When we last left off on January 2nd, Jodie Randolph of Alameda, CA and her team of home defenders from Occupy Oakland were to meet with Morgan Stanley San Francisco and their Los Angeles lawyer the next day. Then the meeting got postponed yet again, as it had once before the Holidays.
It finally took place today in San Francisco. And in the same building which just a month ago went into lockdown at the very thought of Jodie and her friends coming to deliver a letter to John Sheldon, Morgan Stanley's executive director. This time they even let Jodie and her companions into the building!
Morgan Stanley HQ San Francisco
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Jodie (2nd from right) and some of the crew
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The result of the meeting? About what you would expect. Jodie handed them a proposal for a reversal of the foreclosure and a loan modification (in place of a repurchase agreement proposal that had been previously mentioned as a possibility) and Morgan Stanley is taking the proposal under advisement. More negotiations will be taking place down the road. The chess pieces are finally moving, it's just not yet clear where exactly they are going.
But Jodie is still in her house. And #DefendJodie will keep our side of the board protected.
Jodie has also just made the news!
An article in the latest edition of a local weekly, the East Bay Express, titled Taking a Stand, features a number of foreclosure and eviction defense fights going on in the East Bay, including Jodie's fight.
Leading the 24/7 occupation of Randolph's house is the Occupy Oakland Foreclosure Defense Committee.. "When we went in [to Randolph's house] the neighbors came out and started feeding us..." said Occupy Oakland activist Brooke Terpstra. "Everybody feels this. Everybody knows there's no security."
"The fight is not just about Jodie," Terpstra continued. "It's an opportunity to organize the community. Her house is the base. We go out with flyers, go door-to-door, hold movie nights - to draw others out to the issue."
Great stuff!
There was another -- not so great -- story about eviction this week. It's one that barely made the local papers despite its shocking nature, being eclisped by a sequence of even more disturbingly violent deaths -- four murders in quick succession in Oakland -- over this last weekend.
In a tragic demonstration of just what things have come to
A man fatally shot himself Thursday morning as sheriff's deputies tried to serve eviction papers on him.
Deputies arrived at the man's apartment about 10:15 AM, saw that the man had a gun and -- kudos to them -- did not immediately unleash a hail of bullets as often seems to be the case nowdays. Instead they backed off, called for additional support, and attempted to make contact with the person. Unfortunately to no avail:
Police fired some bean bag rounds through a window in an effort to get the man's attention. Officers then saw his body and when they went inside found that he had fatally shot himself. A gun was found near him, authorities said.
No gunshots were fired by police or deputies.
It' time to stop the madness. It's time to bail out (and help out) the people who, without being asked for their opinion, bailed out the banks which triggered the foreclosures which are resulting in these selfsame banks now ordering Sheriffs' Deputies to evict people from their homes.
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Here's Jodie's saga as it has unfolded, and other links for her story.
Jodie's Story as Told So Far in Daily Kos Diaries..
Day 1:
If I'm in Jail When They Call Ohio Tomorrow For Obama...
Day 2:
Update on #DefendJodie, The Woman Undergoing Cancer Treatments About to Be Evicted From Her House.
Day 3:
The Realtor Arrives. The Realtor Threatens Jodie. Jodie Stays.
Day 5:
We Shut Down Morgan Stanley's Phone Line.
Day 8:
In Which We Are Contacted by An Alien Life Form.
Day 9:
In Which The Issues of Foreclosure & Eviction Get International Attention.
Day 15:
In Which We Prepare To Cross the Great Sea.
Day 16:
In Which We Try To Deliver a Letter To Morgan Stanley But Shut Down a Skyscraper.
Day 18:
In Which OccuPiers Eat Well And the Oakland Tribune Takes Notice.
Day 28:
In Which the Dog Ate My Flyer
Day 59:
First They Ignore You. Then They Disclaim Responsibility. Then They Negotiate.
Follow @defendjodie and the #defendjodie hashtag on twitter.
Get updates from the Occupy Oakland Foreclosure Defense Group Website and Facebook page.