The Occupy Wall Street protests have invigorated the American Left in a way not seen in decades, and DSA has long emphasized the important role social movements play in improving the quality of life of ordinary people. So we have urged our members to take an active, supportive role in their local occupations, something many DSAers had already begun doing as individuals, because they believe that everyday people, the 99%, shouldn’t be made to pay for a crisis set off by an out-of-control financial sector and the ethically compromised politicians who have failed to rein it in.
This page contains examples of DSA members and members of our youth section, Young Democratic Socialists, participating in the Occupy Wall Street protests, including news articles, videos, and pictures featuring DSAers and DSA honorary chairs taking part in the protests, and personal accounts and analyses from DSAers themselves.
Have a report on your participation in a local Occupy Wall Street protest? Share it with us.
I was at the Occupy Albany gathering tonight, where about 150–200 people were doing their stuff in a local park—right across the street from the state capitol and city hall. I was quickly tapped for future teach-ins.
Yes, the police reportedly resisted pressure from the mayor and the governor (Andrew Cuomo–a real corporate prick) to clear the park and make arrests. Part of the reason is that the local district attorney (David Soares) is quite liberal, and, assailing the draconic Rockefeller drug laws, he rallied local lefties in 2004 to win an upset victory over the establishment mayor's hand-picked candidate. Soares has met with the demonstrators and has publicly said there's no reason whatsoever to hassle them. The Capital District CLU is ecstatic.
Report from Alan Curry
I'm a paralegal in Albany, NY, and have signed up on the Legal Team for the local camp. Not much is happening yet in that regard, mainly because the AG here is declining to prosecute any OWS arrestees. Other than that, I've been dropping in on the park and contributing what I can.
Daniel Hanley Takes Part in an Effort to Protect Unionized AT&T Employees from Layoffs
Report from Barbara Joye on February 15
Four members of the Atlanta DSA local were among 12 people from Occupy Atlanta, Atlanta Jobs with Justice, and Communications Workers of Atlanta retirees sitting in at AT&T's Atlanta headquarters to protest the company's recent announcement of 740 planned layoffs after boasting of record profits and paying their CEO $27 million in 2011.
Report from Barbara Joye on February 11
Atlanta Grandmothers for Peace kicked off Grandma's Kitchen today in Troy Davis Park. Grandma's Kitchen is the brainchild of Grandmother and DSA member Minnie Ruffin, who had worked with the Black Panther Party's Breakfast Program in Oakland, California. The first team of Grandmothers prepared a delicious, savory chicken and rice entree, accompanied by homemade cornbread, dinner rolls, oranges, cookies and tea. Minnie prepared side dishes of collard greens and fried sweet potato chips.
According to one of the Grandmothers, all the Occupy Atlanta homeless folks in the park kept thanking the Grandmothers over and over and told us how much they liked the home-cooked food. Many of the homeless Occupiers are participating in Occupy Atlanta actions such as eviction interventions, which have saved at least one home and a black church, and a protest planned for Valentine's Day against AT&T's layoffs.
Report from Barbara Joye on January 23
Some 30 Occupy Atlanta participants showed up on short notice in the pouring rain at an African American church in one of Atlanta's poorest neighborhoods on January 21 to take part in a workshop on labor unions, organized by some of Atlanta's progressive union activists and Jobs with Justice/DSA member Roger Sikes.
"Occupy Atlanta is usually a diverse crowd in terms of background, skin color and culture. In this case, there was also diversity in the understanding of what a union is. Folks had time to just ask questions, anything, about what this union thing is. On my way out a participant grabbed me and exclaimed: 'I need to get in a union,' " said Sikes.
The latter part of the workshop was dedicated to concrete ways to unite Occupy Atlanta and labor. The announced layoff of 740 union AT&T workers will be a test of union/Occupy/community strength. February 14th there will be a mass mobilization at an AT&T hub in Atlanta against the layoffs.
The choice of venue was significant. Just days before, Occupy Atlanta and Rainbow Push had rallied and petitioned to prevent the 108-year-old church from being evicted by the BBT Bank. In a stunning victory, the bank not only offered a workable loan modification but also pledged to invest in the community. Occupy Atlanta has been holding some of its meetings at the church since then.
Atlanta Jobs with Justice members had brought a delegation of Atlanta labor union activists to visit Occupy Atlanta last fall before its eviction from a downtown park. Since then, JwJ and Occupy activists have been meeting to discuss joint efforts, in particular around foreclosures and evictions, and Occupy members have joined labor support picket lines.
Report from Barbara Joye on November 20
Occupy Atlanta is endeavoring to find its focus for the winter months ahead.Some participants are "camping" indoors in the downtown homeless shelter that is under siege by the city government and business interests (excuse the redundancy). Others have been camping vvin other locations. Most meetings continue to be held in "Troy Davis Park" downtown. Actions are taking place against various targets around the city, from Fannie Mae and Wells Fargo to the public transit system (which recently hiked its already steep fares), but participation is smaller than when there was an encampment in a central location. Several people were arrested in a bridge action adjacent to the state university on Nov. 17.
A couple of weeks ago the protests in metro Atlanta went to a new level when a policeman and his family who had been foreclosed on when they fell behind in payments as directed by their mortgage lender, supposedly in order to be processed for a loan modification (a common trap), asked Occupy Atlanta for help. The sheriff was able to persuade the family to ask the occupiers to leave after a couple of days by threatening to arrest them for trespassing and have the policeman fired.
A week later, four Atlanta DSA members attended the first meeting of a new Labor/Occupy coordinating committee designed to strengthen solidarity between the occupiers and the more progressive unions in town -- and, I hope, provide some substance that will help the stronger organizers in Occupy Atlanta to keep the movement focused on the issues rather than on turf battles. The plan so far is to find another foreclosed family willing to let Occupy intervene in a threatened eviction, with better preparation. Two days later, about 25 occupiers joined CWA and Teamster members in an action at Home Depot and Verizon stores that are near each other in a popular shopping strip.
