Occupy Medical Clinic's Big Beige Tent

Occupy Medical started as a humble first aid tent at the Occupy Eugene site on October 15, 2011. A handful of medically trained volunteers began to serve the movement with their specialized skills. We had a pop-up canopy, a few blankets and donated medical supplies from the local emergency clinic. Mostly, we had enthusiasm.

The Occupy Eugene camp included a wide variety of people, ranging from street kids to middle-aged elders. As people learned that Medical was there to treat patients and not to judge, our client load increased.

The complexity of the medical conditions that we treated increased as well. We tracked patients with hepatitis, Mercer, HIV, and pneumonia. Our medical staff saved lives by sending Occupiers to the hospital for conditions that they were unaware of. We also saved lives by CPR. Our volunteers restarted the hearts of three patients during our brief occupation.

On Christmas Eve, the Eugene City Council shut the camp down. The homeless disappeared into the night. They are used to being invisible. As Medical took down the tent and packed away the bandages, we wondered what would become of our patients.

We tried offering clinics at OEV but it was obvious that we had to go back to the streets to directly help those in need. On Sunday, February 5, 2012, Occupy Medical set up a tent on the steps of the Federal building. The weekly free clinics were open for business.
We ran a tight ship. Patients checked in at the intake card table, gave us a name and we recorded their complaint and general health information.

Then we sent them to our makeshift waiting room to have their vitals taken by the nurse. While waiting, they could get a drink of water or a plate of free organic food from our ally Food Not Bombs. The doctor saw them in the privacy of the tent. After their check up, patients received direct treatment, herbal or nutritional supplements,  or a prescription for their condition.

Medical also provides follow up. We give prescriptions to the volunteer pharmacist, who is part of a program that offers $75 off medications for low income individuals. If the patient needs information on community services, the intake volunteer walks the patient through their options.

A few months after running the clinic at the Federal Building, we decided to move deeper into downtown. The Federal building Plaza offered no protection from the elements. The arrangement of the buildings constructed a wind tunnel that threatened to lift our tent off the ground even when it secured by bricks. Our patients had suffered enough. They needed the protection of the trees and access to a water fountain.

We moved to the Park Blocks. The move paid off immediately. Our patient load increased dramatically. Even though we are only open 4 hours at a time, we started seeing 15-20 patients in shift. People were lining up outside. The park offers bench in the shade to wait comfortably.

The increase in clients wasn’t good enough for our volunteers, they proposed increasing our services. We offered free haircuts one Sunday.  We collected braids longer than 8″ to donate to an organization that fashions hair into wigs for cancer patients. By the end of the day, I had a box with 2# of ponytails to donate. With this response, we had to offer this service again. Our brave Occupy stylist started showing up every other week to offer more free haircuts and well toned self images.

Setting Up for Free Massages

The next step was in the hands of our Reiki trained volunteer. She knew first hand how people suffered from chronic back pain. People that can’t afford groceries certainly can’t afford to pay for a massage. She talked another Occupier trained as a massage therapist into offering free body work at the clinic for the day. 17 patients later, Occupy Medical’s Body Work Day was born.

Occupy Medical is growing. Every Sunday, we have more patients. Every Sunday, we have more volunteers. People want to help their neighbors. People want to connect and make a difference. Occupy Medical opened a door. All it took was a tent and a little enthusiasm.

*This is an updated version of an article that I wrote for Eugene Occupier newsletter of March 2012.

**Photos by David Sierralupe

Thou Shalt Be Creative

I. Thou shalt track only one activism cause at a time.

Choose your cause carefully. Stay focused. You can be a more efficient activist when you keep your eyes on the prize. Jumping from cause to cause only leads to burnout.

II. Thou shalt be cautious with thy graven image selection.

Being clever is not the same thing as being clear. In the golden age of visual media, the image that your cause selects to broadcast can make or break your message. The world is watching.  The lonely activist standing in front of the advancing tanks at Tiananmen Square sent a compelling message of courage. The activists desecrating funerals of veterans with tacky, homophobic placards just makes them look like assholes.

