Oakland panel weighs ban on protesters' 'tools' Activists say shields are essential

The Oakland City Council's public safety committee will consider an ordinance Tuesday banning protesters from having "tools of violence" at demonstrations, including shields, poles and hammers.

Though the proposal from City Attorney Barbara Parker never refers to Occupy Oakland explicitly, it refers to dates on which the movement had several of its largest demonstrations.

Among a host of incidents, Parker says vandals used a hammer to smash a window at a Whole Foods store Nov. 2, sprayed graffiti throughout Frank Ogawa Plaza on Jan. 28 and used fire accelerant on a police car on May 1.

On Jan. 28, which Occupy Oakland called a "move-in day" to take over the vacant Henry J. Kaiser Convention Center, Parker said people used shields made out of corrugated steel to advance on police lines and protect those who threw rocks and other objects at police.

"The City of Oakland supports and has a long and proud history of supporting peaceful protests and demonstrations," Parker writes in the proposal."Unfortunately, some individuals have used protests in Oakland as 'cover' to commit acts of violence, arson and vandalism."

To become law, the proposal would have to be approved by the public safety committee on Tuesday and ultimately would need to be approved by the full city council.

The ordinance would make it a misdemeanor - punishable with a $1,000 fine and six months in jail - for having those items at demonstrations.

The use of shields, in particular, has become an integral part of Occupy Oakland protest culture. At the Nov. 2 general strike, numerous masked protesters carried shields in the image of books, like Ursula K. LeGuin's "The Dispossessed," as symbols of their cause but also as protection from police.

Advocates say the shields have become essential, particularly since there have been a series of incidents of police using force that was later called into question.

Protester Scott Olsen suffered a fractured skull after he was shot with a beanbag by Oakland police, according to a federal monitor. He had been filmed standing peacefully just moments before. Occupy protester Kayvan Sabeghi was hit repeatedly by an Oakland police officer wielding a baton, according to video footage. Another protester, Scott Campbell, was shot by a beanbag while he was filming police.

All three incidents have raised concerns by a federal monitor tracking reforms in the Oakland Police Department.

"People need protection from police," said Steven Angell, 22, a member of Occupy Oakland. "These shields have protected people from violence in the past."

Police on May 1 shifted strategies on dealing with Occupy Oakland protests. Instead of mass teargassing and attempts to corral large groups, small squads of officers went into the crowd and pulled out individuals for arrest on charges of committing crimes or violating stay-away orders.

At least 39 people were arrested. Police also went into crowds throughout the day to remove shields.

Creating a list of banned items makes a much larger group of protesters subject to arrest, Angell said.

"It's a broader shift from trying to contain protests to pre-emptively stopping them," said Angell. "Now it makes everybody part of that potential agitator group."

Councilwoman Pat Kernighan, a co-sponsor of the measure, said it was merely making protests safer for the majority.

"It looks like people are armed for battle," she said. "I don't think that's what a protest march should be about."