Report from Barbara Joye on November 2
Atlanta DSA members Daniel Hanley and Roger Sikes were among those arrested when Mayor Kasim Reed ordered the park swept of occupiers in the early morning on Wednesday October 26. The occupiers have determined to retake the park on Saturday November 5.
Members of Atlanta DSA have been participating in Occupy Atlanta. Henry Kahn serves on the occupation's medical committee. The following picture was taken during an Occupy Atlanta-supported march in support of a homeless shelter that has received pressure from business interests to move from the downtown Atlanta area.
Daniel Hanley, Reid Jenkins, Barbara Segal,
Barbara Joye, and friends
A couple of Boston DSAers participated, yesterday, in a "Right to the City" rally and march in Boston, which was actually kind of an amazingly solidaristic event. Whoever organized this had done a lot of bridge building. There was labor, grassroots anti-foreclosure groups, an urban mass transit alliance, lots of others. Young/old, black, white, Latino and Asian, gays and straights, liberals, socialists and anarchists.
We started with a rally on the Boston Common, then the march snaked through Downtown Crossing, stopping for momentary solidarity with coordinated demonstrations occurring outside Hyatt ("Shame on Hyatt! Shame on Hyatt!") and a Verizon Wireless store ("Shame on Verizon!"), until it arrived and stayed for a long time outside Bank of America's Boston headquarters at 100 Federal St. I finally left at around 5:00, but the rally was still going strong (some 20-25 people had been arrested for sitting in BoA's lobby and/or barricading the doors), and new groups were still arriving. The Verizon and Hyatt pickets, when they were done at their own sites, came down to join the main group at 100 Federal St. The Hyatt people, when they showed up, brought along a brass band!
The rally/march was big—over 1000 people, maybe close to 2000. Now, I would have liked to see it bigger still, but over 1000 is bigger than we usually get in Boston. We had about 1000, twice in one week, when we were doing Wisconsin solidarity rallies at the State House, earlier in the year. Otherwise, if we get 300–500, we're doing good.
Boston DSAers at an Occupy Boston event
Report from Nancy Goldner on October 20
At the Jamaica Plain Forum in Jamaica Plain, a neighborhood within Boston, a panel of speakers from Occupy Boston spoke. I spoke during the Q and A stating first "I am a democratic socialist." I conveyed DSA's support and involvement. I commented that even without specific demands the ongoing presence of the protesters itself sent the message of income inequality and DSA has an analysis of it. Many of the folks who attended took copies of the DSA Fact Sheet on the Jobs Crisis and Towards an Economic Bill of Rights that I had brought with me. I learned that on Monday nights, the Occupy Boston folks meet with community organizations and I gave my contact information so I could start attending for DSA.
I am getting involved in Occupy Boulder, which only got started last weekend. I spoke at the very first General Assembly. I got up to respond to a Ron Paul supporter then I proceeded to talk about DSA, democratic socialism, and the need for coalitions. Quite general. 10 or 15 minutes. Got a good response.
Occupy Columbus started on October 1st with a march that seemed to have been simultaneously thought of by campus and community activists. After that, general assemblies started to be held on Tuesday nights in a local park, and also at demonstrations on Saturdays. A small ongoing presence has been established at the sidewalk in front of the statehouse, and fairly large demonstrations were held on October 10th and 15th, as well as on subsequent Saturdays. However, no occupation of any park has been attempted, possibly due to the presence of a substantial contingent that does not want to risk arrest. Requests for a permit have been denied. At this point it is unclear what the direction of next events will be, although there will be a solidarity vigil in observance of the Oakland events.
Committees have been established (research, outreach, logistics, legal, etc.) as well as a website, forum and Facebook presence. I have been most in contact with the legal committee due to prior acquaintance in work and Comfest (community festival) contexts, and we have also contacted by Occupy to lend our name in support. Various programs have been held; there may be opportunities for teach-ins. Resolutions have been passed supporting the repeal of SB5 (rally to be held November 1st), an end to corporate personhood, fairness in taxation, getting money out of politics and preserving the safety net.
One aspect that may be unique here is that a separate student Occupy has focused on campus concerns such as tuition increases and the proposed privatization of OSU parking spaces. This group meets separately, although they send delegates to the main Occupy group and work with them on specific events.
Democratic Socialists of Central Ohio (DSCO) members have gone to various general assemblies and events, to the degree it can be coordinated with work and other activist events. I have been using some local contacts to try to obtain an indoor meeting space for them in the coming colder months.
On September 28th, just before getting into my car to drive to Boulder, Colorado, from my home in Denver, for the monthly DSA Colorado meeting, I received a telephone call from the newly formed Occupy Denver, asking for legal help. As President of the National Lawyers Guild of Colorado, I learned that Occupy Denver was concerned about the police reaction to their demonstrating. I put out a call for Legal Observers, and was able to rally some to go to the scene at Lincoln/Veteran's Park in the heart of the Colorado-Denver governmental complex. We kept up a steady flow of Legal Observers, but things were relatively quiet from the police until Thursday, October 13th. By that time the park was filled with more than 40 tents and the Thunderdome–a portable restaurant and social center. Occupy Denver had a library and other features of a growing community.
But on October 13th the Governor made public statements that the demonstrators had to leave due to health and safety concerns, which was a pretext, given that there had been no citations on those grounds. He announced that he was closing the park indefinitely. Throughout the day and into the evening there was a constant din in the press threatening arrests. NLG Colorado's Steering Committee decided to put together an ad hoc pro bono "law firm." I kept putting out email calls for Legal Observers to stay through the night to observe the State Police and Denver Police Department operations, and for lawyers to sign up to take cases.
