No Solidarity in Oakland, as protesters bully Longshoremen

From Emunah,  who made a guest appearance at the Oakland waterfront yesterday afternoon, to bear witness to the latest day of rage against the Zim lines

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It did not compute. There were only two-dozen protesters at the Oakland docks for the September 27th  morning protest, yet activists claimed  their picket line was honored "in solidarity" by the ILWU

 

I decided to see for myself, arriving at the Oakland docks in time for the evening shift. There were only 6 people lolling around at 4:30, so I drove around a bit. The  whole area is a red zone- with no parking. The nearest legitimate parking was nearly a mile a way.  But it was obvious  that the protesters were ignoring the red zones, and as more and more came and parked in the red, I finally did the same. 

Jack Heyman (a retired longshoreman from the ILWU, and an organizer /instigator of block the boat campaign) came up to me, oblivious to the fact that I was holding an Israeli flag and an "Israel wants peace sign" and asked me to use my car to block the ILWU parking lot entrance.  

Um, I don't think so, Jack.

I couldn't help but wonder, if the union stands in "solidarity" with your cause,  why is it necessary to block their egress?

Oakland Block the Boat featured a motley collection of career activists,  wacky conspiracy theorists and  Occupy Oakland leftovers. 

Come, on, really?  Who graffitis their own van?

Paul Larudee,  Marina and Andrew Gutierrez , Terry O'Brien, Russell Bates, Toby Blome  and Peter Tcherneff were there. Was that Kate Raphael, sporting a bouncy new hair style?  The days events featured aging hippies, not young  jihadis.  Its the jihadis turn Oct 25.

Oakland  anti-Israel activist  and psychedelic relic Madrone Mofeeta  (aka Madrone Jack), made a dramatic display of photographing my  license plates, while hissing "Zionist filth" at me.

Protesters used cars, lawn furniture, bicycles and small children to block the entrance to the ILWU union parking lot.

Their signage was the usual cliches of eternal victimhood, finger-pointing, and down-right anti-Semitism

Psst. Block the Boat- both the West bank and Gaza have called for a nation ruled under Sharia law. A secular state is your pipe dream, not theirs

By 6 , there were about 60 people present. Jack  Heyman  was receiving information directly from the union hall and was orchestrating the protest.  He claimed  the union told the port they would guarantee the ship would be unloaded if there was no police presence.  There was no police presence. The union had put in a work order for the evening, and the group could vote on whether or not they wanted to stay, or to attempt to block the  workers.  He told me I wasn't allowed to vote. : - (  There was no democracy on the streets on Oakland that evening.


The group voted to stay and prevent the union workers from coming in- Jack spread people out between the 5 gates. Describing their numbers as "thin",  Jack urged the protesters to call their friends and bring in reinforcements.

Cars were physically blocked and prevented from coming to work. The drivers were photographed, in a crude attempt to intimidate them.  ILWU workers  became increasingly angry.
 

I spoke to a few of the longshoremen who were clueless about the politics. Not pro, not con, just completed baffled  as to why they  were being dragged into this.
 
In spite of the intimidation and the  physical obstruction of workers,  anti-Israel activists  claimed  "solidarity". Their "picket" was "honored".

I recognize solidarity when I see it.  An engineer operating on the tracks behind me stopped his engine, and thanked me profusely for being there.

On his second pass for the evening, he brought me cold water.

He stopped by again when his shift was over, bringing more water, and again effusively thanking me.

The Zim ship left port without being unloaded. The Port of Oakland has proven its impotence, and its unreliability as a place to do business.

Who will pay the ultimate cost of this cheap symbolic "victory" ?  The port will suffer for this. And the thousands of people who rely on the port for their livelihood will suffer.  Ultimately, Oakland will suffer.