III. Thou shalt not troll.

Everybody gets pissed off. It is just going to happen. Activists are a passionate, intelligent group of people. They are going to fumble once and a while. Since you are part of that group, just assume that when you are angry, it is entirely possible that you are the one who is fumbling. If the group is pissing you off so much that you feel that trolling is justified, move to another group. Do not waste your time trolling. When you get angry, move slower and take a step back.

IV. Thou shalt not utter a sentence in an organizational meeting that begins with the words, “I have a great idea if some one wants to take this on …”

Look around the room, sweetheart. Your fellow organizers are only sitting at this meeting because they needed some rest and relaxation. Most of us are running from event to event between tending to our jobs and our families. If it such a great idea, you take it on.

V. Thou shalt use the media to thine best advantage.

Activism is all about communication. Use Facebook, blogging, website and Twitter to broadcast your message even if you hate electronic social networks. Send carefully worded press releases to newspapers, TV stations and radio stations even if you think that they are owned and operated by the “man”. Get the word out. Change the world.

VI. Thou shalt be annoyingly repetitive.

Stick to your guns. Stay focused. (Did I mention focus already? Good.) Pick one or two phrases to throw around to stick in people’s heads. Keep it short and sweet and say it again and again and again.

VII. Thou shalt be respectful.

Think back to the reason that you joined this cause in the first place. Wasn’t it because someone or group of someones treated you disrespectfully? You are trying to change that. You can’t teach respect by being a dick. Gandhi said it best, “Be the change you want to see in the world.”

VIII. Know thy audience as thy self.

Figure out the key players in your activism cause. Speak to them on  their own level. If you are trying to persuade knitters to use bamboo knitting needles instead of rainforest depleting teak wood, visit knitting clubs in your community. Find out why they are making the choices they do. Find out what is important to them. If your target audience is much larger, consider communicating with one section of the population at a time. This includes knowing who oppose you. Your “enemies” are just as excited about this subject as you are. Maybe they know something you don’t.

IX. Thou shalt use strategies that businesses employ.

Businesses spend billions of dollars to figure out how to get people to buy their useless crap every day and they get results. You are trying to sell an idea that is actually useful on the coins rattling around in a donation jar. They did the work for you. Pay attention to advertising that works. You don’t have to reinvent the activism wheel, you just have to see what the population is interested in this year. Use buzzwords from big business. Use marketing ploys from big business. Use advertising cliches from big business. Be smart. This is about success. Consult the experts.

X. Thou shalt not use violence.

Take a look at the revolutions that lasted. Take a look at the revolutions that are still respected. Take a look at the revolutions that made our lives better. All of these revolutions used non-violence. Non-violence is not the same thing as non-action. We want something lasting for all our efforts. Non-violence is simply the way healthy, smart revolutions behave. It’s okay to be angry. Just don’t be stupid.

Trust me. I'm a professional.

What I love about Occupy is the exciting people. Occupiers are, as a rule, no-nonsense, movers and shakers. They have big ideas. They make big plans. They organize big events. They have big mouths. Often, they have big, foot-sized mouths.

I have the luxury of saying this because I also have a big, foot-sized mouth. When I make announcements for our medical clinic activities during our General Assemblies (GAs), it is fairly common for me to stand up and make a General Ass of myself. I am sure that there is a special sigh saved just for me when I pop up to make my weekly committee report.

I have stood up to announce, on live stream, a 4 hour clinic that I organized and have attend regularly for 6 weeks in a row at as a 7 hour clinic. I have announced meetings that I am very excited about attending with people that I adore as happening on a Wednesday when they actually happen on a Thursday. Why would I do such a thing? How do these things come into my head? What a dandy tasting foot.

I have tricked my fellow Occupiers into forgiving my fumbling exuberance.  When the GA facilitator asks for committee reports, I still get called on. My fellow Occupiers still laugh at my jokes. They ask questions about the events that I announce. They even humor me enough to show up to these events. What, you may ask, is wrong with these people?