Law enforcement began to take apart Occupy Denver's tent city at 3:15 a.m., on Friday the 14th. Arrests for camping began after 5 a.m., when the park would normally be open. On waking, I ramped up efforts to sign up attorneys to represent the 24 or 25 arrestees. At this point the Colorado Criminal Defense Bar, of which I am also a member, joined the effort to sign up attorneys. By the 1:30 p.m. initial appearances (Advisements in Colorado), we had enough attorneys on hand to make sure no one went without representation. During this period we hooked up with Denver Anarchist Black Cross, who had set up a legal hotline to collect names of arrestees and to raise bail for the arrestees. They made sure that no one fell through the cracks. On Saturday, October 15th, Occupy Denver, had moved their activities to Civic Center Park, a City park, across the street. I kept up the emails to grow the "firm."
We eventually had 45 attorneys signed up to take cases, an investigator and an appellate attorney. Later on Saturday, another 24 or so demonstrators were arrested and needed attorneys for their initial appearances at 8am on Sunday. I went to the court and was joined by two other attorneys to provide representation. On October 19th, NLG trained another 10 or 15 Legal Observers.
More arrests took place on Sunday October 23rd, including the severe beating by the police of one demonstrator, who earlier in the year was arrested for demonstrating against police violence, and whose charges had been dismissed. They all were supplied with attorneys. Two attorney strategy meetings have been held with more to come. While I acted as President of NLG Colorado, I was doing something that fits my commitment to the goals and spirit of DSA.
DSAers in Des Moines, Iowa, have worked to maintain a relationship with Occupy Des Moines. We have sought primarily to establish a "stream" for democratic socialism in a multi-tendency organization, mostly by educating participants and literally putting "socialism" on the agenda.
Des Moines DSAers have visitied Genral Assemblies and teach-ins, as well as providing our own DSA teach-ins, such as "A Social and Economic Bill of Rights", using the recent SEBOR pamphlet. We also are planning a teach-in on income and wealth inequality, and are working to set up a political "Movie Night" series. We seek every opportunity to talk to them about DSA, and have expanded our local mailing list.
We have encouraged Occupy Des Moines to reach out to local unions, and have spoken with local labor leaders about reaching out to the Occupy participants as well. We have also put before them a resolution at the recent "Peoples' Caucus" to work more closely with AFSCME and other unions to fight any spring budget cuts, as per the resolution passed by the DSA convention in November. We have also attempted to make them aware of the value of a political approach.
As with any peoples' movement as it progresses over time, the state of Occupy locally seems to be in flux, with some conflicts over both "leadership" style and over personality. There has also been uncertainty over where Occupy activities in Des Moines will actually take place. But Des Moines DSAers will continue to reach out to Occupy and work to establish a democratic socialist presence locally.
The scene is straight out of Charles Dickens: shortly before Christmas, bank officers notify an elderly couple that they will be evicted from their home of 22 years in the dead of winter. The Garrett family has fallen behind on the mortgage.
William Garrett, who is legally blind and disabled by stroke, can no longer work in his trade as barber and hairdresser. His son-in-law, whose name is on the mortgage and whose business has suffered in the slumping economy, can no longer help shoulder the cost. William and his wife Bertha are scrimping by on social security and disability payments of less than $700 a month. The sheriff has already sold the house at foreclosure auction to the bank for $12,000, and the court-ordered eviction is scheduled for January 31.
The neighborhood is beset by abandoned houses and crime, "but my home is my home," Bertha writes the bank. "I am not afraid to stay here! With my husband being sick the last ten years it has become the only stable force in our lives." She has sold personal belongings and borrowed money from her extended family to make an offer to buy back the home for the same price the bank paid at foreclosure. "I am asking that you would find it in your heart to accept a cash purchase price of $12,000." The bank seems prepared to accept the offer, then suddenly reneges and doubles the price. No sale.
DSAer Julie Barton picketing the Bank of New York Mellon Trust
In this tale of hard times in Detroit, what usually follows is the arrival of a truck delivering the dreaded dumpster for carting away furniture and personal property. The house would be emptied and the windows and doorways sealed with plywood--temporarily, until squatters or dope peddlers move in, followed by the scavengers who cart off metal and hardware, adding another gutted house to the more than 50,000 abandoned homes in Detroit.
But this story takes a different turn as the eviction date approaches. The Garrett's daughter, Michelle Finely, calls everyone she can think of who might be able to help and finds a sympathetic reporter from the Michigan Citizen, Eric Campbell. He knows people linked to activists in Occupy Detroit. An emergency meeting convenes two days before the scheduled eviction, drawing participants from the Occupy movement, Moratorium Now, People Before Banks, and the UAW.
At 8:20 am on the morning of January 31, as the dumpster truck drives up the snow-packed street towards the Garrett's home, the driver and his co-worker see something unexpected: the road is blocked with parked cars and 15 or more people refuse to allow the dumpster to get any closer to the house. After a 20 minute standoff, the truck backs down the road and leaves. Two police cars arrive shortly afterwards, but the officers refuse to intervene in a "civil affair" and drive off.
Meanwhile, 40 or so demonstrators are picketing the offices of the Bank of New York Mellon Trust in downtown Detroit, half of them drawn from UAW Local 600. Calls and emails pour into the bank demanding that it rescind the eviction and sell the Garrett's their house for $12,000. By the end of the following day--as an estimated 100 demonstrators gather at a scheduled rally in front of the Garrett's home--the bank announces its agreement to sell. Local TV stations cover the noisy victory celebration.
