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Go to an Occupy Event. Express Yourself
Letter to the Editor
Having returned from sleeping in Liberty Square with a thousand or so outraged but friendly fellow citizens, I would urge everyone to get down there, at least for a visit. Inspiration is guaranteed, and you can learn the tools for action that can peacefully help our experiment in democracy thrive again, both down on Wall Street and anywhere your home happens to be.
The goal, that famous demand the media keeps demanding from the movement, is to enact policies for fairly sharing the nation’s wealth and meeting the true needs of people. But that is only my demand, and I speak only for myself. The change being enacted by everyone at Occupy Wall Street goes deeper than politics.
You will recognize yourself and your friends in the people you meet in and around the park. They are us, the 99 percent who are tired of being screwed by a corrupt economic system favoring only one percent of citizens. (photo: Tom Giebel)
Go and see for yourself, and express yourself. You are encouraged to make your own signs expressing your own view on things. Poignant and pointed signs adorn the sidewalks or are held by protestors, who range from homeless vets and graduate students who are unemployed and deeply in debt, and from mothers whose children face a dangerous future. There is humor, pathos and rage, side by side for anyone to read.
There is a free library, free food, and art and yoga all free, and drumming and dancing and more. People are freely meeting among themselves. And there are times set aside for what is called a soapbox, where people are free to listen to speeches, or not. But the scene it is more than just messaging and morale, as important as those are, at Occupy Wall Street citizens learn remarkable ways to cooperate for change.
The most obvious example is the Human Microphone, a technique required because, in their fear, the powers that be are preventing the movement from using any amplification equipment.
So, Columbus Day weekend, several thousand citizens who marched with Occupy Wall Street used the plaza at Washington Square Park for a rally, that included a general assembly meeting for the movement. Because amplification was prohibited, facilitators asked the crowd to repeat what speakers said, in a measured call and repeat of information that traveled easily to the outskirts of the crowd.
If the rhythm faltered, cries of “mike check!” arise and facilitators recalibrate the human microphone and the meeting goes on. It works remarkably well, and goes along with the few simple hand signals that participants learn, so that direct democracy is possible in large crowds without a lot of voices drowning the human microphone.
This technique is only a hint of how far reaching the cooperation goes. Those camped in Liberty Plaza have working groups that cooperate on key tasks. There is a working group for feeding each other, for keeping the park clean, for greeting newcomers, for interacting with the curious press, and of course a working group planning peaceful direct action civil disobedience protests against the atrociously corrupt economic policies being shoveled on us.
There are other working groups as well and anyone may start a working group if you can gain enough support. All the meetings are open to the public and all are run under the same rules of cooperation, with facilitators ensuring a hearing for anyone who wishes to speak, and the group consenting on a course of action. Working groups bring the results of their deliberations to a general assembly for adoption, or not. Though it is sometimes tedious, it is more often fascinating, and very effective,
When citizens respect the process and respect each other as much as those in Liberty Square are doing, it works remarkably well. Where it might be leading is heartening, but not easily expressed and certainly not guaranteed. That is why it is so important for everyone to go see for themselves what Occupy Wall Street is doing.
These are not wild-eyed protestors, but sensible citizens. You will recognize yourself and your friends in the people you meet in and around the park. They are us, the 99 percent who are tired of being screwed by a corrupt economic system favoring only one percent of citizens. We can indeed show ourselves the way to a bright future, but we have to act. The world needs us.
- Posted in
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24 Comments so far
Show AllJust a suggestion. Someone should read Glen Ford's piece from Wednesday on Black Agenda Report. I did and we shared some meaningful correspondence. I see that CD chose to post a different article from Glen here today.................
Since Glen Ford has written/posted several articles on Black Agenda Report about the nascent movement, OCCUPY WALL STREET -- to which article, specifically, are you referring? Can you offer a title, or a link to the article?
A recent article from Paul Street, in which he quotes Glen Ford:
http://www.Zcommunications.org/reflections-on-ows-the-profits-system-and-wisconsin-by-paul-street
Would you be willing to share your "meaningful correspondence" with Glen Ford?
Daily, I read Black Agenda Report, and I listen to their Monday radio show each week on their website. His perspective and the perspective of the site are important!
As far as OCCUPY WALL STREET goes, I have participated as much as possible according to my schedule. Over the past weeks, I have spoken to countless individuals who are occupying Zuccotti Park/Liberty Square, and I am heartened by the commitment of the people who are camping out in NYC. Nearly everyone I've spoken to, despite their age, race and gender, etc., know that the Democrats are as culpable as the Republicans are, and they know that Wall Street and the banksters are at the crux of the multiple crises that we face. I'll continue to support them in whatever way I can, whenever I can.