The answer is simple: they are dumbfounded. They know that I will say anything, no matter how inappropriate, in public and accompany it with a big, cheese-eating grin. I flap my arms and gush about the clinic. I beg unrepentantly for medical supply donations. I embarrass myself with full knowledge that this display is shared on the internet with total strangers. To my fellow Occupiers, it is like watching a teenager back a semi-truck out of glass garage. You squint and you cringe but you just can’t look away.

This is my big secret. I am the court jester at Occupy castle. Other Occupy organizers rely on their natural gifts of sophistication and intelligence. Since those gifts are not available to me, I have to rely on my natural gift of zeal and goofiness. This is how I get stuff done.  There is lots of stuff to be done.

I belong to one of the best known branches of Occupy Eugene. Our clinic is in the newspaper, on the radio and on TV. Our volunteers are trained professionals with a sharp eye on politics. We keep careful records with streamlined paperwork. We are working on grants and connecting with other established agencies to broaden the scope of our clinic. Dentists, vets, and chiropractors are all the list of potential new team mates. There is even talk of starting our own website.

With all this activity, I have to work hard to bolster a solid foundation. I need eager volunteers and community support. I need supplies. I need publicity. I need to wave my arms and make an endearing idiot of myself in front of people I’d rather impress. I need that jester hat and big, foot-sized mouth.

Luckily, I’ve got both. Viva la revolucion!

Breakfast of Champions

The snow outside inspired me to cook with peppers. I just finished a zesty dinner of huevos rancheros which consisted of 2 tortillas covered with spinach, fried eggs straight from the chicken, garlic stuffed olives and a small mountain of hot salsa. I am very full and my nose is running like mad. This is exactly the effect I was going for.

Spicy food is perfect for chilly winter days like today. Peppers are chock full of a compound called capsaicin. Simply put, the more capsaicin the cayenne pepper has, the hotter it tastes. When this compound comes into contact with the lovely mucus membrane known as the tongue, our mouth ignites and we grab for a frosty mug of beer to cut the flames. Any pepper lover worth his mouth callouses knows that water will only spread the burn of cayenne.

The burn is only part of the story with cayenne. Cayenne is among a handful of herbs that cut pain. Cayenne, turmeric and ginger all deplete the neuropeptide called substance P that triggers the pain sensation between nerve cells and the brain. These herbs also decrease inflammation. This is why capsaicin is included in muscle rubs and dermal patches.

Winter plays havoc on my system. My arthritis worsens. My back aches. My muscles throb with pain. Even as I am writing this blog post, I can feel the tension between my shoulder blades relax. The sharp knot at the top of my spine is unraveling. Those winter blues don’t have much chance against cayenne’s red heat.

Did I mention that my nose was running? Any one who has taken a bite of hot pepper knows that a runny nose and watery eyes are natural reactions. The active constituent in cayenne is a trigger on our membranes to expel mucus. That includes draining our sinuses and shooing the crud in our throats. Sound familiar?

In the Willamette Valley in winter, the tree pollen is gaining momentum. Cedars, junipers, oak, ash, pine and birches are all doing their level best to breed. That translates into a heavy pollen count on a clear day. When the sun comes out, so do Oregonians (like myself) that are starved for sunlight. We stand in outside, blinking at shiny, vaguely familiar, disc in the sky. We stretch our arms dramatically and draw in a hefty lungful of air.

“Hello pollen. Welcome to my nasal passages. Please enjoy your stay.”

Winters in Oregon can be brutal. Between the allergies, the arthritis and the general aches and pains; lies one miserable little herbalist. Cayenne is key to forgiveness for Willamette Valley’s woes. Nothing makes forgiveness go down easier than hot plate of spicy food. Huevos rancheros, any one?

The Exclusion Zone Map

In 2008, Eugene’s city council approved a nasty piece of business. They called it the Public Safety Zone. This was a marked territory of Eugene, Oregon’s downtown landscape that served as an exclusion zone for designated citizens. Police officers were given the option to 86 any man, woman or child from this area without having the burden of just cause. This ruling was designed specifically to push the homeless out of our city.

