The Occupy Movement in 2012

After mostly packing up for the winter, the Occupy Movement chose May 1st (a day normally celebrating the international labor rights movement) to be "A Day Without The 99%". This was a call for a general strike. Thousands of people in various cities across the country answered the call with a variety of results: from a peaceful, ordinary march on the White House (starting at Meridian Hill Park) to "dumping a load of coal in the downtown branch of a bank that they say finances mountaintop coal mining." This also included picketing around national chain restaurants.

"In New York, protesters first gathered in Bryant Park and later filled a block-long stretch of 42nd Street near Grand Central Terminal....A group of guitarists — including Tom Morello, formerly of Rage Against the Machine — marched while strumming and singing Woody Guthrie’s 'This Land Is Your Land.' "

There were a number of arrests and acts of vandalism and most of the arrests were on the West Cost.

All in all, it was a day to say (not a direct quote) "We are glad we have made an impression on the political landscape and want to remind everyone that we are still here and plan to continue influencing it"

EDIT: got it, though I recommend reading the article as well. (this might be the first time I have opened a On-topic thread)

I don't know about anyone else, but I heard about it that day on NPR and other news broadcasts.

Anyone here who participated? Or knows what other events are being planned?

Not sure what the picketing particular restaurant chains was supposed to do... "They formed picket lines in front of chain restaurants such as Chipotle and the Capital Grille and chanted 'Stand up, fight back!'" does not seem all that usefull.

edited 3rd May '12 8:03:46 AM by Belian

Before you go on, please provide a summary of the linked article in the OP.

Got the summary in.

Avoid the comments in that article, they are thick with stoopid.

How's the Occupy Our Homes movement going?

Does anyone still cares? And I'm not saying this in a pejorative way, it just seems true: last year the Occupy movement was in headlines in TV, Internet and written press...now, well, they lucky if they are mentioned at all.

American pop culture is just the real enemy for the Occupy Movement: not the politicians, not the establishment, just celebrity's gossip and the latest Scandal Gate

edited 3rd May '12 9:49:54 AM by Anthony_H

Well, "some" people obviously care. There were different cities that each had thousands of people who participated.

Here are some links (I just googled "occupy movement may 1st" and went down the list... don't judge me for where the info is coming from):

• CBS news spot that covers the partnership between Labor unions and the movement, the fact that they had to close down the San Fransisco ferry service, and the greater/worldwide May Day marches.
• A more detailed report from the Christian science Monitor
  • "Although turnout was more than respectable in major cities such as New York and Chicago, the Occupy activists “will have to work hard to overcome the media images of such things as the bridge bomb plot in Ohio and the various skirmishes with police,” he says."
  • "In all, about 66 people were arrested during the Occupy protests nationwide – 30 of those arrests in New York City."
  • "In Los Angeles, several thousand protesters marched from the four compass points of the city to converge in downtown Pershing Square Park. At the same time, Occupy activists joined a union local in trying to shut down Los Angeles International Airport. The action closed Terminal 4 for about an hour..."
  • "Despite minor skirmishes in cities such as Oakland, where reports indicate that at least 23 people were arrested, the day was remarkable for its nonviolence, says Heather Gautney, a social scientist at Fordham University who spent the day mingling with activists in Manhattan. 'There were at least 20,000 people,' she says, 'but the mood was more festive than violent.' She says families brought their children, 'and they were stopping and taking pictures of the protests.' "
  • there are other semi-interesting articles about the Occupy movement I got to through the "Related stories" at the bottom of the page.
• the Guardian did a live blog O_o Start from the bottom. *reading now*

What was this bomb thing in Ohio I kept hearing about?

Meh, I went to a Chipotle in my city and a bunch of protestors were there. I was in uniform so they just sort of parted the seas and talked shit while I walked by. Working makes me hungry, ironically.

Here are Occupiers vandalizing the hell out of San Francisco, as filmed by a member of the mob. Start at the 5:40 mark if you don't have much time to spare, but it's worth watching the whole thing.

Anyone still feel represented by these people?

Chilling that the police did nothing. They clearly weren't trying to prevent a riot, because that is nothing if not a riot. Were they afraid people would get killed if they acted? Were they more afraid of getting smeared all over the press? Or are they sympathetic?

