Quince Mountain in the Madison Capitol building.

Waging Nonviolence correspondent Quince Mountain has been relaying news by text message from inside and out the occupied Capitol building in Madison, Wisconsin, where protesters are fighting—among other things—Governor Scott Walker’s anti-union, pro-corporate budget proposals. See all of the dispatches in this series here.

3:21 am

I think the state troopers downstairs are playing soccer with an empty water bottle.

Rev Billy was here tuesday and I missed it?

I told u what the clerk said to my speeding ticket judge today right?

(about me). “he can’t make it to court. He’s at the you-know-where”

3:32

The lines between democracy and poor mental health are blurring with a quickness

Light democratic snoring

“ho-hum” said the deputy

Less democratic snoring.

Less democratic, that is. Not less snoring.

Balloons, red heart helium up on the rotunda ceiling

The other day when I was talking about plans and negotiations, the nyt woman said, “the drum circle? You mean theyre negotiating with the drum circle?”

I don’t think she believed me.

3:47

Deputy boots down marble treads. Checking out noise causes?

Horn bleat, cheers, the bowling of a strike.

Another trooper crosses my view so I ask him (10 ft away) what are the sounds? He says what? I say the noise. He says huh? He’s trying to be quiet for sleepers, respectful. I get up and ask him if his hat makes it hard to hear. He says sleep deprivation messes with hearing.

Are there really snipers on the roof?

I’m gonna go to sleep.

8:29

Wow. That couple is really…coupled.

Good morning.

Cops comparing their vacation/sick packages.

Clint left.

Dentist appointment.

People say they’ll be back after a day but, really??

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Waging Nonviolence correspondent Quince Mountain has been relaying news by text message from inside and out the occupied Capitol building in Madison, Wisconsin, where protesters are fighting—among other things—Governor Scott Walker’s anti-union, pro-corporate budget proposals. See all of the dispatches in this series here.

10:18 am, 3/2

It’s gonna be rough from here. Only attrition. No one new can join group. But no one kicking out. No immediate opposition to enliven the sit-in. Gov avoidant. People need to build something constructive so they stay. Have classes, services, singing, etc. But everyone is hella weary and there are few protestors demonstrating outside. National media may leave after today til senators return.

5:05 pm

So four democratic state assembly reps moved their offices outside today. Desks, nameplates, family photos, the whole deal.

AP had called off their shooters til that happened.

Come back lil shooter.

The other photographers here are disappointed that the family photos were facing outward, not toward the state reps . But I love it. I mean, cmon.

Amazing tho how it’s a good photo op that makes the editors send their news team back.

6:16

Dental floss, moisturizer, toothbrushes, eye drops, Kleenex, hand sanitizer, bar soap, no-more-tears baby shampoo, denture cream (!), lip balm, vitamins, shaving cream, essential oils, ankle socks, bandaids, latex gloves, rosewater spray.

Americans love to donate

Do they sit there imagining themselves as protestors 18 days into the Capitol occupation and think, “I’d want me some lemon oil on a little cotton ball”?

Is that part of the problem or part of the solution?

BYoBread and Circus

People asking if we need board games

I’ve seen some nice zines upstairs. And a James Patterson novel. And a copy of the state budget proposal.

12:52 am, 3/3

Indian food!

Pepperoni jerky

Bathing with wipes in assembly restroom.

Sleeping bag races around rotunda

Applying colored glitter glue to our shoes and faces

Shopping for new tee shirts shorts and socks at the Free Store

Also cool to try new hygiene items like crystal deodorant

Cleaning ladies on zambonis picking up after you and waxing the floor

The sheer variety of free pens and notepads

(more than in the press room)

Teach-in on horizontal power structure

Poetry workshop

Someone placing a powerful rock in your hand when you look a little out of sorts

Solidarity forever REMIX

Ballet

Solo capoeira

Pushups

Hard not to get soft at the Capitol

1:17 am

People outside can’t get in despite legal right.

People inside get to stay despite illegality of nighttime occupation.

All bets are off.

View from assembly chamber, 3:58 pm. Praying inside, for Libya:

The Waging Nonviolence desk in good company:

Senator Glenn Grothman: [about protestors] “I don’t hate these people for being slobs, but they’re slobs…”

“I really think five years from now most of these people [protesters] will have a real a job and be voting Republican. Don’t say most of these people because they’ll take that wrong. Say most of these young people. Most of these young people will have a job. How about that? Is that a quote?”

Follow my dispatches on the Waging Nonviolence Twitter feed. And earlier text-message reports here and here.