This year, the much protested ruling is up for review. Although city council did not allow the public that funds this rule to vote on its approval, we were allowed to speak on the issue before it was reconsidered.

Occupy Eugene asked me to speak in front of the council on behalf of our medical committee. Occupy has been working to bring democracy back to America. This exclusion zone represents discrimination against the poor. I admit that I also saw this as an excellent time to brag about the wonderful work my fellow medical volunteers have accomplished thus far. I beg your indulgence.

February 13th, 2012

Good evening Mayor Piercy and members of the Eugene City Council. My name is Sue Sierralupe. I have been a citizen of this fair city for 30 years and I am an organizer of Occupy’s free medical clinic. For the past few Sundays, our team of doctors, nurses and other health care professionals have been offering medical service to any one who needs our help. Our volunteers originally assembled to support the Occupy Movement.

No one understands how devastated our economy is more than heath care professionals. We have seen families agonize over decisions between paying for overpriced medical procedures and keeping their homes. We have watched patients die because they waited to the last moment to seek medical care they knew they couldn’t afford.

Since we first set up our little first aid tent in the Parks Block back in October, the numbers of patients that have wandered in for care has grown exponentially. Back in October, 1 or 2 medical volunteers on staff at one time was more than enough to serve the community. When we reopened Occupy Medical last Sunday at the steps of the Federal Building, we brought a staff of 12. We were busy. Most of the population that we serve come to us because they have little or no health insurance. They are the homeless, the underemployed or just the unlucky.

Occupy Medical is growing. This last Sunday, we were joined by Food not Bombs. Next Sunday, LCC’s nursing students have volunteered to help our cause. In our spare time, our team is organizing a street outreach program in which we will traveling to homeless camps and under bridges to bring medical care directly to the people who so desperately need it. Eugene is community of good-hearted, hard working people who want to make a difference. In another month or 2, we will have out grown the floor space that the Federal building has to offer. We will need to move to the Park Blocks which is inside the Exclusion zone. This means that we will no longer be able to help the patients that have been singled out to leave our downtown area.

No civilization can survive without health care. We all know that the numbers of the poor and the homeless are growing. If we don’t take care of their needs, we leave ourselves open to a medical disaster of epidemic proportions.

Exclusion zones are designed to shield the public from toxic hazards. Examples of exclusion zone include Chernobyl and Coffin Bay. Treating our homeless population as a visual hazard that must be shielded from the eyes of middle class shoppers is shameful … and dangerous. Hiding the suffering of our neighbors has only served to make our problems worse. Please fix this error.

Argh!

As editor and founder of the Herbalist Manifesto and The Practical Herbalist.com, I have decided to stand in solidarity with the millions of Americans who are protesting the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the PROTECT IP Act (PIPA). These initiatives are founded in fear and misinformation.

Internet piracy is a bad thing. I have had my own work stolen. Copyright protection is constant battle for writers, artists and musicians. These initiates do not, however, protect us. SOPA and PIPA make it more difficult for us.

Under this law, giving a reference or link to a site that contains a pirated item, makes you guilty of piracy. On my own site, The Practical Herbalist, I have close to 200 originally written articles. One would imagine that adding a link to my site would be a safe bet. Not so. I back up my articles with links to other articles and resources. This translates into references into over 1,000 different sites.

Could any one possibly check into every link even if they read every one of my articles? If some one wanted to post a link to my article on treating mono, they would have a month of dedicated reading ahead of them just to be safe from prosecution. This is just one minor flaw in the plan. I could go on.

SOPA and PIPA are badly written initiatives. Our country can’t afford another law that cripples artists, disables education and suppresses freedom of speech. We can stop this. Send an e-mail to your congressional representative with your concerns.

