[Occupymendocino] OM Facebook protest planned

[nlnelson at mcn.org]

   As a retired teacher who has worked in both Mendocino and Fort Bragg,
and who has seen first hand the differences in cultural attitudes in the
two, I urge Occupiers to stay out of this one and NOT to do
anything which could harm the mood of the event. We already have sad
recent examples of sports confrontations that turned lethal. We do NOT
need to risk another in FB.

   In this world of video-game frenzy, and WII couch potatoes,  I laud all
students who still get out and play sports and who take them seriously.
And I also respect Becky Walker very highly, and the fact that she
mentions the murder of Officer Fiorentino is important, as she knows
that the emotion about that event remains high and charged. Sadly,
there are people who mistake protests against any officer as protest
against their fallen heroes, and some of those people are very likely
to attend this tournament.  Becky said it precisely: FB does not have
the resources to deal with potential confrontations, so let's do
nothing that could invoke such arguments,and ruin the event for the
players who have trained hard and well.

    PLEASE let the kids who have decided to participate enjoy their sports
time, and leave those with concerns to educate their peers. They'll
educate peers better than we, and Occupy can work on education in other
venues.

    People are NOT coming to the tournament for enlightenment or
education. Success is knowing where to choose our battles, and this
should NOT be one of them.

Heartfelt, Nancy Wallace-Nelson



> Jasper N Henderson	8:16pm Dec 27
> Dear Occupy Folks --
> I'm a Mendocino resident (just moved down from Fort Bragg) who has long
admired what you guys are doing here. I was fairly heavily involved with
Occupy Boston, spent some time at Occupy Wall St., and helped start
Occupy
> Harvard back in 2011. I'm also a graduate of Fort Bragg High, so I'm
furious about Becky Walker and Bruce Triplett banning "Black Lives
Matter"
> t-shirts at their basketball tournament. So I'm calling for a protest
this
> coming Monday (the first day of the tournament) at 5PM. Can you share
this
> with your many supporters? Here's the text I wrote. Feel free to
edit/change it.
> Calling a protest for free speech and #BlackLivesMatter at the
basketball
> tournament at Fort Bragg High School, Monday the 29th, 5PM. Making
national news, the tournament organizers disinvited the Mendocino High
School boys and girls basketball teams out fear that they might wear
#ICantBreathe t-shirts during their warm-up.
> Come stand in solidarity with the Mendocino basketball teams and the
#BlackLivesMatter movement. Let's show the world that Fort Bragg and
Mendocino County support the protests across the country and the right
of
> free speech.
> Meet on the front steps of Fort Bragg High School, 300 Dana Street at
5PM
> and marching to the tournament entrance. Bring t-shirts, signs, banners,
and candles.
> Articles published all across the internet about the ban:
> http://l.facebook.com/l/ZAQFxbB9uAQHgM7U-TUxYbxySlaZxA3L6RyeshA8Us_4Ibw/www.theguardian.com/world/2014/dec/27/i-cant-breathe-t-shirts-high-school-basketball
http://l.facebook.com/l/cAQFOnNrGAQFBfqoAlNmPb_HqHVDt4BhEM0jqgxqYx78kyQ/www.ibtimes.com/fort-bragg-high-school-bans-i-cant-breathe-t-shirts-1768106
http://l.facebook.com/l/hAQGbQL7xAQErNAVTvcTdvsfQ7SWxnbG6uujhECgdZuOJ5g/www.buzzfeed.com/davidmack/high-school-bans-i-cant-breathe-shirts-basketball-tournament%23.qwaG498Lk
> 	'I Can't Breathe' T-shirts see high-school basketball team disinvited
> from event
> www.theguardian.com
> Mendocino High School teams out of Fort Bragg tournament after too few
members of girls team promise...
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