FREE SPEECH

The Brooklyn Rail presents "Free Speech: A Literary Celebration" with Jason Flores-Williams, Mark Read, Ted Hamm and special guests. Fri 3/16 12:30 pm, Zuccotti Park

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Come to “Free Speech: A Lit Event” w/ Jason Flores-Williams, Mark Read, Ted Hamm and special guests. Fri 3/16 12:30 pm, Zuccotti Park

Bios:

• -Jason Flores-Williams is a writer and criminal defense attorney. His story “The Battle of the Open Heart” is an OWS classic.
• -Mark Read is an activist, educator, and the artist who coordinated the "99% Bat Signal" that has inspired Occupiers everywhere.
• -Ted Hamm is editor of the Brooklyn Rail.

[The short essay I wrote for this is HERE - Paul]

& More on The Rail's Free Speech Weekend menu! >

SUNDAY, MARCH 18 AT 10 AM @ LEFT FORUM:

THE FUTURE OF THE FIRST AMENDMENT IN NEW YORK CITY

A panel discussion with the NYCLU's Donna Lieberman, civil rights lawyer Norman Siegel, and Brooklyn College professor Alex Vitale. Moderated by the Rail's Ted Hamm.

More on Left Forum (3-16/-18 @Pace) is HERE.

The Illuminator [Colored Version]

Sketch by Isaac Moylan

Debuting at Low Lives: Occupy, March 3!

Check back for details...

The Illuminator

Updated on Sunday, February 26, 2012 at 04:10PM by admin

(Concept sketch by Isaac Moylan)

[NOTE: Below is the BETA/Draft text for Mark Read's (99% Bat Signal) Illuminator project, which will debut at Low Lives: Occupy on March 3, 2012. The Illuminator promises to be one of the coolest things to emerge from OWS arts & culture, yet! Stay tuned for more exciting Illuminator updates from OwA. We will be creating a special section for Mark on our site soon.]

The Illuminator
Description and Mission Statement
By Mark Read

I am currently overseeing the design, fabrication, and deployment of The Illuminator, a mobile video projection system and library/info shop.  Its primary function will be to serve as an outreach tool for Occupy Wall Street and the #occupy movement as a whole.  I hope to shortly form an ad-hoc group comprised of representatives from various working groups that will ultimately decide how to use this powerful new tool.  Working groups to be initially included on that Ad-Hoc committee will be Arts and Culture, Movement Building, Outreach, The People’s Library, Media, and PR.  If other working groups feel they should be included they should let me know.

In design terms, The Illuminator is a modified Ford Econoline cargo van in which a video projector, soundsystem, and magazine racks have been installed.  The projector and speakers rise out of the roof on a periscoping platform.  The side doors of the van open up to create an infoshop alcove, with shelves or racks, mounted on the doors, and a bookshelf between the doors inside the van bolted to the van floor.  The exterior of the van is un-modified so as to allow it to travel in “stealth mode.” When desired, large magnetic decals of the "99% bat signal" (white circle with 99% in the middle) are placed on the exterior of the van to announce its presence, and a banner can be attached to the outside.  The Illuminator is, in essence, a shapeshifter and a transformer of public space.  When it parks it becomes (1) a cinema, and (2) a library/infoshop.  
 
Illuminator Cinema:  The hatch opens, and a platform with a projector and speakers is raised.  Instantly, a cinema setting is created.

Click to read more ...

Mark Read [N17] + Low Lives: Occupy!

^ Watch a video of the amazing power and effect of the “Bat Signal:”

LL:O UPDATE:

Mark Read ["Bat Signal"] will be partnering with "Low Lives: Occupy!"

[More details coming soon.]

CHECK THIS: InterOccupy is hosting the "Bat Signal" source files HERE.

...Including: Tips and Instructions for guerilla projections. [PDF]

Occupy Pacifica Radio Program/Podcast

So, I'm producing this pilot series for Pacifica Radio Network, called "Occupy Pacifica" (info on that below).  Three shows to start.  #1 is now up and available for streaming or as a podcast on occupypacifica.org.  The site is just a stub site, and will be developed further as we go (and as funding becomes available.  IF it becomes available.  I think its a pretty interesting show.

-Mark [Read]

Dear Programmers, and Listeners,

The Occupy Pacifica website is now up, and the first show is available as a podcast.  Please share it with your friends.  http://occupypacifica.org/

We are continuing to work on the site, which we hope will become a resource for news and information from around the country as this grassroots movement grows and evolves. 

THE NEXT SHOW WILL BE BROADCAST ON THURSDAY DECEMBER 29th.
December 29th- "The Culture of Resistance." What are the cultural commonalities amongst various #occupations, and what are the differences?  How does culture impact the political aspirations and identity of a community?  How open and accessible is the culture of #occupy?  How can art and culture be used to "redistribute the sensible" and prepare the ground for radical change?  Learn about the culture of #occupy in this second episode of #Occupy Pacifica.

Click to read more ...

OWS Stories in the Brooklyn Rail, Dec 2011

The 99% Bat Signal: A Cry from the Heart of the World

by Mark Read

Photos by Brandon Neubauer.

BR Ed.’s note: On November 17, a series of projections—including what has come to be known as the “99% Bat-Signal”—flickered on the Verizon Building in Downtown Manhattan (see the YouTube video, “#Occupy Bat-Signal for the 99%”). Tens of thousands of marchers witnessed and interacted with the projections, and many more have watched them online.

Click HERE to read the story at the Brooklyn Rail.

OCCUPY GO ROUND: The Dimensional Nature of the Movement

by [Occupennial co-organizer] Paul McLean

 “BLOOMBERG, BEWARE. ZUCCOTTI PARK IS EVERYWHERE.”

—November 17 #OWS chant

Click HERE to read the story at the Brooklyn Rail.