"Cops like calendar photo"

The saga of our special correspondent Quince Mountain’s stay in the occupied Capitol building in Madison, Wisconsin, continues from yesterday. Today he remained inside; protesters who tried to leave even just for a breath of fresh air were not allowed back in. Authorities are clearly intending to make the protesters will leave, but they have yet to take forceful action to make them do so. Receiving his text messages over the course of the day was surreal as I worked at my computer, and rode my bike into Manhattan, and went to a dental appointment where CNN was reporting that Charlie Sheen is demanding a multi-million dollar raise. Needless to say, I was glad that at least someone was paying attention while history is being made.

Here’s a sampling of Quince’s dispatches over the course of the day.

9:17 am

There is a confrontation? Not clear. A guy in the center is yelling about tension. People are asking cops yelling why aren’t people allowed in?

Use of the word fascist. And peace.

These teachers union guys on the bottom are running a certain part of the show.

But I don’t feel a lot of confidence in a revolution this morning.

Coffee might help.

Now they’re singing “we love u” to the police.

9:45

Guy from fox business network clear to say he’s not fox news network. “we’re straight”

10:01

My friend just texted asking if I’m willing to get arrested.

“Why?” I wrote.

Oh. And now he wrote “jail is awesome for trans folks”. I suppose, huh?

[On what happened last night:] I walked in at this key moment where ppl were almost leaving but didn’t. Just chose not to. And last night so many ppl I talked to attributed that to who got on the mic when. Like these five ppl basically just worked the crowd and were like “we didn’t need to leave”. Like ending exactly when the main push to eject ppl happened. And they just stayed.

10:39

So it’s like… A standoff? 25 cops with dogs at every door and only letting anyone in for each person who goes out?

11:30

[While in the bathroom, he hears a noise.]

Is that a saw or grinder? Or some ocd senators beefcake electric toothbrush?

Oh. the grinder was to grind off the screw heads [to keep people from breaking in with screwdrivers]. They did a nice job. I’d give it a B.

11:50

Hymns.

Or at least hallelus.

12:37 pm

Tmrw at 4 pm the gov reveals probably nasty budget.

So ppl are trying to stay in bldg. Gov trying to “threaten and bully the senators”

People don’t even want to let the gov in the building. Though I’m sure he’ll get in.

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On Saturday night, after driving through the snow from his home in rural Wisconsin, Waging Nonviolence special correspondent Quince Mountain arrived in Madison, where for almost two weeks, protesters had been occupying the Capitol building in a historic effort to prevent the passage of Governor Scott Walker’s bid to strip away the collective bargaining rights of many state employees. I couldn’t convince him to sit down in the middle of all the mayhem and write us a regular dispatch, but what he did do was better: a play by play account of what he was seeing over text message.

I first heard from him at 9:15 on Saturday night.

Capitol is on lockdown for the night. How can u lock down an occupation? Protests are so bizarre.

I’ll stay tomorrow. Big bust planned for 4pm.

Then, by 11, I got a disconcerting message.

Texting from cop car

I asked, “Why? What happened?” It wasn’t until almost two hours later that he responded.

No no. I was just hanging out talking w a cop in her car outside the Capitol.

She said there have been zero arrests the whole two weeks. And we hung out in her car and a delivery guy tried to give us pizzas “donated from Washington” but she couldn’t accept them.

The cops have been marching with the protesters twice daily. And I just read some of the cop briefing emails. Which strike me.

Wait, I should be clear. There may have been arrests. Madison pd is NOT the Capitol pd or the state troopers.

Plan for tomorrow according to email I saw is that everyone’s requested to leave the Capitol for cleaning by 4pm but that no one will be forcibly removed. Same as is stated publicly.

Yeah. Egyptians have donated food and pizzas and have sent messages.

Tomorrow breakfast w my cop friend and a state assembly staffer and an in-home therapist in danger of losing his job, among others.

I’m going to sleep I think.

After that, I didn’t hear from him again until 3:40 on Sunday afternoon. That’s only 20 minutes before the big crackdown was supposed to happen.

Trying to get into Capitol. Shouts of “we are all people” w response of “let us all in”

Cold grey afternoon

Air feels wet. State Troopers around. Kid with sign “walker is a turd”. I cringe at that kind.

Madisonians are beautiful.

But my companion rachel says in the last 10 min she’s heard more negative crowd comments than in past 12 days combined. Tense bc of troopers and impending ejection. Some angry/fearful she thinks.

“who’s house?”. “our house”

Husky Dog with placard. Can only see. One side “he sucks”

11 minutes to go.

These people do not seem like they’re leaving. The troopers have backpacks.

Friend sees sign and asks me “what’s a plutocracy?”. We look it up.

Chanting drumming stopped suddenly. Can’t tell what’s up. Some distant cheering?

Hounddog barking w vigor. More drumming.

I keep wondering how many romances were formed in weeks of rotunda sleepover.

And then 4 pm in the afternoon arrived, the time when the police were planning to begin removing protesters.

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