This was the third time in January that protesters were able to stop an eviction in metro Detroit. Volunteers who want to join the campaign for a moratorium on foreclosures can participate in weekly meetings of Occupy Detroit's "Eviction Defense" subcommittee on Thursdays (6pm) at 1515 Broadway, just off Grand Circus Park. News and updates are available at peoplebeforebanks.org, including details of the upcoming protests on March 8 and 13 of pending foreclosure evictions by JP Morgan Chase.
Join Us!
Report from David Green on October 15
The Occupy Detroit rally was successful. Approximately 500 people attended. There was good DSA representation. We handed out the flyer on the Conyers' Jobs Bill.
In Fairbanks, a group of University students are camped out in a downtown park even though it is minus five. Fairbanks DSA members have provided food and other items needed by those occupying the park.
Our conclusion is that what must follow OWS are concrete proposals to transform a corporate economic system that has eliminated jobs while rewarding the 1% even more to a consumer based, equitable economic system.
We propose a fair and reasonable profit of 10% on monies actually invested. After the 10% return on investment, profits are redirected to a public job creation fund.
We propose large banking institutions be downsized into localized credit unions. We also propose that banks and other financial institutions have the 10% fair and reasonable profit imposed on them as well. Credit card charges should be limited to 10% fair and reasonable profit. Once 10% is gained from credit card charges, no interest would be allowed.
Finally, we propose the federal government issue job creation bonds that ordinary citizens could purchase much like the bonds that helped finance World War II. All revenue derived from the sale of such bonds would go to public job creation.
These programs, we feel, would rejuvenate the American economy and move the lower and middle class population upwards in terms of economic wealth.
Note: These proposals are from Alaska DSA. They do not reflect the opinion of DSA as a whole.
I went to Occupy Flint for a little bit yesterday. There were at least a couple hundred people which I thought was pretty good considering it was in the middle of the day and it was kind of rainy. There seemed to be a wide range of ages there, which was nice (I was expecting it to be mostly students). We were right downtown, and got a ton of support from all the people driving by.
David Klausa, left, and Dan Michniewicz of Fort Collins DSA at Zuccotti Park in NYC
At its monthly meeting in September, the Fort Collins DSA branch did the initial organizing for Occupy Fort Collins. It then turned over all decision making to the general assembly. Many of the folks who stop by the occupation are receptive to DSA's message and interested in learning more about the organization.
I managed the Occupy Fort Collins Facebook page and Twitter feed before leaving for New York to take part in the protest there.
The Occupy Wall Street movement came to Indianapolis Saturday, October 8, 2011 as Occupy Indianapolis when over 1,000 people gathered at Veterans Memorial Plaza in downtown Indianapolis to protest what they see as economic inequality and a government that doesn’t listen or care.
After about an hour of speeches from members of the crowd, organizers had planned to have the people break up into discussion groups to brainstorm on how to proceed, and then march. But the vast majority of those assembled couldn’t wait to start marching before they came back to their starting point to consider “next steps.”
While on their impromptu march around Monument Circle, the very center of the city, and past the Indiana World War Memorial, American Legion national headquarters, and commercial buildings, the protesters carried signs reading “Human Need Not Corporate Greed” and “People Not Profits.” Along the way they chanted, “You are the 99” and “This is what democracy looks like.” Inspired by the first Occupy Wall Street rally in New York three weeks earlier, Occupy Indianapolis was largely organized through Facebook and other online social media.
After this first public rally, Occupy Indianapolis moved its center of action a few blocks away to the south lawn of the Statehouse where they began a protest vigil. Over the last few weeks they have stood (stood because no sitting, camping. or sleeping is allowed!) vigil in a small area of concrete and green they call Liberty Lawn. Understandably, as fatigue has set in, the numbers of protesters has dwindled, and e-mails have gone out appealing for reinforcements and support. One person was arrested by the Indiana State Police on a trespassing charge when he blocked a fire exit of the capitol.
Members of DSA participated in the Occupy Indianapolis rally, and the Indianapolis Socialist Coalition (the local alliance of DSA, Socialist Party USA, and Communist Party USA) formally voted to support Occupy Indianapolis. The AFL-CIO has voted its support of Occupy Indiana protests.
The Occupy movement has spread to smaller cities in Indiana, including Evansville, South Bend, Fort Wayne, Bloomington, Lafayette, Kokomo, Terre Haute, and Muncie. It has even appeared in the town of North Manchester, where fifteen gathered for an Occupy action. Within the next few weeks, Occupy Indiana will organize the Occupy movement throughout the state and chart its course.
I went to Ithaca's biggest Occupy Ithaca rally on October 5, encumbered by a sign I had grabbed from my closet. There I met a comrade, was able to hand her the sign, and thus freed myself to pass out DSA leaflets and get myself interviewed by the local Ithaca College television station. Here's what she said:
“Unemployment over 9 percent, for something like 2 years now, is an absolute scandal, and it has everything to do with Wall Street, where they are totally into speculation. They’re not investing in American jobs. They took their bailouts and turned them into bonuses.”
I spent Sunday afternoon at the Occupy Los Angles encampment (its second day) on the south lawn of City Hall. There were about 400 demonstrators, mostly young and white (as elsewhere), but with a visible regional smattering of Latinos. People, for the most part, were resting, chatting, meeting in work groups, or sleeping in tents (of which there were a couple of dozen). Police were at the periphery, looking pretty much at ease in the calm atmosphere of the gathering. There were lots of posters with a range of themes, the majority condemning Wall Street greed. I saw one supporting Ron Paul and another calling for a Communist Revolution. I liked one reading: "I will believe corporations are people, when Texas executes one of them."
A media station was at work doing a live feed and making DVDs. Food (mainly pizza and cookies) and drinks were being passed around. Clusters of people seemed to be unwinding or dealing with organizational business.