If anyone has any questions, or concerns, people should attend the General Assemblies, the voices of the OCCUPY movements in their own communities, and offer their thoughts and ideas. This is the most open assembly I have ever attended -- nonhierarchical in all respects.
A couple of days ago, I read an article here on CD by a writer from Toronto who posed a generational war at OCCUPY WALL STREET. Personally, I have NOT witnessed such a gap at Liberty Square. In fact, I have experienced the exact opposite -- people are discussing, talking and listening to each other. We all have our concerns, but OCCUPY WALL STREET seems more like a community of people who care about each other, a living, breathing entity that grows exponentially by the day. And, I find that fact to be quite inspirational!
I love marijuana, but I smell something else, something insidious and sinister, when confronted with these new Medical Marijuana Dispensaries, and the 'Green Cards'...
the Occupy movement is certainly occupying the media...no room for talk of drones, or Fukushima...
we have to stay focused on what's important...which is what, again?
I'm afraid they would have to say much more regarding human lifestyle sacrifices, and personal responsibility at the local level in light of environmental peril, before I could consider them conscious, much less worth attention...
does no one else feel a tinge of wrongness, of a sinister other, whenever the free food is emphasized?
they hide hooks in free food, don't they?
what's the word for that? oh, yeah...
bait...
"the Occupy movement is certainly occupying the media...no room for talk of drones, or Fukushima..." -- dubet
I can't speak for OCCUPY movements in other communities, and I can't even speak for the OCCUPY movement here in NYC. I am but one person! However, I can talk/write about my own experiences while supporting OCCUPY WALL STREET here in NYC.
For instance, one consistent chant is the question: "How do we end the deficit?" The answer is: "Stop the wars and tax the rich." Of course, in a chant, we're unable to confront all of the issues involved with the MIC and the Pentagon, but these issues are discussed, and there are thousands of signs addressing the issues of bombs, drones, the U.S. military, etc. This is a peaceful nonviolent movement. Therefore, I believe that people do actually understand the connections -- and those connections not only reside at the Pentagon in D.C., and with our congressional misrepresentatives, but the connections also reside with the corporations, the offense industries, and Wall Street -- right here in NYC.
In addition, Helen Caldicott has visited Liberty Square at least twice, and she talked about nuclear issues and the dangers involved, including the vast devastation in Japan from March 11, 2011. Naomi Klein has also addressed the masses here at Liberty Square.
As far as food being used as a hook -- that's an interesting and subversive interpretation of the movement. And, we should consider all elements involved with any movement, albeit yours is a very cynical view. From having spent so much time down at Zuccotti Park/Liberty Square, I certainly don't think that the free food is about anything but feeding those who need to be fed -- from those who are actively participating in the movement to those who are homeless who have found their way to Liberty Square. I'm reminded of the words, "FOOD NOT BOMBS," in this instance.
Maybe, you live here in NYC, or have made the trip here to find out for yourself. I can't know that. For one thing, I wouldn't know if another CD writer/reader was standing next to me at Liberty Square, or if a CD writer/reader was marching next to me, since most people on this site remain unidentified. If you haven't visited OCCUPY WALL STREET, and don't live near NYC, my first suggestion, if you are interested, is to visit the OCCUPY movement nearest to you, and especially to attend the General Assemblies, which invite all voices. There, you could express your concerns that you addressed in your post.
The movement here in NYC continues to grow exponentially by the day, and I have waited for several years for a real movement to emerge. Since 2006, when the Dems took back both the Senate and the House, it's been a lonely venture taking to the streets, and/or finding people who are willing to confront the real issues facing people in this country. In fact, in a city of 8 million people, more often than not over the past few years, I have marched/rallied with numbers as low as about 20 people. I have felt a great despair, to say the least.
Finally, the people have risen, and there is a movement growing, and we are marching almost every day -- to some location where our misrepresentatives and/or CEOs live, work, or are attending social functions. For instance, on Monday, we marched to the Attorney General's office to protest police brutality, where a number of people spoke, via the human microphone. Then, we continued on to a restaurant on Hudson Street to protest Andrew Cuomo, our Dem governor, who is anti-union, has spoken out against a millionaire tax, and he also supports fracking. One party is as culpable as the other -- in our two-party system, and it's the systems that are at the heart of our protests!
If you have had different experiences, I would really like to hear about them!
dubet, my friend, Bait?
I see this global movement as a rejection of the Me philosophy. Capitalism is the tainted well from which they drink.
I see this global movement as a declaration of the We philosophy.
Sharing, especially food, as a wonderful display of the possibilities.
In the end, sharing food with those in need, is exactly the world I dream about, no enemies, no competitors, just members of the community of Life.
The northwest has some of the most magnificent forests on the planet. Forests are communities that share everything.
