Occupy movement
Encyclopedia
The Occupy movement is an international protest
movement
which is primarily directed against economic
and social inequality
. The first Occupy protest to be widely covered was Occupy Wall Street
in New York City, taking place on September 17, 2011. By October 9, Occupy protests had taken place or were ongoing in over 95 cities across 82 countries, and over 600 communities in the United States. As of December 1 the Meetup page "Occupy Together" listed 2,686 Occupy communities worldwide.
The movement was initiated by the Canadian activist group Adbusters
, and partly inspired by the Arab Spring
, especially Cairo's Tahrir Square protests, and the Spanish Indignants
. The movement commonly uses the slogan We are the 99%, the #Occupy hashtag format, and organizes through websites such as "Occupy Together". According to the Washington Post, the movement, which has been described as a "democratic awakening" by Cornel West
, is difficult to distill to a few demands.
Just after midnight on November 9 in London, Ontario
, police evicted protesters from the city's Victoria Park, becoming the first forced evictions in Canada. On the afternoon of November 11 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and later on the night of November 14, authorities forcefully closed down camps around the world in cities such as New York
, Oakland
and Zurich
. Occupy protestors immediately regrouped and vowed to continue their protests, often defiantly returning to the cleared sites.
In a worldwide precedent, Occupy Edinburgh has gained full official recognition from a government body, the Edinburgh City Council.
, inspired by the Arab Spring
, made a call for a worldwide protest on October 15
. In mid-2011, the Canadian-based group Adbusters Media Foundation, best known for its advertisement-free anti-consumerist
magazine Adbusters
, proposed a peaceful occupation of Wall Street to protest corporate influence on democracy, address a growing disparity in wealth, and the absence of legal repercussions behind the recent global financial crisis. According to the senior editor of the magazine, "[they] basically floated the idea in mid-July into our [email list] and it was spontaneously taken up by all the people of the world, it just kind of snowballed from there." One of the inspirations for the movement was the Democracy Village set up in 2010, outside the British Parliament in London
. The protest received additional attention when the internet group Anonymous
encouraged its followers to take part in the protests, calling protesters to "flood lower Manhattan, set up tents, kitchens, peaceful barricades and Occupy Wall Street
". They promoted the protest with a poster featuring a dancer atop Wall Street's iconic Charging Bull
. The first protest was held at Zuccotti Park
in New York City on September 17, 2011. The protests were preceded by a similar Occupy Dataran
movement in Kuala Lumpur
in July, three weeks before Occupy Wall Street.
(CBO) report.
The report was released just as concerns of the Occupy Wall Street movement were beginning to enter the national political debate. According to the CBO, between 1979 and 2007 the incomes of the top 1% of Americans grew by an average of 275%. During the same time period, the 60% of Americans in the middle of the income scale saw their income rise by 40%. Since 1979 the average pre-tax income for the bottom 90% of households has decreased by $900, while that of the top 1% increased by over $700,000, as federal taxation became less progressive
. From 1992-2007 the top 400 income earners in the U.S. saw their income increase 392% and their average tax rate reduced by 37%. In 2009, the average income of the top 1% was $960,000 with a minimum income of $343,927.
In 2007 the richest 1% of the American population owned 34.6% of the country's total wealth, and the next 19% owned 50.5%. Thus, the top 20% of Americans owned 85% of the country's wealth and the bottom 80% of the population owned 15%. Financial inequality (total net worth minus the value of one's home) was greater than inequality in total wealth, with the top 1% of the population owning 42.7%, the next 19% of Americans owning 50.3%, and the bottom 80% owning 7%. However, after the Great Recession which started in 2007, the share of total wealth owned by the top 1% of the population grew from 34.6% to 37.1%, and that owned by the top 20% of Americans grew from 85% to 87.7%. The Great Recession also caused a drop of 36.1% in median household wealth but a drop of only 11.1% for the top 1%, further widening the gap between the 1% and the 99%. During the economic expansion between 2002 and 2007, the income of the top 1% grew 10 times faster than the income of the bottom 90%. In this period 66% of total income gains went to the 1%, who in 2007 had a larger share of total income than at any time since 1928. This is in stark contrast with surveys of US populations that indicate an "ideal" distribution that is much more equal, and a widespread ignorance of the true income inequality and wealth inequality.
had said it was hard to discern a unified aim for the movement, though by later October Adbusters had been trying to "rally it around a single, clear demand" for a Robin Hood tax
, with a global march in support of the tax planned for October 29.