I joined a group meeting on police brutality. Diverse opinions came forward. Members of the Security Committee favored cooperating with the police to avoid unnecessary trouble or injury—and after all, police are part of our 99% and could be won over to our cause. Other speakers wanted the group to take a detached approach since the police could not be trusted. Individual cops may be OK, but when they put on a badge they are an instrument of an oppressive system—so be wary and don't let them dominate what we do. A third view came from members whose experience in ethnic or action groups convinced them that police brutality was rampant and continuous. These members seemed itching for a confrontation with the police.
The discussion was thoughtful, orderly, and deliberate. I spoke up to say that the announced central goal was to curtail Wall Street excesses and that a lot of emphasis on dealing with the cops might be distracting. To the degree that the actions of the New York police result in a preoccupation with police issues, those cops will have successfully diverted the group from its main aims. After a good bit of additional back and forth, the group simply recommended that workshops be set up to help members know how to interact with the police.
For a new and inexperienced group, there was more organizational acumen in evidence than I would have expected. There were committees on food, finances, logistics, civic engagement, outreach, welcoming, art-entertainment-education, and a medical team. Committee meeting times and places were posted around the encampment. Everyone looked serious and focused. There appeared to be a long-term commitment. Some people were evidently acting in a leadership capacity and maintaining a functioning action community. Overall, I felt good about how this was coming together and have an optimistic outlook. A critical question is whether important elements of the left will join in and propel forward this remarkable but delicate youth-generated revolt—and the sooner the better.
I am helping to organize Occupy Maui, we had an event planning meeting today. It was great. I'm inspired. I handed out copies of the SEBOR, and talked about DSA. I was well received. I have the advantage of already being well known and liked in my community, as I'm a coordinator for a major art and performance co-op. We are holding planning meetings every Monday and GA every Wednesday. I'm on the Media/Information working group and I'm reaching out to the local papers and labor unions.
Memphis DSA members take part in a march through downtown Memphis and historic Beale Street
Memphis DSA member and Christian Brothers University Professor David Dault gave a talk at Occupy Memphis on Nov. 5 titled "Hanging together or hanging separately?: collectivist solutions and libertarian illusions" in which he discussed differences (both in ideology and tactical effectiveness) between libertarian and collectivist visions of democracy.
Today, several of us from the local Twin Cities Democratic Socialists of America took part in the Occupy Minnesota (Wall Street) event.
There is some hope that people are waking up, and confronting the powers. Unchecked corporate power is a threat to our democracy and to social justice.
Americans of all types were at this event–anarchists, socialists, tea-partiers, Ron Paulites, libertarians, and ordinary people, all protesting corporate power and its alliance with government. It is not shrill to suggest that unchecked corporate power is leading to a nascent fascism. Average Americans are being asked to sacrifice, while the rich and corporations are not being asked to sacrifice. Corporate profits are privatized, while corporate losses are socialized.
Report from Amber Frost and Ryan Briles on Day One of OWS
We arrived on [Sept. 17] around 4 o'clock. We had been reticent to even attend because from the beginning it had been announced as an intentionally leaderless movement with no specific demands, but we went anyway, just in case they had something up their sleeve. Firstly, the entire event was organized in a public facebook group, so very predictably, the cops had already blocked off Wall St. by the time we had arrived. Protesters gathered in a nearby park. They had no one directing people to this park. A very helpful cop actually told us where they were. We arrived at the park to a disorganized, confused looking bunch of kids arguing about assemblies and theory.
This being the absolute worst use of resources, we formed coalitions with some friends with WFP (particularly my co-worker Dave Handy) and Kristen Lee from SPUSA and we started marching just around the park (at this point the Penn State Chapter of YDS and some Jersey kids were also with us). After a few passes around the park, we started to pick up some people and momentum, despite the fact that one of the organizers of the demonstration tried to pull us all aside to have a dialogue-based assembly, much to the distaste of all the marchers. So we decided to march to Wall St. anyway.
The majority of the people in the park ended up following. We got loud, we got big, the cops started to mobilize very quickly—lots of them. Dave, Kristin, Ryan, and I tried to keep to communication going from the front of the march to the back, but there were just too many people.
Amber Frost and Ryan Briles, left, lead a march
on day one of Occupy Wall Street
When we got to the actual Wall St. barricade, the cops placed additional barricades behind us and ordered us to disperse, despite the fact that we were corralled in and paddy wagons were lining up. At this point, order began to break down. We tried to organize a sit down, but the cops successfully blocked communication with those in the back, so many (who could not see us) marched off when the barricade was lifted. At this point, the demonstration descended back into arguments and assemblies in the park (think drum circles, hula hoops, and grand pronouncements on megaphones).
Report from Nichole Shippen on The Battle of Brooklyn Bridge
The solidarity march planned for Saturday, October 1, 2011 at 3 p.m. did not go according to plan. Although Occupy Wall Street claims to be a “leaderless resistance movement”, the march was in fact lead by a core group of organizers (or working groups) who presumably have been camped out the longest. According to the debriefing session following the police kettling on the bridge, the original plan had been for all the protesters to stay on the pedestrian walkway as we crossed over the Brooklyn Bridge to the Brooklyn Bridge Park where the march was to end in a rally. What happened instead was the following. As we began our march across the Brooklyn Bridge on the pedestrian walkway, we saw that coming from behind us was a line of police officers seemingly leading the back end of the march onto the roadway headed toward Brooklyn. People were walking with traffic, not against traffic. The police were not stopping or attempting to stop people from marching on the roadway. The people marching on the road asked those of us on the pedestrian walkway to join them. The police did not tell us not to do so. They did not warn us that we would be arrested as reported in the New York Times. They seemed to be making it possible for the march to take place on the road way. One lane of traffic remained open on the far right side of the bridge. Protestors spoke to the passengers encouraging them to get out of their cars and join us. A few cars got over the bridge before the protestors filled in the extra lane of traffic.