Occupy Eugene - Volunteers Keep the Paths Clean

Greenhorn protesters are adorable. They view every guy with a good haircut as a spy. Their protest signs must contain at least one exclamation point. The greenhorn is the first kid at the organizational meeting to ask questions about tear gas. How cute is that?

As a seasoned protester, I choose to attend as few meetings as humanly possible and then pick one committee that will utilize my skill set. After that, I establish a regular schedule and stick to it. At Occupy Eugene, I am in the medical tent passing out cough drops and band-aids. I have 3 – 3 hour shifts during the week. If there is a conflict at home, I call ahead to let my med tent buddies that I won’t be coming in. I am very boring.

Greenhorn enthusiasm is contagious. The torrent of ideas from just one little greenhorn is astonishing. The Occupy movement in the hands of these excited young people takes on a caffeinated heart beat. Democracy seems just within reach for our struggling country after just a few minutes of listening to these kids.

I need that enthusiasm. I work a full time job. I have kids to raise. I, like many of my neighbors, are struggling to survive. The rat race is beating me down. Adding another time suck to already over committed schedule by working at Occupy seems ridiculous but it actually makes things easier. I need the energy and high minded ideals that these greenhorns vibrate with to keep me going.

Boring, old protesters like me help out too. We show up regularly and do the jobs that go unreported by the news. We run the kitchen, sort recycling and pay the bills. We also bite.

When the movement was new, we had a staggering variety of protesters and squatters. Some participants were helpful. Some were not. The experienced protesters watched the crowd and figured out who they could work with and who they should avoid.

When our movement had trouble with a protester who had considerable anger control problems, a group of us proposed that the protester be 86ed. The greenhorns were alarmed. We were considered heartless and shortsighted. Occupy is for all of us. This a democracy. Point taken, greenhorns.

Here is the big secret about protests that experience teaches you: hands-on protesting is not for everyone. It takes a certain amount of calm to face confrontation with success. If you do not have the ability to think your way through stressful situations without aggravating it, you don’t belong there. Some one can and will get hurt.

Occupy has a camp. It is not for every one either. If you can’t interact in a group setting without turning to violence and anger, you also don’t belong there. This movement is too important to the future of our country to spare energy babysitting foul-tempered abusers.

The community must be protected. This is why the elder protesters “bite”. We may not have the boundless energy of the young people around us but we know how to keep that energy flowing. It is all a matter of focus. Don’t waste time on unnecessary problems. This is the lesson of experience. This is why we 86 people.

There are many avenues for protest. Some people get arrested. Some people post information on the internet. Some people wave signs. Some people camp. Some people wash dishes. Some people just fold their arms, sigh and remind people to breath. That is what keeps our protest alive.

*** Thank you, David Sierralupe for the photograph.

Elderberries for All

I am an unabashed elderberry fan. It is not a one-size-fits-all herb like garlic. It doesn’t grow neatly on a kitchen window like sage. It isn’t easy to pick without a ladder like cayenne. It doesn’t wander into the front yard like dandelion. Yet with all the work that I have to do to appreciate this herb, I can’t help but adore it.

Elderberry is an antiviral herb that specifically targets enveloped viruses. The virus family that I battle most consistently is the influenza viruses which are elderberry’s prime target. Unlike the flu vaccine that hits one type of flu at a time, elderberry takes them all on.

As the winter months start to drag my neighbors back to bed complaining of a sore throat and fever, elderberry keeps my immune system on top of its game. In addition to cleaning clingy viruses out of my blood stream, the flavonoids in elderberry encourage my aging body to rebuild damage from oxidants.

Elderberry is safe to take on a daily basis. Elderly patients, children and people with compromised immune systems can take a shot of elderberry tincture every day without concern. Elderberry comes in a variety of forms which make it very easy to take: syrups, lozenges, capsules, tinctures and teas.

My personal favorite tonight is shimmering in my wine glass. Elderberry wine is a traditional drink that is sweet and tart. It isn’t a fancy wine. It doesn’t take much work to produce your own batch of wine either. Just be certain that you are using blue or black elderberries since red elderberries are inedible.

