IT started off with fewer than 2,000 young people about four weeks ago, and in a flash it has mushroomed into a global movement. “Occupy Wall Street” is now “Occupy Together” as the common chords of injustice, greed and exploitation have found resonance with people all over the world.
The momentum is remarkable. In four weeks the Wall Street protest grew to over 20,000 demonstrators in New York City alone, and since then has spread to over 100 cities in the United States, involving tens of thousands of Americans. Last Saturday, “Occupy Wall Street” went global.
In neighbouring Canada, protests were mounted in numerous cities across that country in what demonstrators said would be “a long-term occupation of cities across Canada, taking a stand against corporate greed and economic inequality”.
In London, protesters marched in front of the London Stock Exchange. The cobblestone courtyard of St Paul's Cathedral, one of Britain's most historic landmarks, was filled with about 70 colourful tents and demonstrators who vowed to protest indefinitely.
Inspired by the “Occupy Wall Street” protests, the rallies rippled across other parts of the planet. Protesters gathered in Sydney's central business district under cloudless skies and cool weather, insisting that they will camp indefinitely “to organise, discuss and build a movement for a different world, not run by the super-rich one per cent”.
In Tokyo, demonstrators called for an end to nuclear power, and in Taiwan they showed their solidarity by sitting quietly outside the Taipei World Financial Centre, breaking their silence at intervals to sing and march with other supporters.
When evening came and the dust settled last Saturday, over 82 countries and over 1,500 protests had been mounted worldwide.
For me the amazing quality of the “Occupy Wall Street” movement is the “oneness” and “fixity of purpose” I see despite the diversity of the protestors. As I watched the crowds on television in different parts of the world, I couldn't help but notice the assortment of age, colours and races, yet all the placards held to the same fundamental themes: “We are the 99 per cent – and you are the 1 per cent ”, and “We Want Justice and Equality”.
The demonstrators were clear about their goals and objectives. “I am occupying Wall Street because it is my future, my generation's future that is at stake”, said a young protester. “Inspired by the peaceful occupation of Tahrir Square in Cairo, tonight we are coming together in Times Square to show the world that the power of the people is an unstoppable force of global change. Today, we are fighting back against the dictators of our country – the Wall Street banks – and we are going to win.”
Far away from Times Square, in Iowa in the United States, a protesting, retired public school teacher lamented the fact that “people are suffering here in Iowa. Family farmers are struggling, students face mounting debt and fewer good jobs, and household incomes are plummeting. We're not willing to keep suffering for Wall Street sins. People here are waking up and realising that we can't just go to the ballot box.We're building a movement to make our leaders listen.”
In Toronto, a mother who joined the protest in the city's St James Park explained that she was standing up for her son: “I'm here to fight for his future.” Pointing to the plight of Toronto's impoverished residents, she added: “There are so many problems out there that need to be fixed…It's time for us to become equal.”
Of course our own country Jamaica would not be left out despite the popular view that we are the most docile people in the hemisphere. I was heartened to see that one Jamaican man had linked into the global “Occupy Together” movement, calling for an “Occupy Half-Way-Tree” for Thursday, October 20, at 2:00 pm.
Prior to seeing that link, University of the West Indies lecturer, talk-show host and cofounder of Jamaicans United for Sustainable Development, Dickie Crawford, had discussed with me the significance of the expanding global movement and the striking similarities here in Jamaica. In solidarity with what is now a worldwide struggle for justice and equality, “Occupy Jamaica” has been placed on the global map. Crawford has outlined some of the key tenets of the Jamaican experience as he sees it, and I concur:
• Forty-nine years in the wilderness: poverty, no jobs, crime, corruption, waste and mis-management, political violence, division, tribalism, victimisation.
• Sale of our assets: land, sugar-cane properties, bauxite, beaches, hotels, airline, airports, coffee, Appleton rum, Captain Morgan rum, Tia Maria coffee liqueur, Red Stripe beer, Buckingham ice cream.
• Neglect of the people: squatting, poor housing, poor schooling, poor health care, poor roads, poor transportation, poor water.
• We want a new Jamaica: equal rights and justice, peace, safety in our homes and on the streets, our children to be loved and protected, schools and training for our young people, health care available for all, equality for our women.
How about it, Jamaica?
bab2609@yahoo.com
October 18, 2011
http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/columns/-Occupy-Jamaica-
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