Naomi Wolf
has argued that the impression created by much of the media that the protestors do not have clear demands is false. Wolf argues they do have clear demands including a desire to end what they see as the corrupting effect of money on politics.
According to Bloomberg Businessweek, protesters want more and better jobs, more equal distribution of income, bank reform, and a reduction of the influence of corporations on politics.
In late November 2011, the aims of US protestors were incorporated into a fuller list which includes eleven "demands": 1) campaign finance reform, 2) media democratization: "that media companies be owned and managed by their staff," 3) the creation of "citizen boards" to influence corporate regulation and deter regulatory capture
, 4) "expropriation
of the health insurance industry," 5) "immediate review" of the constitutionality
of the Patriot Act, 6) immediate student loan reform and "gradual implementation of a publicly funded...education system," 7) "restoration of the social safety net
," 8) "an end to imperialistic wars" 9) "employee ownership plans" be required of private corporations, 10) investigation of crimes of the existing financial industry and replacement of that industry by "publicly owned, worked-managed" institutions, and 11) a truly democratic "economy and political system that works for the 99%."
Also in late November, the London contingent of the Occupy movement released their first statement on Corporations, where they called for measures to end Tax evasion
by wealthy firms. The reason for the delay in articulating a clear demand was given as the time it takes to reach a consensus with the sometimes slow processes of participatory democracy.
Efforts are still underway to reach consensus with other occupy groups around the world for a global statement.
argued that a lack of unified aims is still preventing the movement having much influence on the political mainstream, with recent events at the 2011 G-20 Cannes summit
suggesting the banks will succeed in forestalling the implementation of a "Robin Hood" style transaction tax.
The director of the Human Rights Coalition (Australia) believes the Occupy Movement must have a simple and ethical objective that can achieve mass support or it will fail. Namely the introduction of Swiss style direct democracy
(citizen initiated referenda
) to ensure governments are more democratically accountable. He believes the world needs more democracy to counteract fiscal irresponsibility, not socialism or fascism.
Adbusters have been encouraging protesters to use tactical frivolity
by improvising theatrics, pranks and "subversive performances".
The movement has been compared to the Situationists and the Protests of 1968
, although according to Adbusters co-founder Kalle Lasn
, this time the "stakes are much higher".
Indeed, the movement has gone further to create a diverse, multi-media culture of art production and distribution, which is being archived and gathered by institutions such as the National Museum of American History
and New York Historical Society. The purpose of much of the art produced is to visually impact the mainstream through imagery to create solidarity and unity among the 99%.
Activists have used web technologies and social media like IRC, Facebook
, Twitter
, and Meetup to coordinate the events. Indymedia have been helping the movement with communications, saying there have been conference calls on Skype
with participants from up to 80 locations. Interactive live streams of events by independent journalists such as Tim Pool
have been used to augment Mainstream media
coverage. The progressive provider May First/People Link
offered cost-free memberships for dozens of groups, including in Iran and Germany, to host websites, emails, and email lists securely.
.
Much of the movement's democratic process occurs in "working groups," where any protestor is able to have their say. Important decisions are often taken at "General assemblies" , which can themselves be informed by the findings of multiple working groups. General assemblies take place at most Occupy sites every evening at 7PM. Decisions are made using the consensus model of direct democracy, waving hands in various simple signals and operating with discussion facilitators rather than leaders, a system that may have originated in the Quaker movement several centuries ago. At the assemblies, working group proposals are made to meeting participants, who comment upon them using a process called a "stack," a queue of speakers that anyone can join. In New York, Occupy Wall Street uses what is called a progressive stack
, in which people from marginalized groups are sometimes allowed to speak before people from dominant groups, with facilitator
s, or stack-keepers, urging speakers to "step forward, or step back" based on which group they belong to, meaning that women and minorities get to go to the front of the line, while white males must often wait for a turn to speak. The progressive stack concept has been criticized by some outside of the movement as "forced equality" and "unfair."
protests began in New York City
on September 17, 2011. On 9 October 2011, activists in cities in over 25 countries made calls for global protests on 15 October
. A list of events for October 15 included 951 cities in 82 countries. On October 15 events were held in many cities worldwide.
At least 80 arrests were made on September 24, after protesters started marching uptown and forcing the closure of several streets. Most of the 80 arrests were for blocking traffic, though some were also charged with disorderly conduct
and resisting arrest. Police officers have also been using a technique called kettling
which involves using orange nets to isolate protesters into smaller groups.
