The Beginning

Let me begin by saying I don't wish to discount any progress made or obstacles overcome by the brave souls struggling for freedom in such places as Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, etc. by claiming OccupyWallStreet is a starting point. I simply use it as a point of reference and my personal inspiration for this blog. I support all my brothers and sisters fighting for freedom and basic human rights globally, and hope to cover them here as space and time permit. 

Back in July, the magazine Adbusters posted a bulletin on their website. It was a call to action for all the disgruntled Americans tired of watching their leaders squander resources for their own gain while the populace suffered. I'm sure we can all agree with this line of thinking on some level; after all, with so much wealth in the hands of the few the majority of us live well below acceptable standards. The call was met with great hope, but surely also skepticism. 

#OCCUPYWALLSTREET

Then in August, more news:

Anonymous Joins #OCCUPYWALLSTREET

"Wall Street, Expect Us!" says video communique.

Anyone familiar with hacktivist group Anonymous knew things were becoming serious. Speculation abounded about just what might happen come that fateful September day. From the campaigns to out Scientology as a dangerous cult, to disrupting major corporations for their mistreatment of Wikileaks, to the embarrassing exposure of "security" giant HB Gary, Anonymous had proven themselves a force to be reckoned with both online and off. Something was sure to happen, though no one knew quite what to expect.

The Day
September 17 arrived, and it became apparent things would not go as planned. Parts of Wall St. near the stock exchange were barricaded off and there was a police presence waiting. The group had to move operations to nearby Zuccotti Park (since re-branded Liberty Square), under wary scrutiny of officers. The issue of permits was addressed by the police, and the situation was tense that first night. While estimates range from several hundred to 2,000 protesters, the numbers were a far cry from the 10,000 predicted. Adding to the frustration was the media - or more appropriately the lack of media. While Keith Olbermann and Michael Moore covered the protest in it's first few days, much of the mainstream news sources stayed far away from the occupation, not daring even a blurb at the bottom of the page. Those who bothered to mention it, like the New York Times, gave it a disheartening spin: 

Gunning for Wall Street, With Faulty Aim

Michael Kirby Smith for The New York Times

TO THE STREET Many downtown workers encountered demonstrators last week at Zuccotti Park, some with a group called Occupy Wall Street.

By GINIA BELLAFANTE

Published: September 23, 2011

By late morning on Wednesday, Occupy Wall Street, a noble but fractured and airy movement of rightly frustrated young people, had a default ambassador in a half-naked woman who called herself Zuni Tikka. A blonde with a marked likeness to Joni Mitchell and a seemingly even stronger wish to burrow through the space-time continuum and hunker down in 1968, Ms. Tikka had taken off all but her cotton underwear and was dancing on the north side of Zuccotti Park, facing Liberty Street, just west of Broadway. Tourists stopped to take pictures; cops smiled, and the insidiously favorable tax treatment of private equity and hedge-fund managers was looking as though it would endure.


The occupation continues
It might have appeared to the outside world at this point that the occupation was nothing but a rag-tag group of disaffected youths without purpose or drive, if one were to believe the media. But those who shunned the mainstream in favor of more independent sources knew better. The people at Liberty Square are the 99%. They are the students and the teachers, the workers and the jobless, the average citizen that knows their voice is not heard by those who run the country. Silent and non-existent to the elite, the billionaires, the 1% who hold this nation's wealth. This nation began because people believed a person should not be forced to hand their wage to those who refuse to represent them. Those people fought for that ideal, and America was born of their blood. Their courage inspired thirteen colonies of citizens to rise against the most powerful empire on earth. When have you felt represented by your elected officials? Search your memory, objectively, honestly, and ask yourself if you've felt either party had your best interests at heart.

And so the occupation continued, through the rain and under the watchful eye of the NYPD. Numbers grew as the first week went on, and casual observers began to understand the protestors were in it for the long haul. At some point the local constabulary must have begun to sense this as well. Things were about to take a turn.

Brutal Saturday

‘Occupy Wall Street’ Protests Turn Violent; Video Shows Police Macing Women

 

(Tina Fineberg/AP Photo)

ABC News’ Olivia Katrandjian reports:
Video posted by the group Occupy Wall St from the eighth day of protests against corporations show police using Tasers and mace to control the crowd, which the group says has only made it more committed to keep up the demonstrations in lower Manhattan for the long haul.

Strengthened resolve

If you're keeping score, that's mainstream (ABC) coverage. As I sit here on the evening of Sunday the 25th, just a quick search of "Occupy Wall Street" turns up a huge numbers of stories about the occupation, from such sources as ABC, CNN, Fox, Google, The Guardian, Bloomberg, not to mention the flood of info on internet sources such as Twitter, YouTube, Facebook and the like. Without realizing it, NYPD accomplished two things valuable to the movement, albeit unintentionally. Their unnecessary violence, in one fell swoop, guaranteed the protesters occupying Wall Street are going nowhere. They have faced their challenge together and stood their ground, they have claimed Liberty Square as their sacred battleground. Also, the mainstream news has given attention to their cause, because as even a casual purveyor of the evening news knows, violence means ratings.

But why?

If you're here, you probably already know why this is happening, but a little clarification never hurt. According to the Sociology Department at UCSC as of 2007, the top 20% of America's population owned 85% of the wealth, leaving the other 80% to scramble for 15% of the country's money. And we all know things haven't gotten any better since 2007. The number of people with money that can pass laws to regulate how you live is even smaller, leading to the 1% vs. 99% theme of the occupation. With huge banks bailed out, terribly unethical corporations bailed out (and then rewarding themselves bonuses) and even huge, faceless companies granted personhood so they can do things like contributing endlessly to campaigns and political causes, it's not hard to see that America 2011 is very different from the one our forefathers knew. America today is no longer a democracy. Oligarchy is a power structure in which power rests with a small group of people. Plutocracy is rule by wealth, or power given to the wealthy. Plutarchy is the term for a plutocratic oligarchy, and like it or not, that is what you have in America today.

The point 

If you've stayed with me this long, you're no doubt wondering, "great.. so what's your point?" Do something. Now. No, seriously. All across this country people are starting movements. So far reports are coming in that people are starting OccupyChicago and OccupyBoston, and other movements in solidarity with the Wall Street protesters. Send food, or blankets, if you can afford to. Or just email and Facebook and tweet everyone you know... even a few you don't. This movement can achieve what so many other have failed, but it needs people. People of conviction, willing to take steps to take this country back from the people that have stolen it from us. The two-party system, the Federal Reserve, bailouts for the rich, corporate personhood, these are all schemes - and unconstitutional schemes at that - to rob you of your voice. The safeguards against corruption run amok are gone. You are the only thing that stands between America and a slave state.