Illinois House Votes Against Supporting 'Occupy,' Suburban Rep Calls Protests 'Un-American'

The Illinois House of Representatives on Tuesday rejected a resolution that would have expressed support for Occupy Wall Street protesters' "peaceful exercise of First Amendment rights."

The bill, filed earlier this month by State Rep. La Shawn K. Ford (D-Chicago), was voted down by a margin of 37-58, according to an AP report. Fifteen legislators voted present. The lawmakers voting "nay" in the midst of the state's busy fall veto session in Springfield included both Democrats and Republicans.

Rep. Ed Sullivan Jr. (R-Mundelein) called the Occupy protesters "un-American" and said he had read reports of demonstrators involved with the movement "raping and pillaging and beating people up and murdering," AP reports. He voted against the resolution.

"Do you recognize the violence, the crime at these protests?" Sullivan added, according to the Illinois Review's report. "If you don't believe in capitalism, then vote for this. I will not stand for it."

Rep. Roger Eddy (R-Huntsville) added that the resolution demonized corporate America, according to MyStateline.

Rep. Monique Davis (D-Chicago), a chief co-sponsor of the resolution, countered that Occupy protesters' "right to peacefully protest is what this country is about," according to the Illinois Review.

The resolution [HR 610] suggested that the state legislature "recognize the hardships experienced by the people of Illinois as a result of" economic hardships including the state's high rates of unemployment, foreclosure and poverty.

In a statement [PDF] previously announcing his filing of the resolution, Ford described the 'Occupy' movement as "a new sit-in movement" and "a statewide movement from all walks of life. ... There are young people and seniors, teachers and veterans, all protesting the economic crisis that continues to destroy families and weaken communities."

The arguments of the legislators speaking out against the resolution harken Tea Party-affiliated U.S. Rep. Joe Walsh (R-Ill.)'s criticism last week of the Occupy Wall Street movement, which he called a "well-orchestrated, well-funded, far left effort to disrupt the American people" during a town hall event in suburban Gurnee, Ill. Walsh went on to say that any veterans "who would advocate socialist solutions to certain problems in this country ... they don't understand this country."

 

 

Comments

[phil613]

12:13 AM on 12/07/2011

"raping and pillaging and beating people up and murdering,­" ??? These lies were spread by the city officials and politicians to justify tearing down the camps . After all seeing the 99% finally band together gain confidence, grow and finally demand justice must be like a nightmare for those who have taken advantage of the 99% for so long. The day they never thought possible and didn't prepare for has arrived and won't go away . They must forgeting the news these past weeks and years. Politicians and officials caught,arrested and convicted for taking bribes ,kick backs,drugs,dui ,sending naked pictures of themselfs to under aged girls , having affairs that destroyed their families etc ,etc

[Plainoldme]

03:53 PM on 12/02/2011

welfare is when the government gives to someone in need
the banks were in need so they got welfare
its always ok when the shoe is on the other foot
corruption and greed or is it greed and corruption
we dont want it but we got it

[Norealnewsusa Robison]

02:59 PM on 12/02/2011

In Illinois, Sears is holding the people of this State HOSTAGE, Demanding TAX cuts or they will relocate and cut jobs here....these MF'S got BALLS OF STEEL....We in need to OCCUPY Sears NATION-WIDE and demand that they DROP THEIR RANSOM DEMANDS....WTF

[PaulD08]

12:57 PM on 12/02/2011

If you live in Ill. find out who the 16 DEMsare who joined the GOPers,,make sure they face primaries

[vicfan]

11:41 AM on 12/02/2011

This is the first amendment Illinois!
It's as "American" as you can get! - 100%.
No one can be more American than when they are exercising the FIRST precept to our country.
Either support it or LEAVE.
How about moving to the middle east where your superiority complexes are alive and well?

[redraspberry]

11:39 AM on 12/02/2011

What a waste of taxpayers money to have elected representatives spend any time introducing and considering bills like this while the state economically is getting sucked down the toilet.

[macro focus]

11:07 AM on 12/02/2011

"I don't like external reality. I prefer to make my own." -- Rep. Ed Sulivan (R)

[Liberal2009]

11:07 AM on 12/02/2011

So were the Tea Party "protests", oh um pardon me "rallies" also un-American?

[musicjock23]

12:21 PM on 12/02/2011

No they actually abided by the rules set forth by the cities that they protested in. Like applying for a permit, paying for sanitation and police. They didn't leave trash and have incidents like all these "protests" excuse me..."rallies". How many rapes, murders, deaths, arrests were affliated with the Tea Party as compated to OWS?

[Scott Fraley]

01:02 PM on 12/02/2011

The Tea Party got us talking about birth certificates. OWS got us talking about jobs.

[Liberal2009]

01:50 PM on 12/02/2011

Well I guess when you're a top-down organization sponsored by the 1% you have that kind of money and resources to throw around. I'll bet you didn't participate in any of that organization, did you?

OWS is made up of the poor and middleclass of all creeds,religions,and races a true sampling of the America populist. The police tend to come out in riot when the people rise up and speak the truth.

[WhatWereTheyThinking]

10:15 PM on 12/01/2011

"Rep. Ed Sullivan Jr. (R-Mundelein) called the Occupy protesters "un-American" and said he had read reports of demonstrators involved with the movement "raping and pillaging and beating people up and murdering," AP reports."