I have an adoration for the elder plant as well. I have chanced upon an elder shrub on a hike just after it had lost it’s fall foliage. The elder’s long branches waved it’s load of ripe berries with such grace that I literally stopped in my tracks. I stared as the branches smoothly stretched and bent in the wind. I admit that I actually got a little misty eyed at the sight.

Memories of elder’s dance on that hillside all those years ago still makes me smile. It was that moment that I knew I had lost my heart to skinny, bare-armed shrub. Elder still has my dedication. Tonight as I swirl the contents of elderberry wine in my glass after a long day of work, I know that I have much more to learn about this humble herb.  I look forward to challenge.

Our Heroes

America is uneasy. Reporters have shocked the nation with visions of police violence against protesters this year as the Occupy movement picks up steam. A college student bleeds into the pavement as a police officer prepares to handcuff him. A protester is run over by a motorcycle cop. A war veteran is brained by a tear gas canister. It’s getting nasty.

Occupy Eugene has been baffled. We are wondering what went wrong. As we understood the movement, it was a protest of the underhanded double dealings that are crippling this country. In order to change it, we have to present a different attitude. This means being clear in communication and open with decision making. That means talking to our cops.

We talked to our cops. Our cops talked to us. We talked to the city mangers. Our city managers talked to us. We talked to our mayor. Our mayor talked to us. We worked it out.

Our cops had very reasonable requests. They had security concerns and sanitation concerns. We worked out how to meet these concerns with the approval of the General Assembly. We now have a working kitchen, a medical tent, 24 hour peacekeepers, regularly maintained toilets, a covered assembly tent, and an on-site library. We covered the paths with barko mulch paid for by donations.

Our cops come by and check to make sure every thing running smoothly. Sometimes they bring donations of warm clothing on their days off. Sometimes they stop traffic so we can march without interruption. Sometimes they pop over to settle a disturbance. They do it all with style and grace.

Our cops do not lurk scowling in corners. They do not threaten people with batons. They do not toss flash grenades at citizens running to the aid of an injured American. They do not confiscate space heaters the night before a snowstorm.

Our cops are civilized. They understand the point of the Occupy movement to prompt social and economic evolution. They understand that what we accomplish here will make every one’s life better.

We like our cops. Pay attention, America. This is where the real news is.

*Thanks to David Sierralupe for sharing his photo.

Our standing is crumbling. We are the disenfranchised. Unrepresented, uncared for and unhappy with our lot. The economy is getting worse but the upper 1% are barely feeling the pinch. Meanwhile, houses stand empty from mortgage scams and the lines to the homeless shelters extend out into the streets.

The Occupy Wall Street movement wants to save lives. The economy needs a shake up. The status quo is not acceptable. Now is the time for change.

Occupy Eugene - 1st Meeting Before the Protest

I am not an economist. The Herbalist Manifesto does not pretend to represent a voice for economic revolution. I do make my stand for sustainability. Our current system is obviously not sustainable. (See Professor Dumhoff’s in-depth article “Wealth, Income and Power” on a realistic view of how much the upper 1% controls in America.)

Without economic justice, the lower 99% will continue to sicken and die. We need health care. We need access to education so that more of us can properly care for the health of others. Healthy, organic food should not be reserved for the wealthy. Proper health care should not be reserved for the wealthy. Wall Street should not decide what medicine we have access to. It’s just not right. (See the Institute of Medicine’s report “Insuring America’s Health: Principles and Recommendations” for more information on how the current inequalities in our health care system is crippling America.)

The Herbalist Manifesto stands for a healthy America. I live in a tiny town at the edge of America. Occupy Wall Street is coming to Eugene. I am there, in the rain, with my little blue umbrella and a eye on my friends holding cardboard signs. I am just one person; one voice in the dark. I am speaking to any one who, like me, wants a better future. I am adding my voice to those commanding the bloated 1% to get their hands off our neck and let us breath.

*Thanks to David Sierralupe for the photo.