Keith and Iraq veteran Scott Olsen — the Occupy Oakland protester who suffered brain damage at the hands of Oakland police — discuss his health, how Olsen got involved in the movement and what he envisions the next steps of the movement will be. Olsen, who plans on rejoining occupation efforts after his health improves, noted that he wants to see “more people get involved with real democracy” and believes that ending all wars “will do our country a great service.”
TRANSCRIPT
KEITH OLBERMANN: Joining me now — as promised — Scott Olsen, the Iraq War vet whose skull was fractured at an Occupy Oakland rally in late October. Scott, it’s a pleasure to talk to you. I’m glad we can do this. Thanks for your time tonight.
SCOTT OLSEN: How do — Keith, glad to be here.
OLBERMANN: How are you feeling and how — people who saw that interview that you did over the weekend, at Occupy Oakland — how fast are you getting better? Let me put it that way.
OLSEN: It’s difficult to — to say. Every time I run into somebody new, who I haven’t seen for quite awhile, they’re — surprised how much I am doing better. Every time I check in with my doctors, every time I check in with anybody — any friends, they see the change faster than I — I do.
OLBERMANN: I would imagine that, so you must be — is it — do you find it frustrating or has the — the support that you’ve gotten nationwide actually contributed to this process? Not to have everybody pat themselves on their back but, I mean, has it been with any practical value to you?
OLSEN: Well, it’s frustrating at times but the support has been such — such a great help to me, just going home and reading a new card. I’ve still got a whole stack to get through and — support from vet groups and, like, VFP or IVAW has been outstanding and it’s been helping me get way, way better.
OLBERMANN: How — how clear a picture do you have of how much support there is and how much you’ve come to represent — not just to Occupy Oakland but Occupy in general?
OLSEN: Well, I mean, I’ve got this idea of a — it’s — it’s a bit hard to get my head around. I — I was — on the streets of San Francisco today and three or four people who you — you wouldn’t expect to be involved with politics, you know, they recognized me, and they stopped me and it’s — it’s always a — surprise to me.
OLBERMANN: Yeah, I would think so. What — what does that mean to you, when — when people think of you as part of, maybe, the essence of Occupy?
OLSEN: I mean it — it’s — it’s important to me because, you know, I — I am a part of it. We’re — we all are and it’s important for us all to be a part of it and — and embody those values that we hold — hold true.
OLBERMANN: Tell me what — what was it particularly that — that drew you to Occupy Oakland in the first place?
OLSEN: Just the — just, really, the — the community involved, and the diversity of opinions. You know, everybody you talk to there is going to have a different opinion, and — and you can always learn something new from talking to somebody else.
OLBERMANN: I don’t know if you know this name — Sergeant Shamar Thomas.
OLSEN: Uh-huh.
OLBERMANN: Good. Well then, you what he did here in New York, and he became famous for it, because he stood up to the cops and he said, with — with real vigor, but real politeness towards them — that, you know, “There’s no excuse for you to behave like this. This is not a battlefield.”
He knew battlefields, you know battlefields. Does the degree of militarization of the police at Occupy protests — obviously, that had an impact on you, personally, but in a broader sense — does it shock you that you’re seeing this on the streets of this country?
OLSEN: I don’t know, it’s — on one hand, it shocks me a lot. On the other hand, it doesn’t — because our nation’s peace officers have been militarized over the past ten years to combat terrorism, but they’re combating anybody with an opinion.
OLBERMANN: Relative to your opinion and these protests, do you have plans? Do you have hopes about resuming participating in some — some regular way? Or what do you want to do with this as it goes forward?
OLSEN: I’m — I’m excited to get back involved and I’m trying to plan on how — how I can get back involved and be an asset to — the Occupy movement but, you know, I have to make sure I — stay safe.
OLBERMANN: Well, you’re already an asset. You don’t have to worry about — about achieving that. You make sort of, like a practical, in-the-field kind of thing. Let me sum it up this way. What do you want — having been through all that you’ve been through, involved in this — what do you want to see Occupy achieve: long-term, short-term, however you want to put it?
OLSEN: I mean, really, I just want to see more people at — get involved with real democracy, to build a democratic nation. With that, I think we need to end our wars — all of them — and that’ll do our country a great service.
OLBERMANN: Scott Olsen, we wish you — all of us here, everybody who’s watching — we wish you the best as your recovery continues and, obviously, we thank you for your bravery — getting involved in this and — and for doing these interviews and of course, thank you for — for your original service, as well.
OLSEN: Thank you, Keith.
OLBERMANN: Okay, thank you, sir. All right.