What reports did you read, Congressman? Don't remember? Not sure? What a surprise.

[SCJohnson]

05:20 PM on 12/01/2011

Raping and Pillaging and Murdering, and Committing acts of Perverse Satanism in the Streets......

In the sixties the FBI had a unit called co-intelpro whose objective was to infiltrate peaceful protests and make them violent, so that the FBI would have cover to go in and arrest (beat up) the protesters as well as discrediting the movement behind the protest.

Today we have black masked Anarchists doing essentially the same thing.

I find myself wondering if the FBI's Current co-intelpro unit are helping to organize the Anarchists, using them as FBI puppets without their knowledge.

[jondekonkeroo]

05:05 PM on 12/01/2011

they're already changing law. OWS is pulling both parties to populism. the second part of the obama jobs bill will pass, and I'm betting that the rich will be taxed to get it done. Before OWS this would not have happened.

[nhr 215]

12:12 PM on 12/02/2011

oh please.... its a little too early to declare victory. Why is that every OWS member has to run around shouting about how much they've impacted the world and take credit for every political development that they agree with in this country in the last 2 months. If you ask me it reflects a deep-seated insecurity on your part that OWS is actually accomplishing anything... People who are actually making change int he world don't have to run around shouting it and self-promoting it. They just live it.

[jondekonkeroo]

12:21 PM on 12/02/2011

you need to ask yourself why you're a farcist when your party has generated nothing but economic failure in its history since 1879.

OWS is doing exactly what we did wirth civil rights but I started in 1960. It was five years before the law was passed. The anti war protests were faster, and like these, they brought a shift in law.

the fact that Frank Luntz, your Pavlov and senior malefactor fears this movement tells me volumes. He at least knows the history and knows that this moves law faster and more finally than any amount of money or newspeak.

[Scott Fraley]

01:02 PM on 12/02/2011

Here's the first change OWS made; we stopped talking about the damned birth certificate and started talking about economic inequality.

[BMcCue7]

03:16 PM on 12/01/2011

The Bill of Rights is not "anti-American."

Period.

[jondekonkeroo]

05:34 PM on 12/01/2011

just anti republican.

[TomTheSeal]

02:38 PM on 12/01/2011

So, the Republicans think that protesting is "un-american" ? I think Republicans are UNAMERICAN !

[muzjik]

03:40 PM on 12/01/2011

It's ok..the Democrats thought the Tea Party protests were un-American as well.

[Edogg62]

04:46 PM on 12/01/2011

I don't know ANY Democrats who thought the Koch-sponsored Tea Baggers were "un-American." Just ignorant.

[Edogg62]

04:48 PM on 12/01/2011

I love how OWS has OBLITERATED the Tea Baggers corporate-sponsored "movement" in roughly a month. AND has even gone global. I haven't heard anything about those inbred, under-educated mouth breathers since OWS. Reason ENOUGH to support them.

[nuwunstorfts]

12:52 PM on 12/02/2011

Apparently you have very little facilities to do any serious thinking.

[OneVoiceOfReason]

01:14 PM on 12/01/2011

Now is the time. Occupy the Elections. Speak now. Always Vote.

[OneVoiceOfReason]

01:12 PM on 12/01/2011

For all of you who still ask "what is their goal? what do they want?"....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Occupy_Wall_Street

[muzjik]

03:40 PM on 12/01/2011

From your link: the protesters "want, in part, more and better jobs, more equal distribution of income"...Q - how does the achievement of these two goals come about through protest?

[OneVoiceOfReason]

04:24 PM on 12/01/2011

The key word in your post was "in part"...try to see the bigger picture...if there is "more equal distribution of income", there will be "more and better jobs"...but the "distribution of income" part won't come without a fight, because the people with all the money don't seem to want to part with any of it, as evidenced by their constant efforts to amass even more wealth. When reading about the movement, you can't just pull little parts out and wonder why they don't read like a complete explanation. Learning doesn't work that way.

So to answer your question, I'll pose another question:

What goals can ever be achieved through a peaceful demonstration of civil disobedience in an attempt to draw attention to an unfair system in order to bring about change within that system?

Before you answer, think about every other peaceful demonstration ever brought about by citizens who were completely fed up with the way they were being treated..and what they ended up getting afterwards. Things like the vote for women, civil rights for minorities, small stuff like that.....Ok, go.

[jondekonkeroo]

05:38 PM on 12/01/2011

most recently by influencing legislators to pass one part and now a second part of the president's jobs bill. Republicans have abandoned their caucus because of the opposition to taxing the wealthy to pay for the payroll tax cut extension the republicans are now afraid to vote against.

OWS did that. you can be certain they were instrumental in getting this done.

[nhr 215]

12:20 PM on 12/02/2011

For all you who still wonder whether OWS is lead by anarchists:

http://www.indypendent.org/2011/11/30/ows-anarchist-roots/

http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2011/11/28/111128fa_fact_schwartz#ixzz1f8E3BE7B

http://www.downtownexpress.com/?p=4864

[OneVoiceOfReason]

01:26 PM on 12/02/2011

an·ar·chy [an-er-kee]
noun

a theory that regards the absence of all direct or coercive government as a political ideal and that proposes the cooperative and voluntary association of individuals and groups as the principal mode of organized society.