Occupy ousted: Cops take naked lady, 15 others
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The final campfire shortly after 5pm.tom daly -
They coached each other on non-violent resistance.tom daly -
Their permit had expired 23 hours earlier.tom daly -
As the sun set...tom daly -
...their voices grew louder.tom daly -
Supporters thronged Market Street...tom daly -
...with the Bill of Rights front and center.tom daly -
Another group of citizens had a different mission.tom daly -
One found a unique way to rally on Market Street...tom daly -
...and inside the park.tom daly -
The bold gesture drew the men in blue.tom daly -
She became the first arrestee.tom daly -
Within an hour they were all gone.tom daly
The night after their permit to remain in downtown's Lee Park expired, members of the Occupy Charlottesville movement, an ardent band of peaceful campers and protesters made a last stand as scores of supporters arrived to encourage their effort. But in the end, the final show– including a naked woman– was not enough to stave off ouster by the Charlottesville Police Department.
Since mid-October, when a few tents appeared in the one-acre park, the local version of Occupy Wall Street has attempted to rally support for the idea that too much wealth has been concentrated in the hands of too few. The provocative 24/7 effort stoked controversy as City government appeared to extend privileges including the right to have campfires, porta-potties, and free electricity.
"We're sorry if there's been an inconvenience," protester Bailee Hampton told City Council recently. "We're trying to change the world."
Those words were eventually affixed to a placard, along with other notable quotes from renowned advocates for a better America as well as the words of the First Amendment which guarantee "the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."
But in the end, the City told them they had overstayed their welcome in the park that some North Downtown neighbors wanted returned to the way it was. On Wednesday, November 30, the day the City promised to start making arrests, UVA vowed that its terrain was off limits as a replacement.
The naked woman was the first in cuffs. Contributing Hook photographer Tom Daly was there for the midnight roundup.
Charlottesville police released a list of the 18 people arrested:
John H. Haines, 20
Kaitlin A. Johnson, 21
Ryan L. Whitcomb, 22
Mario G. Brown, 23
Megan M. Ranfro, 23
Derrick Shanks, 23
Sara M. Tansey, 23
Chelsey R. Weber, 23
Kali A. Cichon, 25
Bailee E. Hampton, 31
Veronica H. Fitzhugh, 32
Shelly S. Stern, 36
Lee A. Kinkade, 38
Bruce C. Hlavin, 51
Earl Flansburg, 54
Frank Richards, 56
Jon Grainer, 57
Donna J. Carty, 60
All the arrestees reside in Charlottesville or Albemarle except for Flansburg of Louisa, Shanks of Staunton, and active Facebooker Hampton who is listed as "homeless." Brown and Carty left the park after getting cited while the others were jailed and later released. All were charged with trespassing, but the garment-shedding Fitzhugh earned an additional charge for "indecent exposure."
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More photos online at readthehook.com.
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Note: the final paragraph before the names was tweaked and the names were added a few days after this original posting for print publication. The original headline read: "Occupy ousted: Cops take naked lady, at least dozen others"
80 comments
I can hardly wait to hear all the local prudes whine about The Hook publishing the naked images of the protestor. Guess I will check You Tube now for all the allegations of police brutality.
And now all the little children have gone home to sleep in their little beds with dreams of changing the world dancing in their heads, when in reality all they accomplished was making a mess and disturbing a neighborhood. I think I did those same things when I was 7.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y07ouztiR0g
Get's interesting about the 3 minute mark.
"Naked Lady" rocks!!! love it!!!
Watched the vid that Gasbag posted, and as always it's a lot of rhetoric from the Occupiers. Still not getting how camping in a park is going to change anything that's going on in this world.
"Controlled opposition" indeed.
Deleted by moderator.
Naked Lady didn't have nothing on the girl with a beard.
Channel 19 interviews Beard Lady on their web site.
I have lived a very sheltered life obviously. Never seen such a thing in my life.
Tim, I think Naked Lady was perhaps trying to make the point that she doesn't even have enough money to clothe her family????