Now my arrogant advise:
Gather some weed and go into the wilderness, somewhere away from the din of civilization. Get off the trail and find a comfortable spot to sit down. Smoke said weed and listen to the forest.
as always, Buck
All voices should be heard, unfortunately there are 'dead zones' where there is no activism, no public transportation to get to any OWS site. This is the case in southwestern Vermont. 3 good colleges in the area. I spoke at one of them yesterday. Tried to inspire some to action. I am not sure what the problem is - too much money, not enough money, no time, apathy, self absorbtion...
Physical presence is not necessary in a decentralized movement. Participation on the net is encouraged. The net is where the great majority of participants are functioning.
OCW has taken donations from financial interests. They have already been hijacked as evidenced by their abandonment of decentralized participation by having organized a convention. How 20th Century!!!
Notice that we no longer hear about challenging the banks, despite Bank of America attempting to shift 75 TRILLION DOLLARS of toxic assets to the taxpayers. That is five times the annual GNP of America.
OCW has sold it's soul.
Another truly decentralized movement must be formed now.
I've come very close to taking part in my local OWS. But when I see the "30 Rock' ism" of the movement in NY, I had to back-off. The "Sweaty Balls"/Ben & Jers marketing scam, NBC News & GE/SNL, Aleck Baldwin (who a favorite comedian of mine)...all of them there for a profit. PR & promotion, a laugh & for the benefit of the democratic party and MIC... it turns me off. I'm not so sure at this point that this is what I want to give myself to... Lots of folks milling around not doing much of anything but BS'ing. Just my take. But, I'm starting to sense an overall downward trajectory of momentum. Could just be me. I hope so. I continue to be (somewhat) optimistic until more clarity evolves.
Kay, i am not at my own computer. It was in the october 19 edition of BAR blog. At least that is when i got it in email. It is the first article on the page. That is what i can tell you right now. "Occupy Wall Street:What You Can Demand .........." That is the first part of the title that i recall.
I was pleased to read him on this subject and told him so. And just as we had corresponded the day after obama was elected, he once again made me feel there was a meeting of minds at a time when i felt quite alienated.
Kay et al:
Glen Ford's blog
"Occupy Wall Street: What You Can Demand versus What You Must DO
Wed, 10/19/2011"*
______________
"A movement must be prepared to break the plutocrats’ power – confiscate his fortune or make it impossible to spend – or find themselves like Lilliputians trying to tie down a huge and vicious unchained Gulliver while he stomps on you like roaches. ..."
______________
* http://www.blackagendareport.com/content/occupy-wall-street-what-you-can-demand-versus-what-you-must-do
-- or, http://tinyurl.com/5umumoa
Grab a piece of cardboard, paint an occupy sign on it and stand outside. That is all.
Occupy Wall Street would be well advised to know that the name calling from the dupes and shills of the Banksters and their media outlets, Fox Noise Channel and their wannabes, has begun in earnest. The best I've read is 'Flea Partiers,' (this from an obviously angered Tea Bagger).
From today's Democracy Now:
"And National Public Radio is drawing controversy after apparently forcing the dismissal of an independent radio journalist over her participation in the protest at Washington, D.C.'s Freedom Plaza. The journalist, Lisa Simeone, hosts the show 'World of Opera' and contributed to the show 'Soundprint,' which are produced independently but air on NPR stations. But after learning that Simeone had attended the D.C. 'Occupy' protest, NPR released a statement saying: 'We of course take this issue very seriously.' Hours later, Simeone was fired from her job at 'Soundprint.' In a statement, Simeone said: 'I find it puzzling that NPR objects to my exercising my rights as an American citizen — the right to free speech, the right to peaceable assembly — on my own time in my own life. I'm not an NPR employee. I’m a freelancer. NPR doesn’t pay me… I’ve never brought a whiff of my political activities into the work I’ve done.'"
Just a little more evidence of where our "liberal" media stands.
But, but... NPR just HAD to dump her, Elizabeth.
She looks like the kind of person who might just lose it and call torture "torture"!
You know its NOT just Wall st. folks. Add into it the MIC and Homeland Security you have a BIG portion of the problem. The MIC is the 800 pound Gorilla in the Nat'l room and its sitting on top of the Empire and nobody seems to want to confront the fact that behind Wall sts. arrogance and the politicians abandonment of the 99% is the MILITARY and its huge costs and Imperial programs. Also Homeland Security needs to be faced head on and the so called Patriot act. When you add Citizens United to this toxic mix you have the beast we are confronting.
Wall Street is the bones,
MIC the muscle,
Media the vocal cords,
Politicians the face,
Government the blood,
of the Beast of capitalism.
The People are livestock.
