Occupy at a Crossroads

By Scott Galindez, Reader Supported News

17 December 11

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hGiDUj7B-Tw

ne year ago today, Mohamed Bouazizi, a Tunisian street vendor protesting the confiscation of his wares, set himself ablaze - igniting an uprising of people around the world who were fed up with the inequality that the world economic system and oppressive governments have established.

Many credit Bouazizi with inspiring what was known as the Arab Spring. The movement he inspired did not end in the Middle East. The successful revolutions in Arab countries also inspired people's movements in Europe and recently the United States.

The Occupy movement in the United States credits the Arab Spring with showing that when people occupy a public space and demand change they can succeed.

Three months into the Occupy movement in the US, we stand at a crossroads. Many Occupys have lost their space, some thriving despite the lack of an ongoing encampment. Some are struggling to establish new space, while others are trying to re-energize the camps that are still in place. As the winter weather becomes an obstacle for many, discussions are taking place about the next phase. Many questions are in the air, and each community has different answers. In New York City, where the American movement began, the focus is on establishing another space, and today they will attempt to occupy Duarte Plaza at 6th and Canal. In Washington DC, where 2 thriving encampments are established, planning is under way for a spring offensive.

Veteran activist Chris Hedges told me two weeks ago that the next step for the New York movement was to re-establish space that was taken away a month ago when Brookfield Properties outlawed camping in Zuccotti Park. Hedges said that while organizing has continued throughout the city, what was missing was the visible location for people to come together.

Religious leaders in New York have called on Trinity Real Estate, the corporate arm of Trinity Church, to allow people to occupy space at 6th and Canal. Occupiers have chosen today, the three month anniversary, as the day to force Trinity to choose between being a religious organization siding with the people, or a corporation siding with the money changers on Wall Street.

Today with support from more than 1400 faith leaders, elders of the civil rights movement, prominent artists, and community members will gather at noon in Duarte Square, downtown Manhattan, for an all day performance event. This event is part of a call to re-occupy in the wake of the coordinated attacks and subsequent evictions of occupations across the nation and around the world.

On Thursday, in a Message of Solidarity, Archbishop Desmond Tutu wrote:

Sisters and Brothers, I greet you in the Name of Our Lord and in the bonds of common friendship and struggle from my homeland of South Africa. I know of your own challenges and of this appeal to Trinity Church for the shelter of a new home and I am with you! May God bless this appeal of yours and may the good people of that noble parish heed your plea, if not for ease of access, then at least for a stay on any violence or arrests.

Yours is a voice for the world not just the neighborhood of Duarte Park. Injustice, unfairness, and the strangle hold of greed which has beset humanity in our times must be answered with a resounding, "No!" You are that answer. I write this to you not many miles away from the houses of the poor in my country. It pains me despite all the progress we have made. You see, the heartbeat of what you are asking for - that those who have too much must wake up to the cries of their brothers and sisters who have so little - beats in me and all South Africans who believe in justice. Trinity Church is an esteemed and valued old friend of mine; from the earliest days when I was a young Deacon. Theirs was the consistent and supportive voice I heard when no one else supported me or our beloved brother Nelson Mandela. That is why it is especially painful for me to hear of the impasse you are experiencing with the parish. I appeal to them to find a way to help you. I appeal to them to embrace the higher calling of Our Lord Jesus Christ - which they live so well in all other ways - but now to do so in this instance ... can we not rearrange our affairs for justice sake? Just as history watched as South Africa was reborn in promise and fairness so it is watching you now. In closing, be assured of my thoughts and prayers, they are with you at this very hour. God bless you,

~ Desmond Tutu, Archbishop Emeritus of Cape Town

There are also discussions in New York about establishing indoor space to deal with the weather and to be the convergence center for future organizing. In Washington, public space is not an issue, but many are looking to overcome the obstacles of organizing outdoors. Occupy DC at Freedom Plaza is calling for a National Occupation of Washington starting on March 30th on the National Mall. Plans are being made for a bus tour starting in January from Occupy to Occupy, to build for what is being billed as the "American Spring."

Those working on that mobilization are looking to establish an indoor organizing space. As someone embedded at Freedom Plaza, I face the obstacles daily and understand the need for a physical space to organize such a massive undertaking.

There also those in camp who believe that maintaining a camp throughout the winter will be a statement to the resolve of the Occupy Movement, and I support their position as well and think that both goals can be achieved.

The spontaneity of Occupy Wall Street was a magical event that comes around once in a lifetime and cannot be packaged. It will take hard work and focused organizing to maintain and grow the movement. There is not any one tactic that will work; the movement must adapt to new realities and use all the creativity and energy of all involved to grow and succeed.

Scott Galindez attended Syracuse University, where he first became politically active. The writings of El Salvador's slain archbishop Oscar Romero and the on-campus South Africa divestment movement converted him from a Reagan supporter to an activist for Peace and Justice. Over the years he has been influenced by the likes of Philip Berrigan, William Thomas, Mitch Snyder, Don White, Lisa Fithian, and Paul Wellstone. Scott met Marc Ash while organizing counterinaugural events after George W. Bush's first stolen election. Scott will be spending a year covering the presidential election from Iowa.

Reader Supported News is the Publication of Origin for this work. Permission to republish is freely granted with credit and a link back to Reader Supported News.