And Naked Lady reminds me of a few Greene County deputies, she can obviously tolerate the cold weather well. A few of the deputies used to run the air conditioning in their troll cars in December, January and February! Almost froze me to death when I needed to go with them somehwere!
"Tim, I think Naked Lady was perhaps trying to make the point that she doesn't even have enough money to clothe her family????"
Bet she has a cell phone/car/ and cable TV. I don't have cable TV and Im not bitching about it, but I am tired of paying for the "poor" to have them. Drive by Garrett Sq and look all of the Satellite dishes hung on the wall.
Envy (also called invidiousness) is best defined as a resentful emotion that "occurs when a person lacks another's (perceived) superior quality, achievement, or possession and either desires it or wishes that the other lacked it.
I went... it was a joke. Done studying this little oddity...
Naked lady may not have enough money for clothes but she obviously had enough for food....
Bill, that's a mean thing to say! Almost everybody weighs too much nowadays. And it's not easy to lose it or keep it off. I need to lose about 25 pounds myself.
Could be, Gassy. But the feeling was mutual in some instances. Especially with the deputy who ended up in federal prison. I'm glad I didn't get tied up in any of his escapades.
Recall a time in the late 60s when someone at a UVa protest of Dow Chemical and its manufacture of napalm used in Vietnam doffed her top on the steps of Minor Hall, then housing the Office of Career Planning and Placement.
Anyone here remember another "occupation", that of the Poor People's Campaign and Resurrection City in Washington DC in 1968? That didnt accomplish much either and was finally cleared out. Although who knows if things may had gone differently if Dr. King had not been killed . Hard to say, that was a tumultuous time.
I regret scrolling through those pictures.
I regret scrolling through those pictures during lunch. The Hook owes me a keyboard...
oh my, I just saw them. So much for eating lunch today....
(I know that's really mean....)
Is it just me, or does it appear that many people protest something just for something to do and don't truly know the reason(s) behind the protest???
You should be ashamed of all the snarky comments about the female protester's body. That said, I am a North Downtown resident and am glad to see the Occupiers removed finally. I can now walk through the park again on my way to the Mall. Hopefully they will find another way to channel their protest in a way that doesn't infringe upon rights of fellow C-ville residents.
Interesting that the statement below the "Post Comment" button mentions not insulting people, and yet half the comments in this thread are childish insults about someone's personal appearance. One of the comments even calls out protesters for acting like 7-year-olds, but most of the comments that follow exhibit behavior that we learn is inappropriate in elementary school. Comments threads are often a terrible reminder of just how petty folks generally are, congratulations for continuing the trend.
"Naked Lady" has a name and she has many friends around town. She has given, selflessly, more time to help people during this "Occupation" than most Americans do in a lifetime. V******* YOU REALLY DO ROCK!
I love you!
Signed,
(one of the 99%)
FOV
hopefully, if the occupy protest has done anything it is to keep alive the movement to recover some of the funds that banks swindled from the public coffers. they are fighting hard (er, paying and lobbying hard) to receive legal immunity in exchange for a paltry settlement but so far public sentiment has prevented lawmakers from granting it. hopefully the public keeps paying attention because as soon as we don't they will get the immunity they are paying for and we taxpayers will once again get nothing but swindled. several states attorneys general (importantly, from many of those states in which many banks are headquartered) are refusing to compromise and are pursuing their investigations into the frauds committed. this is important and we the people need to support this work by keeping the pressure on and paying attention to this issue. Our national government does, after all, need the money.
Pearson:
She has NO car, NO cable TV, only basic internet, and a basic cell phone...
she lives a very austere lifestyle and still manages to give both time and money to her fellow man....so much for assumptions!
Talk about the anti-pornography....
I'm not sure how the gratuitous nudity advances the occupy cause, but at least it is a perfect metaphor for all the other actions of the occupiers. There was a lot of fuss about not much, a great deal of activity with little actually accomplished, and a substantial physical presence with no discernible impact (other than to the land itself). So the finishing move is to get naked and then go away.
Works for me.