About half way across the bridge, there was a big push back. We had no idea what was happening, but as people were being pushed back enough space cleared to see that the police had stopped us and were beginning to arrest people in an unnecessarily violent manner. Collectively we decided to lock arms and sit down. Then we could really see what was happening, which was that the police were picking out random individuals and dragging them out of the arms of the fellow protesters. We slowly learned that the police had blocked both sides of the bridge so we were stuck in place. There were moments when people were starting to panic and we feared we might be trampled or suffocated as we were literally on top of one another, but as they arrested people we gained a little more space. A young woman reminded us of the battle of the bridge that took place during the Egyptian protests and said although this was not comparable that it was a beginning.
Chris Maisano, chair of the NYC DSA local, from an article on Salon.com
in which he was quoted
The problem or not, depending on how people come to understand the events that transpired yesterday on the Brooklyn Bridge, is that during the solidarity march—as might be expected—lots of new people arrived to join in the march, including people with little to no experience with peaceful protest, let alone training in direct action. For some, it was their first time attending a march. For others, it was their first time to NYC. This in itself is not necessarily a bad thing as it allows for an organic, spontaneous and democratic movement, which in turn provides the experience of democracy in action for the masses. However, once it became clear that everyone on the bridge would be arrested, which seemed inconceivable given the numbers, people volunteered to get arrested. Lined up even! Few resisted arrest beyond the initial few. It remains unclear why anyone would volunteer to be arrested even when it seems inevitable. How might we explain this phenomenon?
Toward the end there were about 50 or so of us left when the police began to divide the men from the women, and proceeded to escort the women away. We did not know if we were being let go or led to the buses at the end of the bridge. They let us go at the last minute, but it remains unclear why they did so unless it was for the sake of redeeming their image after macing young women earlier this week.
The ideological confusion of the protest remains unnerving. Someone was carrying a Ron Paul sign. At one point, the group spontaneously broke into song singing the “Star-spangled Banner.” Still others shouted, “USA, USA, USA!” In short, the ideological message was inconsistent beyond perhaps “end war and tax the rich,” but perhaps it is simply too soon to expect consistency. Nevertheless, democratic conversations and ideological debates were taking place all around us while we were being held against our wills on the bridge. Are we in solidarity with the police because they are part of the 99% or do the police simply reinforce a police state? At one point, we were informed that the Marines were coming to “save us.” Among the first arrested was a veteran of color who said, “This is how they treat a veteran. God Bless America? I say goddamn America!” At its best, Occupy Wall Street is made up of a democratic, diverse, intellectually curious group of individuals debating how we should live together. The movement is growing and as it grows it is going to become more unpredictable, but nevertheless democratic at its core.
Nichole Shippen on NBC New York
Report from Michael Hirsch on The Battle of Brooklyn Bridge
I was there, on the Brooklyn Bridge's roadway, amid the crush, blocking traffic and proud of it. When the NYPD corralled us—what looked to me about 1,000 people, though that estimate could be high—and started picking us off—the senior cop took one look at me and told me to leave. I didn't know whether to be pleased or insulted. Maybe it was the union jacket and Alliance for Union Democracy tee-shirt I wore that got a sympathetic reading, or maybe I looked like a benign or befuddled or feckless geezer and not the fierce revolutionary I clearly am, but it reminded me of Brecht's poem, The Burning of the Books, which reads:
When the Regime commanded that books with harmful knowledge
Should be publicly burned and on all sides
Oxen were forced to drag cartloads of books
To the bonfires, a banished
Writer, one of the best, scanning the list of the
Burned, was shocked to find that his
Books had been passed over. He rushed to his desk
On wings of wrath, and wrote a letter to those in power,
Burn me! he wrote with flying pen, burn me! Haven't my books
Always reported the truth? And here you are
Treating me like a liar! I command you!
Burn me!
In general, the cops acted like knuckle draggers. If they had just let us marchers proceed, the thing would have been over in half an hour. Instead the bridge is still closed at 7 pm to foot and vehicle traffic, as is City Hall park. And there were not a few folks ready to panic.
Andrew Porter, Ryan Briles, and Amber Frost
prepare to march on October 5
The strength of this now weeks-long Assembly effort, in my humble opinion, is its openness and willing to collaborate and listen. The weakness includes no tactical leadership. People could have gotten hurt in the crush. Folks were not given a choice in what amounted to civil disobedience because there was no one to offer that choice. There was also no systematic attempt to get info out about lawyers, though there were some National Lawyers Guild observers giving out the office number, at least.
On Saturday, November 26, Chicago DSA members braved the Chicago wintery drizzle to bring food and comradery to the stalwart Chicago occupiers at the Chicago Board of Trade. We offered meat and vegetarian entrees, breads, and desserts, all home-made, and bottled water to the approximately 15 occupiers, many of whom expressed their appreciation for the fare. Chicago DSAers enjoyed conversing with the occupiers and hearing their perspectives on the occupation movement and answering questions about DSA.
A few of us were interviewed on camera by an out-of-town 8th-grade teacher about their participation in the occupation and about DSA. So look for these videos on YouTube someday.
After 45 minutes or so, our work was done, and the group began packing up the remaining food and supplies to head home. At this time, a Chicago police officer, who had been sitting in his car across the street the entire time, came over to tell the group it was time to "pack it up." His heart was clearly not in his task.
