Saturday, September 24, 2011

Protests on Wall Street

Posted By on Sat, Sep 24, 2011 at 1:16 PM

(Note: Tucson Weekly reader Blaze Mason e-mailed to ask us why we have not been covering the protests on Wall Street. I explained that we cover local stuff; she responded that we reference national stuff all the time. I then invited her to write something for The Range. Here's what she sent. —JB)

Thousands of people are protesting on Wall Street right now. They have gone to the financial capital of the United States to say that they are tired of the growing inequality in this country, and they are tired of working people and middle-class people being drained of their resources and their futures while the very rich and corporations sit on piles of cash. There already has been a "redistribution" of wealth, and it has gone into the hands of a tiny minority while the rest of us struggle to pay our bills, while our homes are foreclosed, while our children don't have enough to eat, and while many hard-working people can't afford to go to a doctor. The Wall Street protestors are saying "Enough!"

This all began on Sept. 17, one week ago, when thousands of folks from all over the country went to New York to raise awareness, and since then hundreds of people have been camping out in Zuccotti Park (with the owner's permission), often in the rain. This is the beginning of a grassroots uprising against the direction this country is going. The demonstrators are pledged to peaceful protest, nonviolent education, and a fair and open decision-making process. But they have been met with great hostility by the NYPD, and they have been met with silence or ridicule by the mainstream media.

American citizens have been arrested for writing in chalk on the sidewalk, for wearing bandanas, and for photographing the police. The police have torn down the tarps protecting them from the rain, have confiscated bullhorns to restrict people's speech, and some people have been beaten with billy clubs.

Here's the link for the livestream coverage of what's happening now. Go to YouTube and search on "occupy wall street" to see lots of on-the-ground videos. Here's just one. And here's the Facebook page.