So ,Hawes, while you're moderating, how about a rule prohibiting posting turgid cut-and-pasted rants that we have to scroll through to get on with things? As if anyone will actually read that bloviation...
re "Naked Lady didn't have nothing on the girl with a beard."
Saw that. The bearded lady was absolutely the best thing to come out of this whole Occupy ordeal.
Angel Eyes, Naked Lady is not pornograpy. It is nudism. There is a very big difference between the two. Playboy magazine is naked images of women, not pornography.
Pornography in general is not illegal as well. Child pornography on the other hand is a crime, but child nudism isn't. There are nudist camps all over the United States and other countrys.
I saw an image on Facebook the other day where a parent or family member was letting a young child swim naked. That is not child pornography.
Know Your Civil Rights, the FBI statistics you list are only the investigations they agreed to investigate. The numbers are much higher in reality. I've had several cases of false arrest and fabrication of evidence myself, all have been refused by the FBI. In one case a retired FBI agent was involved, so they certainly didn't want to touch that one. They pick and choose what they want to investigate.
MallWalker, Beard Lady is actually a cute girl. I'd just never seen anything like it. I guess I've just never noticed that some women need to shave.
re "MallWalker, Beard Lady is actually a cute girl."
and that's what made it so good.
OK.
You do know we're both going to hades when we die for labeling her Beard Lady?
Just give me 12 months with her, she'll lose all her facial hair. I got blamed for one of my former sheriffs losing every hair on his head!
Man, in nearly every post, Gassy's gotta make it about him and how the "man" effffed him over....
Stop reading my posts and I guarantee your blood pressure will go down 20 points.
teeROY4u
Tim said "she doesn't even have enough money to clothe her family????" I think putting clothing on your family is more important then even "basic" cell phone and god forbid she go without internet.
Oh and I guess in the end I WAS correct.
look, if your gonna take your clothes off for attention don't be upset when you get it...
as far as that long rant... the only one who could use that argument legally is the kkk when they want their turn in the park and the City says no. The kkk could then call favoritism.
The favoritism in this instance is when the city suspended the rules for these children...
The constitutions right to assemble was meant more about your back yard and churches, not the mayors office.
"We're sorry if there's been an inconvenience," protester Bailee Hampton told City Council recently. "We're trying to change the world."
that is what Nobama has been saying for three years too...............
I found the on another web site. This is a statement put out by the tea party today (my cut and paste):
Jefferson Area Tea Party Press Release
The Jefferson Area Tea Party remains outraged by the irresponsible decisions made by Mayor Dave Norris and the Charlottesville City Council in their entire handling of the Occupy Charlottesville encampment. With the active complicity of Maurice Jones (City Manager) and Brian Daly (Director of Parks and Recreation), they needlessly created and fostered a dangerous situation in Lee Park that culminated in eviction of the occupiers. They are the parties responsible for putting the health and safety of our community at risk, and we are thankful that no police officer or citizen was seriously injured last night.
Since October 21, the JATP has issued repeated warnings to City Council containing concerns identical to those expressed by UVA yesterday in its refusal to allow the Occupy Charlottesville encampment on University Grounds. We also advocated for equal protection under the law, and rebuked Council for its intention to spend taxpayer dollars for the cost of electricity use in the encampment. The JATP will be monitoring ongoing costs incurred in the cleaning and restoration of the park.
In the current vernacular, this disastrous event is an EPIC FAIL by Charlottesville City government and an embarrassment to our community.
Remember the last Hook naked lady uproar ? At least this time it was for a worthy cause . Dancer Bill T. Jones recently opined at the prudishness of young people these days with getting naked for art, well maybe his recent visit is bearing fruit.
http://readthehook.com/70216/career-launcher-uvas-playboy-models-fin...
Congratulations to the Occupy Charlottesville protesters! You've eliminated the gap between the rich and the poor! Now you can all go back to work and help the rest of us pay for the cost of this 'movement'. No pressure though, we will continue to cover your unemployment in the meantime. Take your time, blog it out. Sorry we couldn't be there, had to get up early for work.