Bill Barclay, left, advocating for a financial transaction tax at Occupy Oak Park
Temple YDS Members Arrested during Police Raid of Occupy Philadelphia
Early on Wednesday, November 30th, around 1:00 am, the Philadelphia Police Department raided Occupy Philly. Many Temple Democratic Socialists (TDS) members and Temple allies rushed to City Hall to aid the occupiers. Several were caught up in the middle of the ensuing police brutality and waves of arrests. Five TDS members were arrested along with several other comrades from allied Temple organizations and brought to jail. No Miranda rights were read, and many were in areas that the police indicated would not warrant arrests. They waited in the police vans for up to two hours before being brought to jail, where they were separated and denied phone calls. They were all released about twelve hours after arriving. But that's not all. Wednesday afternoon, an ally group staged a rally and sit-in in a campus PNC bank to protest the Board of Trustee's flat-out denial to activist requests to speak to the Board about Temple and PNC's financial connections to Mountain Top Removal coal mining practices in Appalachia.
Temple Democratic Socialists Jailbirds: (back row) Kyle Hempe, Evan Hoskins, Danny Teichmann, (front row) Deanna Gosling, Josh Luther, Dan Ludwig
While protestors sang "Solidarity Forever" and chanted outside the bank, three activists staged a sit-in inside the bank, and were removed quietly by the police after about an hour. They were sneaked out the back entrance of the bank into police cars and taken to jail. One TDS member described the following 20 hours in jail as "completely dehumanizing." Each of them was greeted by a mixture of TDS and Occupy Philly "jail solidarity" crews upon their release.
Although we oppose the force used against Occupy Philly and the feeble reasons for arrests, we are proud of the positive attitudes and passion demonstrated by these members, including the many others who were not arrested during these actions.
Report from Joe Schwartz on October 9
Beth Cozzolino, YDSer from Temple University
DSA and YDS have been active in Occupy Philadelphia (mostly through our Temple undergraduates and grad students, which now include YDS co-chair Sean Monahan). We've had good contingents, with banners and leaflets, at the original morning of occupation of City Hall plaza and a march of about 1,000 from City Hall to the Liberty Bell yesterday.
As Jobs with Justice did some mobilizing for the march, the march itself was somewhat more multi-generational and multi-racial than the occupation itself. Remember, those with care-giving responsibility, jobs, or unemployed folks actively looking for jobs can't camp out 24/7, hence the somewhat age-specific, somewhat monochromatic nature of the permanent occupiers. That's fine—every generation has its poetry—as long as they are conscious of needing to branch out and speak to the needs of the 99 percent who can't occupy 24/7.
Anyway, DSA and YDS groups should loyally participate in the Occupy protests and reach out to healthy elements who seem interested in us, by talking to them, giving them leaflets, inviting them to our events. This is a climate in which we can strengthen the socialist movement, but we have to be visibly active to do so.
Joe Schwartz Speaking at Occupy Philadelphia
YDS Co-chair Sean Monahan Speaking at Temple University
Harlan Baker performed a scene from his one man play, Jimmy Higgins, at Monument Square in Portland, Maine for Occupy Portland. Jimmy Higgins has long stood for the name of the rank-and-file union and socialist activist.
During his performance at Occupy Portland, Baker performed a scene in which Jimmy Higgins listens to Eugene Debs give his famous 1918 speech in Canton, OH. During this speech, Debs urged those present to resist the military draft of World War I. He was arrested 14 days later on 10 counts of sedition, and later sentenced to ten years in prison, two of which he served. Debs was also disenfranchised for life.
Sacramento participants in a national resistance movement vowed to continue to occupy Cesar Chavez Plaza in downtown Sacramento through the weekend, despite the arrests of 20 demonstrators Thursday night.
The demonstrators were charged with failure to disperse, a misdemeanor, after officers ordered them to leave the park around midnight, said Sacramento police spokesman Sgt. Andrew Pettit.
They spent the night in jail and emerged in the morning to the cheers of fellow participants in the Occupy Sacramento movement, an offshoot of a national protest against large corporations and Wall Street power.
Last night, the Occupy Sacramento group, composed of the unemployed, students, and workers, were told to move from the park late last night by Sacramento police. Most complied, but police took 19 Occupy protesters who would not vacate the downtown park to jail.
Paul Burke, outreach chair of Sacramento DSA was among those arrested. Burke is also one of the chairs of the Sacramento Progressive Alliance.
A camp in the park was being set up to provide the arrested with food and water. The encampment has grown to over 200 today. They will face arrest again tonight if they refuse to vacate the park.
The occupation continues in Cesar Chavez Park at this time. Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson has made no comment on the occupation.
Report from Herb Shore and Virginia Franco on October 16
We had a successful march and rally a week ago, October 7, with a DSA contingent of about seven people, taking turns carrying the DSA banner. The march was from a downtown SD park to Civic Center. It was huge for this city's standards—an impressive 1500 marchers. We passed out lots of copies of the DSA Fact Sheet on the federal budget. A couple of DSAers, Pam Barratt and Virginia Franco spent this first night 'al fresco', with no tent.
Doug Brown and Virginia Franco
Since the first march and rally, DSA SD has participated with food donations two more times to the occupiers at Civic Center. Last night, we contributed 144 brownies at about 10:00 PM and displayed a sign. Although, late evening, we managed to show a sign expressing the SEBOR cover statement, and passing out the pamphlets. Someone mentioned we were going to be on their Facebook page. One young leadership occupier expressed interest in DSA, and said she would mail the brochure to her father in NYC, an economic conservative.
I have been a part of Occupy Tampa (OT) since Oct. 1. While the group has a steady core of passionate occupiers, and while there has been a constant 24/7 occupation at Curtis Hixon Park and the adjacent Kiley Gardens, the numbers vary from day to day. OT holds a general assembly every day at 7pm in a greek style amphitheater, which seems the most appropriate place for direct democracy to take place.
