida pública ilegítima cima e à custa dos direitos humanos e serviços básicos para as pessoas. Por sua vez, o Conselho é um sintoma da nossa condição colonial ea evidência explícita da farsa da ELA. Por último, mas não menos importante, o Conselho de Controle Fiscal não visa eliminar a corrupção, muito menos levar à justiça os responsáveis ​​por terem gerado para pagar abitur dívida não.

NÃO À DÍVIDA

A dívida pública da Comunidade de Porto Rico Consistem em três dimensões: ilegal (inconstitucional), o ilegítima (enganosa), e colonial (que considerou alguns legal erroneamente) que se contraiu Dentro de um quadro desfavorável para o nosso povo como resultado de imposições econômicas e proibições que beneficiam os EUA. Através de desinformação, o presente eo futuro da nossa juventude, nossa classe operária e os nossos aposentados tem-sido comprado. Tudo isso dívida odiosa ser pago pelo Should aqueles que a criaram, com o pleno conhecimento dos credores, isso criou as condições para endividar nosso povo em primeiro lugar.

descolonização


Nossa condição colonial limita as capacidades pessoais e coletivos de auto-governo e o direito à auto-determinação Previne. O colonialismo é uma violação dos direitos humanos e uma afronta à liberdade, fora e dentro do arquipélago de Porto Rico. Além de ser reconhecido pelas Nações Unidas como um crime contra a humanidade; justiça social colonialismo e capacitação das pessoas restringe. Precisamos de um processo de descolonização; Entendemos que a independência é a chave para o exercício do direito à etapa de auto-determinação.

Grass Roots in the Ghetto

On the 21^st of August, 2016 I was invited to follow José Enrique García Oquendo and others to Caserio Manuel A Pérez, the second largest public housing project in the Caribbean and the Americas named for a former interim governor that under one of their brief administrations passed a law that would create the music schools of Boriken. It is the place where Jose was born, raised and still resides. The neighborhood also has a long history of class struggle.

Photo: Stevie Elepan

From  9am till 3pm Jose and a coalition of different far left  organizations  such as Campamento Contra La Junta  and Se Acabaron Las Promesas, the latter being the organizers for the 31^st of August protest against the 1^st PROMESA Conference at Condado Plaza Hilton. Block by block, 20+ participants and a PPT truck with large speakers called a “Tumba Coco” informing residents of PROMESA and the end of the month event.

Photo: Stevie Elepan

Residents were receptive and the participants were respectful of the space they were in. The day was hot as we moved from one residents to another in the concrete miniature city. The people in this hood are resourceful and industrious, you could see small car shops and barber chairs in front of residential buildings. There are other clandestine business in the neighborhood so I had to limit my camera usage out of respect for the community. If Boriken ever broke ties with the United States these are folks that would help rebuild the economy. These are folks that make something from nothing every day.

Photo: Stevie Elepan

Of course there was the classic heavy police presence, a huge two-story blue building next to the basketball court, cantina and public open air theater. The DPP is constantly reminding folks they are around with their large brutal buildings, helicopter fly byes and flashing police lights, the poorer the neighborhood the more police presence you will see. ACAB.

The day end with much-needed libations and dancing at the local cantina with residents. I myself felt burnt out in the 98-degree weather and my camera was on fire. I had a beer and a chicken empanadilla made and sold by one of the residents out of their window.  

José Enrique García Oquendo briefs participants. Photo: Stevie Elepan

Sometimes we get caught up in debating economic theories that we forget that there is practical work that we must do with the masses.Even those of us that are part of the working poor will separate ourselves from our class and forget to do the practical work . 

It is not enough to recognize a problem, action must be taken. I praise Jose and his companer@s for the labor they put in that day. Be sure to join the action on the 31^st of August 2016 at the Condado Plaza Hilton. You can participate by arriving at 8am on the day of the event or online by sharing messages of solidarity against Amerikkkan Imperialism and against PROMESA.

Photo: Stevie Elepan

Photo: Stevie Elepan

Photo: Stevie Elepan

Photo: Stevie Elepan

Photo: Stevie Elepan

Photo: Stevie Elepan

If you enjoyed this article check out Through Our Own Eyes at KBOO 90.7 FM and get a post card from Puerto Rico when you make a donation to our project before the 1st of November 2016.

Citizens Disrupt Investment Summit at the Sheraton in Puerto Rico

"You look way too Maoist"

"They need to get a job and work up through the system"

"This is the easiest place in the world to get an education"

-Dr.Scott Brown Professor of Fiance at UPR

Today at 9am activist crashed the 2016 Puerto Rico Investment Summit at the Isla Grande Sheraton hotel. The arrived in mass and with banners and called for an end to Act 20 and 22.The Annual summit is a way to encourage potential investors to take advantage of  incentives these two laws provide. 

Both of these laws give unfair advantages to foreign and US corporations and investors. Act 20 gives a 100% tax exemption on dividends and/or profit distributions to both export services. Act 22 gives individual investors 100% tax exemption on dividends, interest income and all capital gains.

Scott Brown(left) Pete(right)

The event had a heavy police and private security presence. Hotel security was verbally abusive and there some physical altercations as objectors to the event disrupted passage into the event room. We spoke with Pete (Just Pete) and Dr. Scott Brown, a Kansas City professor of finance at the University of Puerto Rico. Hear the interview here.

This was an inter-organizational action and one of many to come, not just in the coming days but in the coming months.

Photo: Stevie Elepan

Photo: Stevie Elepan

Photo: Stevie Elepan

Photo: Stevie Elepan

Photo: Stevie Elepan

Photo: Stevie Elepan

Photo: Stevie Elepan

Photo: Stevie Elepan

Photo: Stevie Elepan

Photo: Stevie Elepan

Photo: Stevie Elepan

Photo: Stevie Elepan

Photo: Stevie Elepan

Photo: Stevie Elepan

If you enjoyed this article check out Through Our Own Eyes at KBOO 90.7 FM and get a post card from Puerto Rico when you make a donation to our project before the 1st of November 2016.

Build Up To Protest Against PROMESA in Boriken

Preparations are being made for the protest of on the 31st of August in front of the The Condado Plaza Hilton owned by Hilton Worldwide. The event is being hosted by The Puerto Rico Chamber of Commerce, Birling Capital Advisors, LLC , Select Global Advisory Group, Inc. and El Nuevo Día.

Birling Capital Advisors and Select Global Advisory Group are financial advisory firms recently established in Boriken, 2015 and 2014, respectively. EL Nuevo Dia is a major local newspaper that supports PROMESA.

The event will have guest experts from outside Boriken. One interesting guest is former International Monetary Fund (IMF) Chief Economist  Simon H. Johnson.

Interventions and educational events are already taking place leading up to the day of the event. There is a call of international support and attention to this two week process. Folks interested in supporting the protestors by flooding social media with articles about Puerto Rico, PROMESA, and messages of solidarity from organizations and individuals.

FOlks are welcomed to us the following hashtags:

#NoALaJunta

#LaGenteAntesQueLaDeuda

#QuePaguenLxsDeArriba

#Descolonización

#CampamentoContraLaJunta

#SHUTITDOWN

The main action is on Wednesday, August 31 at 7 AM - 5:30 PM local time.

For more details follow this blog or look up the facebook event.

If you enjoyed this article check out Through Our Own Eyes at KBOO 90.7 FM and get a post card from Puerto Rico when you make a donation to our project before the 1st of November 2016.