The Adverse, you didn't miss anything. I was granted rooftop privileges in order to watch the showdown by a nearby establishment. I would have felt cheated if I had payed admission. :)
p.s. Here's some reference material for your blogs.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Police_state
Why don't you move on over to the Darden School lawn-nice and neat and you have the woods nearby for camping and firewood
Gasbag-
What a relief! I felt guilty all day for missing last night's historical event but I was just too darn tired after all the caviar and champagne I had consumed for dinner, once I hit my Tempurpedic I was out!
In order for the economic message of this movement to be meaningful there has to be broader support ? Were there any UVA students in this group - or are they too busy trying to occupy wallstreet with a desk instead of a tent ?
Why didn't they protest on UVA grounds ?
Since when do protesters take no for an answer, or say pretty please ?
This movement needs some leaders well trained in protest techniques, sticking with the message, and building support.
Where are the John Grisham's of Charlottesville ? - well known names and UVA students and professors would be a start.
Perhaps the 99% are more like 20% in Charlottesville, and there isn't enough energy to miss the football game and fight for the suffering masses ?
Where have all the students gone ?
"No one who teaches in a contemporary American public high school can be unaware of the apathy of the majority of students sitting before them. Almost nothing excites them and very little generates even mild interest. Feeling somewhat powerless in a totally unresponsive system, they shrug their shoulders over the prospect of having no heating fuel this winter or put down voting because “it never makes a difference, nothing ever gets better.” Their attitude reflects a disillusionment with America that is widespread, growing and that is not restricted solely to students. In searching for historical topics and issues of interest to my students and an explanation for the great “turn-off” of the American people, I look to the events of the 1960s for some insight."
Student Protest in the 1960s
by Linda Churney
http://yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/1979/2/79.02.03.x.html
Saw while walking by Lee Park today;
no occupys and drunks all day.
Step on what's left of grass,
thank God no bongos, lazy toads on their ass.
Occupy has been sent away.
Hooray!
This group does not get it. They complain that their votes make no difference then they also want the federal government to take over all local issues so that someone in nowhere Nebraska decides who decides about charlottesville.
Demand LESS federal government and then vote local and actually get something accomplished.
TJ-
UVA isn't exactly Penn State...
I saw a lady going into Lee Park about 7:30 p.m. tonight while walking her doggie. Probably duty time for the doggie of course. I bet people living around the park are glad to be rid of this mess. They have been pretty much shut out for the last 30 days. Good work, City Council!
Never before have I seen a group of people so selfish yet so self-righteous at the same time - it will take a lot more than a camping excursion in a public park to change the world and those who equate the two are engaged in the most ridiculous self-delusion. Occupy Charlottesville easily made as many enemies as it did friends and I suspect that many of those who disapprove are discretely keeping their sentiments private. The Occupy crowd has definitely cornered the market for loud mouths - I'm convinced that their movement will become an increasing object of ridicule and scorn now that the initial hoopla has died down and the public has seen with its own eyes what is involved.
and I continue to ask- someone from the notester and occupud group pleeeeeeze tell us what your issues are............what you want, and most of all- how you feel you represent 99% of anything.
we are still waiting for anyone to tell us what they have a problem with in our society, or any society...............
PLEEEEEEEZE tell us- we will listen, then go on our way.
Harry, there is much to read if you would like to know what this movement is about. I, and many others support it, even if we are not camping in Lee Park. I would bet that the majority of people in Charlottesville support the premise it was founded on. How change will come is yet to be determined but believe me - change is in the air.
" We are the 99% refers to the growing difference in wealth in the U.S. between the wealthiest 1% and the rest of the population."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Occupy_Wall_Street
Calling on Dave Matthews - Dave we need you !
and bring John McCutcheon along too.....
http://www.wina.com/Jackson-Browne-occupies-Wall-Street-with-song/114587...
Yes, of course... Dave Matthews is what the occupy protesters have been missing all this time. DMB's ho-hum tunes are certain bring about change. Just to be sure though, why not go to the top and call Bono?