An Occupy Tampa General Assembly
Tampa Police Department make several stops to the camp daily, at times allowing occupiers in the closed park with their belongings, and at other times forcing them onto a strip of sidewalk that is technically outside of the park. They have confiscated numerous personal items like storage bins, coolers, tents, blankets and signs as well as the table and information left behind by the Nurses' Union. TPD has also gone so far as to arrest a diabetic occupier who had taken refuge in the grass to rest his legs. Mayor Buckhorn is no doubt setting the scene for next August's Republican National Convention by refusing to allow OT a safe public space to peacefully assemble, and there is fear that the influx of protesters next year will cause the city to resort to violence, which OT has mostly avoided thus far.
A local businessman has offered his private park in West Tampa to the occupation but currently occupiers have no plans of leaving the downtown glow of their enemies (Bank of America, 5/3 Bank, BBT, MI Bank, Citigroup and Suntrust) for the low income neighborhood across town despite the desperate need for social outreach in such areas.
Occupy Tampa stands in solidarity with the Occupy Wall Street movement but has remained community centered by feeding and clothing many of the city's homeless who are now apart of our OT family as well as marching in solidarity with the city's fire department as they approach the city for collective bargaining rights. OT is trying to plan themed events for each weekend, this weekend being Veteran's Affairs weekend we marched in solidarity with the Veteran's for Peace this morning, and we have a few Veteran speakers coming out to address our group tomorrow.
Overall my experience at OT has been life changing. Never before have I known so many people from such diverse political ideologies who are aware of our shared reality and willing to take steps towards being the change we all wish to see.
I am an undergraduate at the University, and the gradual 81% tuition hike proposed by UC President Mark Yudof would make my education at the school unattainable. I have volunteered my time to work on the Occupy UCD Communications Committee, which has so far entailed joining interested television reporters, radio producers, and newspaper journalists with student activists willing to speak about the issues facing the campus.
DC DSA members Peter Bolton and Coleson Breen joined Occupy DC protesters yesterday for a protest outside Constitution Hall where the twelfth Republican Party presidential candidates debate was being held. Protesters invented ad hoc chants addressing the candidates. Chants included: "Romney, Cain, Gingrich: help the poor and tax the rich," "Jesus said to help the poor, who is it your fighting for" and "who is it you it you represent? Clearly it's the one percent!"
Before heading to Constitution Hall, Bolton and Breen met with Occupy protesters at the McPherson Square encampment including local DC occupiers and people who had traveled in from the occupations in Richmond, Memphis and Pensacola. Breen gave out coffee and snacks in an act of solidarity between DC DSA and the movement. The DC DSA members then went to an Egypt solidarity demonstration outside the White House where Egyptian-American anti-Mubarak protesters shouted back-and-forth slogans in both English and Arabic. The Egyptian protesters later joined Occupy DC for the protest at Constitution Hall. Tensions with the police did not arise at either site and the officers at the scene of the candidates debate even invited protesters to move closer to the building, behind a barricade across the street from the entrance.
Coleson Breen, holding banner at left, marching during a previous Occupy D.C. action
The protests took place the very night that a contingent of the Occupy Wall Street protesters, called "Occupy the highway" arrived in Washington. Upon arrival in DC, the Occupy Wall Street protesters held a joint General Assembly with Stop the Machine outside the Capitol building. The protesters had marched from the OWS site in Zuccotti Park, renamed Liberty Square, to Washington over the last few days. OWS's website states that the goals of the initiative were "to make the new movement visible in more communities, to connect with other occupations along the way, and to further a national dialogue about how to reclaim our democracy." OWS says that the march was deliberately scheduled to coincide with the super committee decision deadline and that the protesters wished to "bring a message to Congress to end corporate welfare and tax breaks for the rich and to stimulate the economy by rebuilding the country's infrastructure and investing in education, clean-energy and public health." The super committee protest, however, was cancelled due to the committee's implosion over the last few days. Occupy protester James Ploeser tweeted, "Super committee #EpicFail. No need to shut it down, it shut itself down."
The action also comes as DC DSA anticipates the publication of a statement from Occupy Wall Street about its ideas and demands for change. The statement will be a interesting development for the movement and a further opportunity for DSA to engage with the movement and analyze its implications for public discourse and the political landscape.
There was a lively group of up to fifty. We circulated the Conyers petition, getting about 30 signatures. We did run into one former member of Wichita DSOC who is very interested in getting involved again!
Louis Goseland and Aaron Rivers at Occupy Wichita
Harold Schlechtweg, Larry Burks, Janice Bradley, and Jim Phillips at Occupy Wichita
DSA Honorary Chair Cornel West has played a prominent role in the Occupy Wall Street protests.
West was arrested on October 16th on the steps of the U.S. Supreme Court while protesting against corporate influence in politics. He was arrested again five days later outside a New York police station during a protest the NYPD’s stop-and-frisk policy that was organized in solidarity with Occupy Harlem.
Dr. West will speak at the upcoming YDS winter conference.
West Interviewed by Democracy Now! and Speaking at NYC General Assembly
DSA Honorary Chair Frances Fox Piven, whose work has emphasized the power that social movements—coupled with electoral politics—have to enact social change, was interviewed by Chris Maisano, chair of the New York DSA local, for the YDS blog, The Activist, about the Occupy Wall Street protests. This interview is also available in pamphlet form.
Fox Piven will speak at the upcoming YDS winter conference.
Fox Piven and Michael Hirsch on Phase II of Occupy Wall Street
DSA Honorary Chair Barbara Ehrenreich signed a petition in support of the Occupy Wall Street protests along with more than 100 other writers. She has also written the following op-eds regarding the Occupy Wall Street protests:
In addition to attending their local protests, DSAers have been analyzing Occupy Wall Street. Here are some analyses by DSAers that have been published.
