OCCUPY’S PLAN TO SHUT DOWN GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE CANCELLED

Occupy’s Plan To Shut Down Golden Gate Bridge Cancelled

(Photo: Darwin Bell)

Er, never mind. Occupy’s plan to shut down the Golden Gate Bridge on May 1st has been cancelled. Occupy will instead focus on ferry service. Why? Well, part of it could be that the Golden Gate Bridge District just agreed to pay a reported $2 million to “380 workers represented by 14 unions who have been out of contract since July 2011 over a dispute about medical insurance costs passed on to workers,” reports Susie Cagle for SF Appeal.

“We appreciate the tremendous support we’ve received from the public, our brothers and sisters in labor, San Francisco commuters, and allies like Jobs with Justice, Pride at Work, and Occupy San Francisco,” said Alex Tonisson, Organizer and Co-Chair of the Golden Gate Bridge Labor Coalition, in a statement released on Friday. “Bridge, bus, and ferry workers have done everything we can at the bargaining table to reach a fair contract. As we prepare to take the next step in the fight for quality affordable healthcare for workers, families, and retirees, we ask supporters to stand with us at strike picket lines on May Day, and to keep the bridge open.”

Some occupiers aren’t thrilled about the decision to cancel Tuesday’s plan due to seemingly political reasons. Former San Francisco mayoral candidate John Rinaldi (AKA Chicken John) penned the following on the Occupy the Bridge wall after the announcement:

Well you just lost me. You will find as you gain wisdom through failure that when you adhere to something, you lose at least 50% of your audience. The idea of “Occupy” was that it was a blanket idea, that we were ALL the 99%. Now, you include politics that show the idea is compromised. Unions are a blight on our great nation, and I detest them and so do many people I know. We see them as bullying and a tool for a small percentage of people who “have theirs”. You will not be seeing me or any of us in your mayday parade. I wish you the best of luck though, and hope that we can all live in a world free from banks and unions in the future.

And with that, the plan to temporarily shutter the bridge won’t happen. Probably not. However, there is talk of “autonomous action” that might cause a ruckus at the Golden Gate Bridge on May Day. Buses will still leave from 19th and Telegraph in Oakland and San Francisco City Hall at 6 a.m. tomorrow to the picket sites.

May Day should prove an eventful one for Occupy members and supporters. Occupy SF plans to hold a street fair at Montgomery and Market streets tomorrow afternoon. And Occupy Oakland will hold rallies throughout the city, as well as a noontime rally at Oakland City Hall.

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