The top 1% of the world are the people making over $50,000 a year. I think that the 1% of the top US could pay more taxes but that won't be enough to solve the financial mess we are in. The bottom top 53% of the US that pays an income tax are either going to have to cut back on spending or have more taxes. Maybe a 1% sales tax so everyone pays and then higher taxes on the upper 20% but spending cuts are going to have to come. Maybe a graduated flat tax with a 1% sales tax. Not some 9-9-9 plan more like 30-25-20-15-0 and 1% sales tax.
The Top 10 Percent of Earners Paid 70 Percent of Federal Income Taxes
Top earners are the target for new tax increases, but the U.S. tax system is already highly progressive. The top 1 percent of income earners paid 38 percent of all federal income taxes in 2008, while the bottom 50 percent paid only 3 percent. Forty-nine percent of U.S. households paid no federal income tax at all.
TheAdverse
I would advise NOT to use wikipedia to base you life.
Does anyone else agree that maybe it's time to seriously push to get Kristin Szakos off council? This woman doesn't understand the basics of the Constitution and has forgotten that as an elected official she is expected to follow and respect the laws on the books. The scary thing is that she could be our next mayor.
"Does anyone else agree that maybe it's time to seriously push to get Kristin Szakos off council?"
Yup. Hopefully the general public agrees, and we'll see some changeover when she runs for re-election. Not sure how she got elected in the first place, other than she ran on the coattails of her involvement with the Obama campaign.
I'll 3rd getting Szakos off. The local laws don't apply as long as we agree with the causes.
Scary to think she may be Mayor. This is the woman that scolds citizens for not being nice. Free speech advocate ?
Don't worry Pearson, I don't. However whether I define 'police state' through Wikipedia or Merriam-Webster etc., we are far from existing as such though the protesters claim we are. Prehaps they should spend some quality time in China...
You guys and girls can ramble on here about the elected officials in this city all you want. But not one thing is ever going to change until you convince the local Democratic voters that their candidates are not making the voters lives any better. If Norris and Szakos could get by with it they would sell the entire city to the highest bidder, throw you out on your butts with a free CTS pass to the city limits, and split the proceeds equally among the homeless.
Szakos would be a terrible mayor, but on the bright side, marble mouthed Huja would be even worse. She at least speaks English, despite what she says being nonsense.
As much as the fact that he is joined at the hip with county interests at least he has a point of view, Szakos's votes and statements are irresponsible and show complete incompetence- you really want someone like that as mayor ?
TheAdverse
Good news I just know some people that follow it like a bible and don't know it can be just an option my in-laws for one. haha
Please put me on the list to rid our city of Szakos.
Once again this is the face of our public school system
Nacy Drew- hit the ballot box and see if there is a lot of support for the Occupuds......
I am asking the notesters to tell us what they want, not some whiney-head
There was never a question as to what Dr. King and the '60's anti-war people were all about. They actually made sense, but these folks- no way- inarticulate ramblings
How come the hot occupiers kept their clothes on? I liked the hook's last set of nude photos much better...
Sparky- to confine the odor?
Szakos as mayor? Word on the street is that Huja is the shoe-in for mayor, and he is going to mandate the school board insert corn dogs and Slurpees into the official school cafeteria menus.
Gee SS, and tell me, when Belmont was dealing with a much louder, ruder, more violent crowd blocking streets and terrorizing residents, were you one to show up and say how bad it is?
Notice ow fast the protestors are called names and run off, but other groups of underemployed people ausing problems are ignored because they are hip, or party.
Caesonia- what was the purpose of Belmont issue?
Many of us are blessed with a job, a home, and far more material possessions than we need. All the occupiers wanted was a small piece of land- a public park to have a place to express themselves.
What if our town had celebrated their courage and determination to exercise the finest principle that our country was founded upon, the right to free speech ? Maybe then we would have had a slogan that meant something . Charlottesville is the city of free speech . It doesn't matter if you agree with them or don't get the message - that is not the point- it is their message and they were expressing it.
It is the individuals right to free speech that is at sake.
