City of Oakland officials and Occupy Oakland protesters laid the groundwork for building trust at a meeting at City Hall on Thursday afternoon, following weeks of contentious incidents in West Oakland and on Frank Ogawa Plaza that have led to 40 arrests.The first steps toward building that trust, members of the Occupy Oakland Interfaith group told city officials, involve helping to get the 16 protesters still in custody released.

The meeting was unprecedented, in that it was the first time city officials and protesters formally discussed issues involving the ongoing Occupy Oakland protests. It also came about after a tense scene where at least 80 protesters tried to occupy City Hall in response to a raid last night at Frank Ogawa Plaza that resulted in 12 arrests. Two more protesters were arrested Thursday afternoon, the reason for which was not know before press time.

At the meeting, delegates from the Interfaith Group, one of the many groups associated with Occupy Oakland, called for the Oakland Police Department and city officials to change their culture which they said has been one of hostility toward the protesters.

Read the rest of the story by John C. Osborn at Oakland North.

Connect with Oakland North on Facebook, or follow us on Twitter.