I've heard a few folks complaining that the Portland (OR) Occupiers are causing thousands of dollars of damage to the grass and trees in two downtown parks. I wonder if the same noble Loraxes express concern about Weyerhauser and Georgia Pacific clear-cutting thousands of acres of national forest land? Or ranchers overgrazing BLM rangeland?
http://forestcouncil.org/learn/logging.html
In Philly, the local teevee news has made some noise about the cost to the city of all the overtime for cops supposedly caused by Occupy Philly.
But it's sort of died down. I don't know what the usual reactionary nitwits preferred by the Daily News letter page editors are saying about it-- they gulp down red herrings like sharks gulping down chum-- but so far this bogus issue hasn't risen to a general mainstream complaint, i.e. that free speech and public protest is just too damn costly to tolerate.
Had the privilege of visiting Occupy San Francisco. What did I see ? Cleanliness, cooperation, respect, consensus in how these citizens are living and making decisions. Yet, the police have raided the encampment twice, confiscating camping and kitchen equipment, and personal belongings. Who would expect that in a liberal city such as San Francisco, the authorities would brutalize and attempt to shut down this peaceful group of citizens ? But, these citizens will not be discouraged and have bounced back stronger, rebuilding each time the authorities have tried to tear them down. So, by all means, stop by, see for yourself, participate in whatever way you can and let S.F. City Hall know where you stand. Take former Secretary of Labor and current Professor of Economics at U.C. Berkeley, Robert Reich. He stopped by and gave a talk to support Occupy SF too.
Live free or die. Go get involved in the OCCUPY movement or be a slave. Keep voting Republican/Democrat or actually have representation in congress. These should be easy choices. Another no brainer: Support a war, make a profit on the war, go to jail. OCCUPY! UNITE! CHANGE!! Real change involves getting rid of everything we have now. PEACE!!
OCCUPY WALL STREET MOVEMENT
WHEN the Occupy Wall Street Movement needs an anthem, it has to be Do You Hear the People Sing? From Les Miserables. The song is best heard with sub-titles from Les Miserable 25th Anniversary (2010) performance at the Royal Opera House, London
Do You Hear the People Sing?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYizXBQ5EQA&NR=1
Recall Victor Hugo's immortal words:
“There is a determined though unseen bravery that defends itself foot by foot in the darkness against the fatal invasions of necessity and dishonesty. Noble and mysterious triumphs that no eye sees, and no fame rewards, and no flourish of triumph salutes. Life, misfortunes, isolation, abandonment, poverty, are battlefields that have their heroes; obscure heroes, sometimes greater than the illustrious heroes.”
― Victor Hugo, Les Misérables
Here's are some great videos about protest:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=QYOTe7V2DlA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uNsnbLqgLK0&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xQ9ad90Lulc&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZowiT5ZyRs&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3_V0NXFpSSA&feature=fvwrel (French)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3_V0NXFpSSA&feature=fvwrel
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GMZ19aanrCw&feature=related (French)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_t2OUXiUPos&feature=related (Chinese)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xOKfwtMeyFg (Spanish)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JD_QOrQDjyQ (Spanish sub-titles)
LYRICS
Lyrics to Do You Hear The People Sing:
Enjolras
Do you hear the people sing?
Singing a song of angry men?
It is the music of a people
Who will not be slaves again!
When the beating of your heart
Echoes the beating of the drums
There is a life about to start
When tomorrow comes!
Lyrics www.allthelyrics.com/lyrics/les_miserables/
Combeferre
Will you join in our crusade?
Who will be strong and stand with me?
Somewhere beyond the barricade
Is there a world you long to see?
Courfeyrac
Then join in the fight
That will give you the right to be free!!
All
Do you hear the people sing?
Singing a song of angry men?
It is the music of a people
Who will not be slaves again!
When the beating of your heart
Echoes the beating of the drums
There is a life about to start
When tomorrow comes!
Feuilly
Will you give all you can give
So that our banner may advance
Some will fall and some will live
Will you stand up and take your chance?
The blood of the martyrs
Will water the meadows of France!
All
Do you hear the people sing?
Singing a song of angry men?
It is the music of a people
Who will not be slaves again!
When the beating of your heart
Echoes the beating of the drums
There is a life about to start
When tomorrow comes
Arise! People of our true American Democracy and take back our nation from the coils of the Corporate State of America! See: http://thedragonsteeth.wetpaint.com/page/THE+NEW+PARTY
Jim Miller
jimmiller5417@gmail.com
Why don't the protestors get some guitar amps, microphones and power inverters and just start using them? Doesn't the First Amendment - Freedom of Speech - protect the use of amplification of voice? Inverters are so you can run the amps off a car battery.
I am just recovering from a year long period of unemployment coupled with a nosedive of my business due to the economic crash. But as soon as I can afford the gas to travel and the time I am going to go down to LA to the Occupy demonstration there.