* Language stronger than "darn," INSULTS, ethnically or racially disparaging language, and comparisons to Hitler usually result in speedy comment deletion and may get you blocked from further commenting. Ditto for posting unverified and/or potentially libelous allegations, and even off-topic digression. And to avoid spam, any comment containing more than two links gets eaten by Bigfoot.--hawes spencer, hook editor
Harry,
The point is the very different treatment for different neighborhoods and groups of people. The City seems much quicker to crack down on the OWS group, and enforce the laws, when there were few incidents. God forbid we upset North Downtown. But they seemed inclined to allow blocked streets, civil disturbances, and violation of private property for years by another group in South Downtown. I'd say that's of real concern to folks in Charlottesville.
http://charlottesville.craigslist.org/mis/2735814158.html
I hope my message finds all of you in a time of joy and prosperity.
I apologize in advance if I ramble.
First, I would like to thank all of you who participated in this forum without engaging in cyber-bullying. Your practice of freedom of speech coupled with respect makes me honor and value your opinions even if I do not agree with them.
Also, the article update implied that Ms. Hampton's claim to be homeless was untrue, because she has an active Facebook page.
About a week into the Charlottesville Occupy encampment, Ms, Hampton left Charlottesville to visit other Occupy movements. When she came back to share what she had learned, she no longer had a home to come back to.
I know several homeless people who have active Facebook pages. You don't need a street address to maintain a page; you only need access to a computer.
Also, I believe 16 were arrested not 18. Two left the park after being cited.
Now, I wish to address the Hook's decision to display several uncensored pictures of me online during my nude protest.
I did my action in front of perhaps 100 viewers. When the Hook decided to post these pictures on the world wide web, they vastly broadened viewership. They did this without any attempt to censor the images or regulate who would be allowed to view them.
If my action was indecent or obscene, the Hook's choice seems equally as vulgar or at least irresponsible.
Or...does this move suggest that they agree there is a difference between nude protest and indecent exposure?
Does this choice mean they feel that there was nothing obscene about my statement?
The Hook: purveyors of online pornography or a brave, daring perspective?
I prefer to believe the latter, and I thank the Hook's photographers and editors for teasing out this nuance.
In ending, I would like to personally invite all of you to my court date on December 16th at 10:30 AM at Charlottesville General District Court, 606 East Main Street.
I hope you can make it.
Happy Holidays.
Sincerely,
Veronica Haunani Fitzhugh
Naked Lady
In a rare and welcome moment of lucid thought from a member of the O/M, Veronica appears to have noted that the Internet provides world wide exposure to its content. But, unless this keen insight suddenly popped into Veronica's mind after publication of the Hook's pictures, it would seem that she might have understood the possibility before her exhibition. And given that the occupiers are, as they have claimed, very focused on drawing attention, it should come as no surprise that they received the same. Let's be realistic, here. It seems certain that the Hook photographer was not the only person with a camera; in fact, I should not be surprised to learn of a U-Tube video which captured the excitement, as well.
All of this leaves open the question of how nudity might serve to help the desperate 99% whom the occupiers claim to represent. Perhaps she'll explain that to the judge.
Szakos as Mayor will be even worse than Norris as Mayor. Szakos has tried to run Council meetings since the day of her first public meeting. Both of them have done their best at promoting something called social justice and economic equality and have gotten no where except giving out a bunch of freebies. Of course both of them wholeheartedly encouraged the encampment at Lee Park and Szakos cluelessly referred to the sleep over slumber party as "free speech." Both of them have shown total disregard for laws that they have sworn to uphold. Szakos has expressed sorrow at the City's dismantling of the tent city and Norris has expressed admiration with "Naked Lady's" nudity in the park. People love these two because they bend over backwards to give every group they feel are progressive money from the public trough. They also like to strut their moral superiority. Charlottesville has gotten exactly what it deserves in these two people. Thank goodness Brown and Edwards will be gone in January. Lord prtoect us from the Norris-Szakos Human Rights Commission. It is clear that neither has a clear definition of the nature of Rights.