Yes, they had street drunks, moron.

Seriously, stop pretending you invented drugs or that druggies haven't been ... oh, I don't know ... elected as City Council, County Council, and State Reps and Senators (and even Governors) here before.

Some of this city's founding fathers used to get in bar fights. A lot. The kind that they pretty up for Westerns.

Thanks for this! Kind of a People's History of Seattle. As a non-native I knew none of these stories.

Of course, the Native Americans who run Daybreak Star in Discovery Park weren't quite so thrilled when Nickelsville decided to occupy their property in 2008. That didn't last very long.

Well said again Ms.Graves.
(PS: sorry that most of your commenters are imbeciles)

Yes, but compare their goals. Daybreak Star occupied Fort Lawton BECAUSE THEY WANTED TO TAKE IT. Bocanegra and his people occupied Beacon Hill School because they wanted to take it. How much simpler can you get than that?

What does Occupy Seattle want to take? Westlake Park? SCCC? What for? What connection do they have to it, or to anything? El Centro, Daybreak Star -- those are popular monuments to oppressed peoples. The encampments of OS are what, exactly? Everyone in the blogosphere has had a crack at "here's what they stand for" but no one, but no one, has articulated a simple goal or a way to get it.

"GIVE US THIS BUILDING!" on the other hand....

And, it should be pointed out, the occupation of the Coleman School was a joke until the Urban League stepped in and created NAAM.

That's how you always get land: you occupy and and resist all attempts to be moved from it.

Depending on your situation, you may be able to enlist the assistance of other groups (say, the police, or the armed forces) to back your assertion that this is "your" land.

Great post, Jen, thank you!

@Fnarf

Take a look at the documentary "Lives Worth Living," about people with disabilities lobbying for accessibility in government buildings and other facilities. They occupied federal buildings because they could get notice for their cause.

http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/lives…

Jen -- another good article.

There were also some white folk who occcupied alki point in 1851.

Great article, Jen--but the headline needs a correction: 1972, not 1978.

I wish you would be more of a critic. This whole occupy thing is poorly executed, has a feeling of being faux and toothless [a bunch of half-committed posers] Its like a third gen artistic ripoff; waterd down, dull points. The bit of history in your post was great, so thanks for that. I feel like the stranger should have a critic who goes around calling BS on everything the moronic gen public get duped into rewarding. A nice, friendly person that advocates for the weak art, culture, society is good to have [I like reading your stuff] but we also need a critic that contrasts whatevers happening locally with the best of the best globally/historically. I wish the stranger was more counter-culture [all the stuff that was counter-culture in 1985 isnt anymore].

Really good Jen. (More of this please?)

@15 ZING!

@5 (& anyone else interested in local history), do check out http://historylink.org/, MOHAI's http://seattlehistory.org/ and, of course http://pauldorpat.com/ They're quite the bottomless treasure-troves!

So...someday Westlake Plaza will become Occupy Triangle?

Thank you. I knew none of these stories

@19 Thank YOU too :)

I've read and viewed so many amazingly stupid things being said about the Occupy movement. Juvenile, asinine right-wing distortions, half-truths and absolute lies. "Dirty hippies, get a job, lazy-ass protesters. What do they think they're doing? You'll never change anything that way!"

Great post... I've already shared it with a few choice recipients!

So, the occupiers are hoping to win a cultural center at SCCC?

Income inequality: solved!

I was going to say @9 ftw, but then

@15 FTW - the Denny Party = Original Occupiers!

All these examples cited of other so-called 'occupy' movements had literal purpose related to occupation/inhabitation/real estate.

If OccupySea is against the 1%, occupy Medina/YarrowPT, Broadmoor/MadisonPk and Meydenbauer Bay.

If they are wanting a platform for reform, occupy the city hall.

If they are protesting bad policy and economic unbalance, occupy Olympia.
Or fawk, get all the Occupy X city groups on the same page .... and converge en masse on WASHINGTON DC and shut that shit down at the source.

FFS though don't occupy ST MARKS. *headdesk*

indians ocupying their land is cool.
the centro de la raza is my old school and all my friends grew up on beacon hill. we were happy to see the chicanos take beacon hill school over so safeway wouldnt be tearing it down.
the african center wasnt a fight as much as a waiting, never met with any opposition.

now occupy seattle is compared to these actions. there is no comparison. all occupy does is occupy space and not even the right space. wall street is in new york. if one really wants to make a stand, one should go to new york.

the other thing is you wont have your voice heard if you dont have your gun. you may have the right to free speech, but unless you are willing to protect your freedom with firepower, you arent going to be able to use your freedom.

Hey Jen – nice post, there’s even MORE history to the tradition of occupying property in Seattle then your post gets to…

For more on the results of the occupations of the 90's, look to Operation Homestead and their occupations of the Pacific Hotel owned at the then Seafirst Bank (Bank of America), the NikeTown Bldg, the McKay, the Arion Court, the Gatewood, and Cherry Street houses. Those occupations resulted in approximately 400 new units of low income housing. (nothing to sneeze at)

See link: http://www.tenant.net/Other_Areas/Washst…

In the shameless self-promotion department, here's a Seattle history blog with all these stories and more:

http://radsearem.wordpress.com/

Thank you, Goldy! Fuck you, detractors!

Great post. Thank you.

The history of the Northwest is rich with real radical history and the convergence of many cultures and many voices has indeed helped in that radicalization. As an example in the early 1900's in McNiel Island there was a man jailed for exporting revolution to Mexico. His name was Ricardo Flores Magon known as the intellectual leader of the Mexican Revolution. His incarceration led his followers known as the Magonistas to associate with the most radical elements in the Northwest the "Wobblies". Many of you know them as the International Workers of the World the IWW. This relationship led to the participation of the Wobblies in the takeover of Tijuana alongside Mexicanos against the Mexican Federales. The Wobblies were composed of Germans, Greeks, Italians, Russian and other european immigrants and to my surprise Mexicanos also. There is also other examples of that solidarity but it took the patience and humility of all this workers to come together and translate the conversations in many languages so there could be real inclusion not just ongoing debates in one language and recruit people from different cultures and nationalities to accomplish this unity. Many of you know the history and the eventual repression against the Wobblies because they at that time in history were a real threat to the powers in charge. Ricardo Flores Magon died in Levenworth Prison after he was transfered from McNiel Island. We do have good examples of unity and we also have real Heroes in the Mexicano community like Magon. I hope that this city one fo this days erects a statue of Magon instead of thar iron example of colonizer we have in the waterfront.

Thanks Jan and one small correction the take over was in 1972. But it is great to have people remember or acknowledge the occupation efforts of yesterday as protests to the conditions of Racism that were being faced at that time. We were not many but we were determined and inclusive with those that truly wanted change.