Why Occupy?

Here are some slightly edited ramblings from an e-mail I sent my mom earlier, roughly in response to this article

As far as my only feelings about the Occupy movement (and I've been hearing similar things in gearing up for Detroit), it is all about reclaiming power and a voice from the 1% (corporate power and the place where state power is being co-opted by corporate power).  That is why we "occupy" essentially, to reclaim a space in which to have "our" (everyone's) voices heard and to be able to meet openly.  While any occupy group might decide to support or oppose any policy (like in Detroit I could see some consensus about local city policies developing) most are trying not to work or talk about any divisive issues because the whole idea is that 99% of Americans (perhaps people more generally) can agree that our current system is broken and that our voices have been silenced by the 1% for too long. 

Addressing more what this op-ed is about, I think of the 1% not so much as being the people at the top but rather the institutions/policies/

structures/systems that are designed in a way that benefits the most powerful corporations and people while oppressing the rest of society.  And really, even the richest 1% of folks benefit when we are all benefited.  As Malik was talking about at our staff meeting Friday, it is not just people of color who are negatively affected by white supremacy, we all are poorer for not hearing diverse voices in our world.  I haven't heard any folks saying to kill or depose the richest 1%, we just want the 99% to succeed.

 

Even more succinctly stated (ripped from a press release by Occupy Seattle):

The purpose of the Occupy movements is to:
1. Give visibility to the 99% Americans who are fed up with the fact that our democracy is now in the grip of 1% of society.
2. Demand that our government representatives legislate to benefit the 99%.
3. Demand corporate accountability to the 99% of Americans.

Below are some rather poor photos of the first Occupy Detroit General Assembly meeting.  We started inside the Spirit of Hope church but there were way too many people there (since I wasn't in the back the photos don't properly show it), we all had to go outside to the playground/garden.  My new cameras night setting made the photos so light that you can't tell we are all standing in the dark.

These two last outside photos are just as people are streaming into the playground area.  Soon it was all filled up.