URGENT! MINNEHAHA UPDATE (r)

[dawnstar@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]

this is ridiculous, where are the politicians and the people's
representatives, you make this sound like a dictatorship with rubber
bullets cutting down trees for highway and forcibly moving people,
hunger fasts, depriviation of human rights, where are your reporters,
congressmen, state and local representatives, just police, police,
police? so stupid, badly organized! good luck ds
> 
> Title: URGENT!  MINNEHAHA UPDATE
>  Author: Natalia
>  Date: 1-OCT-1999
>  Source: power4u <power4u@xxxxxxx>
>  Reference: none
> 
>  On Monday a tripod was set up in the middle of Interstate Highway 55 to
>  protest its proposed reroute. People then moved existing construction
>  barricades into the street to shut down the highway. The road was shut
>  down for blocks all day and we had a big ol' street party. One woman
>  locked down to a hauling truck and blocked the front gate of the
>  construction site so they couldn't do any more work.
> 
>  Seven people were up in an old-growth cottonwood tree that we thought
>  they were planning to take down that day. At about 5:00, 60 state
>  trooper cars came in. They arrested 13 people on the ground and
>  attempted to evict and cut the squatted tree. They broke out the cherry
>  pickers and fire truck ladders and wound up cutting the branches that
>  people were still in, almost killing the sitters.
> 
>  Three people from the tree were arrested, with one sent to the hospital.
>  four people stayed up there. The police presence on the ground
>  continued...they vowed to deprive the remaining sitters of all food and
>  water, and they cut their lines so they can't get down safely.
> 
>  On Wednesday a group of college students opposed to the reroute took
>  over the Minnesota Dept. of Transportation's (DoT) offices. 12 people
>  were arrested, and are still in jail.
> 
>  The troopers and MN/DoT and the contractors, in a retaliation move, went
>  and cut thirteen trees on the site where the occupied houses used to be.
>  One person was arrested trying to get up a tree (she is also still in
>  jail), bringing the total number of arrests to 13...the same number of
>  trees they cut.
> 
>  Today, we get the rumor that they're going to bring in the National
>  Guard, armed with rubber bullets, to evict our occupation on Saturday.
>  We don't know if this rumor is true, but we know something is going to
>  happen. State trooper helicopters have been encircling camp all week,
>  and state troopers on foot have been seen in the woods, scouting trails
>  and tree sits.
> 
>  All tree sits are now being staffed 24 hours a day. 2 people came down
>  from the cottonwood sit today and are in jail...the remaining 2 say
>  they're in it for the long haul. The troopers are still on the ground in
>  an effort to starve them out. >>