Occupy Main Street: Frustration about Wall Street greed boils over in Middle America

[marmar]

from OnTheCommons.org:



Occupy Main Street
Frustration about Wall Street greed boils over in Middle America

By Jay Walljasper


It’s a chilly day, but the “Occupy” protesters in jackets and scarves are warmed by each show of support from passersby. They chant “This is What Democracy Looks Like” and “We Are the 99 Percent” to the accompaniment of plastic water bottles thumping on trash can lids.

The crowd resembles a random sample of all ages and backgrounds, from an 87-year-old lawyer in a Detroit Tigers ballcap (they lost the pennant that evening in the play-offs) to a grade schooler holding up a sign, “What About My American Dream?”

This democratic ruckus can be heard a block away, but politeness prevails. No one—not those who look “square”, or those who look “scruffy”, or the police cruising past—are viewed as the enemy. Everyone who believes in economic fair play, environmental protection and citizen power is welcomed as an ally. To me, this is what a commons movement looks like.

Hand-lettered signs on thin poster board or cardboard ripped from the side of a box express people’s frustrations and as well as their hopes—“The Revolution Will Not Be Privatized”, “Everyone Does Better When Everyone Does Better”, “I Can’t Afford to Hire a Lobbyist”, and “Main Street, Not Wall Street”. ...........(more)

The complete piece is at: http://onthecommons.org/occupy-main-street