I Support the Occupy Movement and Why 99% of You Should Too
The criticisms of the Occupy protests from folks who otherwise don’t disagree with the outcomes these protests are seeking have seen two angles:
One is from the people who don’t see protests or peaceful civil disobedience as ever being effective as voting. To answer the first argument, this is simply not true. Change rarely comes easily, nor does it come wholesale. I believe the youth movement of the 1960s is the point of reference for most of these folks. It did not end as expected, nor did it affect the permanent changes the members of that movement were seeking. However, this is only in the eye of the beholder.
Without those student protests, the recent wins of the civil rights movement in the mid 1960s could have been rolled back. Women would not have been empowered as they were in the decades to come to seek the equality they deserve, and I fully believe that holds true for the LGBT community. We almost certainly would not have a constitutional amendment to allow 18-20 year olds to vote. Finally, Vietnam would not be a synonym for failed foreign policy that would haunt the nation for the ensuing decades. While we don’t have a Utopian society those protesters in the 1960s were seeking, we have changes that have made America a better place for all.
This country is the epitome of what can be accomplished through civil disobedience. Through the founding of our country, the struggle against slavery, to winning the basic rights of workers – civil disobedience created the country we have today. We have a holiday dedicated a man who not only espoused the efficacy of civil disobedience, but put it into action to reach equality for people of all races and ethnicities. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was that man. He wrote a piece that I recommend every American to read “Letter From Birmingham Jail” which specifically deals with organization of civil disobedience and why in a free society it has to be used.
The other is from some seasoned activists who have spent years trying to reach the same outcomes, but to no avail. This is unfortunate that people who should be in the trenches Occupiers cannot find it in their hearts to support them. Part of this is simple human, base emotion of seeing decades of work to no avail be usurped by quote-unquote amateur grassroots protests. No one likes to be proven wrong, but sometimes there is simply a better way to reach the same outcome. Some of these people have been warned of their shortcomings for quite some time. Part of the problem is these professional activists are usually highly educated and unable to connect with the lower socio-economic classes. Also they have fell into the Culture War trap set by the right wing. They hold well intentioned, but misunderstood social policy positions that have turned many Americans off from voting in their own economic self interests.
It’s the economy, stupid. In his “More Perfect Union” 2008 primary campaign speech, President Obama spoke on the racial divide in this country and those differences should not override the same economic injustices we all face. I think this quote holds true for the entirety of the 99% and everything that could possibly divide us:
Just as black anger proved counterproductive, so have these white resentments distracted from the real culprits of a middle class squeeze – a corporate culture rife with inside dealing, questionable accounting practices, and short term greed; a Washington dominated by lobbyists and special interests; economic policies that favor the few over the many.
If you agree with these people, support them. Sitting on your ass is not as effective as rising up to protect your country from the plundering that has taken place of the past several decades. I understand some people just aren’t comfortable with protesting and civil disobedience, but it is the patriotic duty of a citizenry that can no longer see their leaders representing their interests through institutional channels to rise up and make those leaders take notice through peaceful resistance.
