[sudo-discuss] FUD around Lockpicking class

[Shawn Lesniak]

On 2013-02-28 01:13, Anon195714 wrote:>
> Re. Shawn:
>
> In no way am I suggesting that we start "working with the city or law
> enforcement officers on reporting who shows up at events or assist them
> in doing so," any more than the radical Quakers did.
>

I don't know anything about the radical Quakers and they are in no way a
litmus test for the right amount of cooperation with law enforcement.
You are in favor of undercover officers at sudoroom events.  I am
uncomfortable with that in any amount.

> What I _am_ advocating is to open the lines of communication and point
> out that if the city is truly concerned about badguys showing up, they
> can send someone along to hang out and observe for themselves.  What
> they're going to see is a room full of geeks learning an oldschool
> mechanical skill.  More likely they won't bother, in which case their
> objection can be dismissed as meaningless.

The term city is ambiguous here.  The mayor endorsed it at some level,
then some of her constituents were concerned.  Some other people signed
up for the class.  Oakland is a diverse city.

The city government in cooperation with law enforcement is deeply afraid
of anarchists.  What happens when they look into it further and realize
several known anarchists congregate at sudoroom?  Maybe you don't care
because you're not an anarchist, and I'm hesitant to air out my
'anarchist' credentials, but I've been beaten by Oakland police for
being a suspected anarchist.  I'm not comfortable with inviting anyone
in for surveillance.
In addition, whether 'known gang members' are likely to show up or not,
the laws are no different for them than for us.  If it were my class,
and someone told me to only teach white people or people without tattoos
or people who aren't wearing black shirts or any other restrictions, I'd
tell them to fuck off and if I caught anyone surveilling them I'd kick
them out.
Safe space to me means no LE in sudoroom, uniformed or undercover.

> As for comparing "'known gang member'" to "the more privileged class":
> that's postmodern BS.  The #1 killer of young black men in Oakland isn't
> police bullets but gang bullets.  So where are the outraged protests in
> front of known gang enclaves, eh?  This isn't an abstraction: a young
> black man I knew was killed in a drive-by.  As for "privileged class,"
> about 1/3 of SudoRoom members are unemployed, and many are
> borderline-homeless.  A few more "privileges," such as full-time jobs
> that pay decent wages, would be a good thing.

You don't have to kill someone to ruin their lives.  Go out to East
Oakland and ask a few people what their experience with LE is.  Sit in a
courtroom in Oakland for 2 hours and see what people are in jail for.
I've seen people spend 2 days in jail for riding their bike on the
sidewalk, which can lose you a job.
I've had a cop roll up on me aggressively while I was wearing a hood and
then immediately changed his demeanor when he saw I was white and let me
go.  Life is different for PoC in Oakland.  I've seen it myself and I've
spent the time talking to people who are affected.

This is why I fight to keep schools open, to improve access to resources
for everyone.  You close a school, you open a jail.  You open a school,
you close a jail.

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