Yes. They still represent me, Doma. Because honestly? after years and years of hearing republican pro-business stupidity and all the lies half the people I know accept as fact without even listening to reason> I cant blame people for being pissed off. I cant so much as read a political related article anymore without wanting to scream at someone.

I cant even try to have a political discourse with my friends who are republican because I already know they wont listen. Theyll smile, nod, mentally assume I'm a dumb fucking liberal and go about their day.

Its a Despair Event Horizon thing, really. After a while you realize they dont want to listen. wont listen, have already written you off as either naive or evil, and have no intention of examining their own beliefs.

edited 25th May '12 6:05:17 PM by Midgetsnowman

You want to scream, not spray-paint cop cars and smash people's windows because they happened to be in your path.

I'm pretty sure that the people in that video were about as representative of the Occupy movement as the policemen who beat unconscious students on the ground are of the police force in general.

They don't do it as a mob of dozens. And try getting footage of just one Tea Partier doing this shit.

The title "Black Bloc" there tells me what I need to know, Doma. Those guys have been described as extremists and anarchists. The vast majority of protestors aren't anarchists; they want the system to be fixed and for big money to be taken out of politics rather than taking it all down. They want proper regulations and protections against discrimination in the work place. They want far less spending on the military and more spending on things like infrastructure and education, things which provide the average citizens with jobs, I might add. Taking money away from those things usually means people get fired or are simply not hired in the first place for necessary tasks.

The inclusiveness of OWS protestors means a few jackasses get in; they were jackasses before the OWS stuff started. Doesn't mean that they're representative of the whole group; Oakland in particular could have been a LOT worse but people have been highly dedicated to keeping the protests peaceful the entire time.

Can they stop being so inclusive, then? Criminy.

Given the decentralized nature of the protest and the fact that the issues they're concerned about effect every single person in this country, the answer is a huge FUCK NO.

Following the history of all-inclusive coalitions everywhere: if they win, the nastiest members will come out on top.

Focus and centralization aren't anathema to the issues you think they're about. Orgies of destruction really should be.

This is one case out of what has been a relatively peaceful protest so far, Doma. This is not the usual violent revolution. While the crime is very serious, in the context of painting the OWS as violent and anarchist you're pretty much way off the mark here. There have, in fact, been cases as remarked and recorded in the previous OWS thread where protestors have actively encouraged other protestors not to respond violently. Most of the focus is on a desire to fix the system, not destroy it.

edited 25th May '12 7:17:03 PM by AceofSpades

I don't see a link between the black bloc and OWS. In that footage, they weren't hiding under the Occupy banner like they were previously. That march of destruction was 100 percent black bloc, 0 percent OWS.

Is there really anyway for the Occupy Movement (or any protest) to weed out anarchists before they ruin things? All it takes is one asshole throwing a rock and then Mob Mentality takes over or another side retaliates and things cascade out of control; even if the protests were previously peaceful.

So its just a case of people trying to discredit Occupy by lumping them in with the genuine maniacs.

edited 25th May '12 7:22:00 PM by Rationalinsanity

Again: no need for any such rationalizations with the Tea Party. The Tea Party just plumb doesn't associate with scum like this.

It would involve legitimate members of OWS being perfectly willing to restrain and zipcuff anarchists, which most of them aren't willing to do because they're fucking pussies.

I mean seriously, if I were at a protest and saw someone start to throw rocks at cops, first thing I'd do is knock them the fuck out and drag them away. One asshole like that puts the entire thing in jeopardy, and they need to police themselves to maintain a good image.

Also, Ace: visit your nearest Occupy encampment. They're not nearly as coherent as you seem to think they are.

There's also the fact that the anarchists don't always make themselves clearly known, and that civilians typically don't have the right to go around arresting or preventing the free movements of other civilians. Also, just punching a guy for any reason in a crowd of people and that starts a massive scene that can get out of hand, so Barkey's suggestion is probably not the best for keeping the peace.

Also, Doma, we don't give a fuck about the Tea Partiers. They're on the way out of relevance, and are disgustingly hypocritical in the policies and people they support. Seriously, they're the kind of people that end up being the Birther conspiracists.

Also, I didn't say they were coherent. I said they were largely peaceful and not anarchists.

edited 25th May '12 7:34:57 PM by AceofSpades