A Breath of Fresh Air

Dan Thompson, 11/21/11

Many commentators on all sides of the political spectrum claimed the Occupy movement was dead.  Process pieces in many of the major news outlets focused on fracturing and lawless camps and disorganized responses to evictions.  But last week's events in New York signaled a turning point. The movement is clearly still focused on it's original goals: building momentum for addressing the hardships of all Americans, rather than just those with the capital to demand that their needs be met.

On Thursday night, following the eviction of the movement's flagship occupation in Liberty Plaza, a diverse group of 35,000 people peacefully marched across the Brooklyn Bridge to show support for the occupation.  The march didn't produce policy papers or business plans, but it did bring together the biggest gathering of people for the values of the Occupy movement since its beginnings two months ago.  This is what the movement is about and answers all of the process questions being raised by Occupy's detractors.  Community-based activists don't draft policy proposals, policy-makers do.  The movement needs to continue to show it has the capacity to amass the people, and the policy-makers need to take note.  A single law is not going to solve the problems in our political, economic, and financial systems—rather than ask for one, activists will stay active trying to make the world they want to live in wherever they can occupy.

I learned on the Brooklyn Bridge Thursday night that despite the calls from the talking heads, the movement does not need to be any clearer to draw bodies—it already has plenty.