The protests being held in Manhattan's Zuccotti Park will have reached the two week mark this Saturday, October 1st and are expected to continue indefinitely. News outlets estimated a few thousand joining together near Wall Street, but Time.com's Nate Rawlings reports if you exclude tourists and those temporarily marching, those in it for the "long haul" are roughly 200 people.While the initial demonstrations on September 17th were driven primarily by resentment towards bankers and corporate executives, (who many feel are guilty of malfeasance in collusion with the government) the movement can hardly be defined by a single issue. Though the vast majority of participants have expressed their desire to see some form of legal action against those they feel contributed to the recession, those in attendance represent various groups.
From war, unemployment, economic inequality, union members, campaign finance reform, and even some angered over the recent execution of Troy Davis, the wide range of concerns being addressed has left the public a bit confused. Much of this is attributed to the nature of the protests. Most of the eclectic group have no desire for a leader or any central organization. This decentralization has resulted in a very slow process of evaluating and delivering a clear message. Writes the Huffington Post,
"The lack of clear direction may eventually prove a stumbling block to the occupiers, but the mood in lower Manhattan this week was one of cheerful energy. A sign -- one of perhaps 100 strewn about the square, or being waved to and fro by demonstrators -- read, 'DEMOCRACY MAY BE HARD BUT AT LEAST WE ARE DOING IT.'"
As of now there have been no specific demands or intentions made known to the public but committees have been spontaneously created to narrow down and select precise goals for the occupation. Because they are not allowed a microphone or bullhorn, the mostly twenty-somethings and a few Baby Boomers are using a method of mass repetition to spread the message throughout the park. Whenever someone has something to discuss, they speak very slowly, stopping every few words so that the crowd can repeat those words in unison; thereby magnifying the report as liberal film maker Michael Moore demonstrates here.
Among the committees created, one has been organized to take donations for food, water and personal items to help care for those camping in Manhattan's financial district. Supplied with blankets, sleeping bags, cardboard boxes and the occasional mattress, Zuccotti Park's latest visitors have tried their best to make themselves at home. Many in the community have assisted in this effort by opening up their homes for the use of showers and even some restaurants from McDonald's to several pizzerias have donated food to accommodate the growing swarm of people.
While the past two weeks have been peaceful for the most part, this past weekend resulted in the NYPD arresting of at least 80 people and using pepper spray on five young women in what many are calling a blatant case of police brutality. According to one young journalist, John Farley, he and dozens of others were arrested during one of the planned marches to Union Square for disrupting traffic and disorderly conduct.
Writes Farley,
"As more people spilled into the street, police started to demand that protesters stay on the sidewalk. But as people seemed to be retreating from harm's way, police began pushing the protesters. I saw police use large nets to corral people en masse. I watched as police pepper sprayed several young women in the face. (An NYPD spokesperson confirmed the use of pepper spray to MetroFocus.) I saw senior citizens and teenagers get arrested. I saw about 20 or 30 police officers tackle people and prod them roughly with police batons."
The NYPD commissioner is said to be investigating the incident.
The footage and photos of the mass arrests and demonstrations have gone viral online, as many protestors and bystanders took it upon themselves to become citizen journalists; streaming much of the events live and giving daily reports on numerous social networks and blogs.
Despite what many feel has been an intentional blackout or lack of sufficient coverage by the mainstream media, news of the protests seem to be spreading as there are plans to stage similar occupations in Washington, D.C. and other cities throughout the U.S. The political and economic impact of these events remains to be seen as there are no indications of any explicit demands thus far; but the current lack of organization notwithstanding, grassroots movements such as these are sure to be more common in the coming months, should the current discontent among average Americans continue.
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