"Build Yourself a Sukkah!": How Occupy Judaism Transformed the Movement [View all]

[nadinbrzezinski]

"We should reoccupy [Zuccotti] and say we're celebrating Sukkot," tweeted activist and musician Nathan Leigh, a year ago, as a few thousand took to the streets in Lower Manhattan to mark the first anniversary of Occupy Wall Street. He'd sarcastically hash-tagged his suggestion #badideas. When asked about it, he explained, "It was a joke with a kernel of truth to it. I'm Jewish, and was thinking about the observance of Sukkot and how it's a context in which it's totally legal (or at least permissible) in New York and other cities to occupy a tent in a public space." A few months later, much as in every recent year, kiosks pouring cider and coffee would stretch down Broadway from East 14th Street, facing flatscreen TVs provided to entertain those camping out for a first shot at Black Friday bargains at the Best Buy opposite Union Square. "It proves that many of the rules that have been drafted against Occupy Wall Street exist to stifle the content or intention of our actions, and not the actions themselves," Leigh said.

http://truth-out.org/news/item/18881-build-yourself-a-sukkah-how-occupy-judaism-transformed-the-movement

I love this story, so wanted to share. Oh and by the way Jag sameach, it is suckot, and happy birthday to Occupy.