Videos which showed several penned-in female demonstrators being hit with pepper spray
by a police official were widely disseminated, sparking controversy. That police official, later identified as Deputy Inspector Anthony Bologna, was shown in other videos hitting a photographer with a burst of spray.
Initially Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly
and a representative for Bologna defended his actions, while decrying the disclosure of his personal information. After growing public furor, Kelly announced that Internal Affairs
and the Civilian Complaint Review Board were opening investigations, again criticizing Anonymous for "[trying] to intimidate, putting the names of children, where children go to school," and adding that this tactic was "totally inappropriate, despicable." Meanwhile, Manhattan District Attorney
Cyrus Vance, Jr.
started his own inquiry.
Public attention to the pepper-sprayings resulted in a spike of news media coverage, a pattern that was to be repeated in the coming weeks following confrontations with police. Clyde Haberman, writing in The New York Times
, said that "If the Occupy Wall Street protesters ever choose to recognize a person who gave their cause its biggest boost, they may want to pay tribute to Anthony Bologna," calling the event "vital" for the still nascent movement. "After Ron Kuby, an attorney for one of the protesters, demanded Mr. Bologna’s arrest, [Bologna] was instead docked 10 vacation days and given a [...] reassignment to Staten Island, where he lives," according to an account by blogger Daniel Edward Rosen.
On October 1, 2011, protesters set out to march across the Brooklyn Bridge
. The New York Times
reported that more than 700 arrests were made. The police used ten buses to carry protesters off the bridge. Some said the police had tricked protesters, allowing them onto the bridge, and even escorting them partway across. Jesse A. Myerson, a media coordinator for Occupy Wall Street said, “The cops watched and did nothing, indeed, seemed to guide us onto the roadway.” However, some statements by protesters supported descriptions of the event given by police: for example, one protester Tweeted that "The police didn't lead us on to the bridge. They were backing the [expletive] up." A spokesman for the New York Police Department, Paul Browne, said that protesters were given multiple warnings to stay on the sidewalk and not block the street, and were arrested when they refused. By October 2, all but 20 of the arrestees had been released with citations for disorderly conduct and a criminal court summons. On October 4, a group of protesters who were arrested on the bridge filed a lawsuit against the city, alleging that officers had violated their constitutional rights by luring them into a trap and then arresting them; Mayor Bloomberg, commenting previously on the incident, had said that "[t]he police did exactly what they were supposed to do."
On October 5, joined by union members, students, and the unemployed, the demonstration swelled to the largest yet with an estimated 15,000 marchers joining the protest. Smaller protests continue in cities and on college campuses across the country.
Thousands of union workers joined protesters marching through the Financial District. The march was mostly peaceful—until after nightfall, when scuffles erupted. About 200 protesters tried to storm barricades blocking them from Wall Street and the Stock Exchange. Police responded with pepper spray and penned the protesters in with orange netting.
Inspired by Occupy Wall Street, British protesters organized an occupation of the London Stock Exchange to bring attention to what they saw as unethical behavior on the part of banks. One of the organizers of the protest said the protests are focused against "increasing social and economic injustice in this country." In his opinion, "the Government has made sure to maintain the status quo and let the people who caused this crisis get off scot-free, whilst conversely ensuring that the people of this country pay the price, in particular those most vulnerable."
in New York City and rallied for several hours. Several hundred protesters were arrested across the U.S., mostly for refusing to obey police orders to leave public areas. In Chicago there were 175 arrests, about 100 arrests in Arizona (53 in Tucson, 46 in Phoenix), and more than 70 in New York City, including at least 40 in Times Square. Multiple arrests were reported in Chicago, and about 150 people camped out by city hall in Minneapolis.
In the early morning hours of October 25, police cleared and closed an Occupy Oakland encampment in Frank Ogawa Park in Oakland, California. The raid on the encampment was described as "violent and chaotic at times," and resulted in over 102 arrests but there were no injuries.
A street march that afternoon protesting the closure culminated in a confrontation between police and protesters, who sought to re-establish the Ogawa Plaza encampment. During this confrontation, protester Scott Olsen, a former Marine and Iraq War veteran, suffered a skull fracture caused by a tear-gas projectile or smoke canister fired by police.
By 29 October 2011, there were about 2300 occupied zones around 2000 cities worldwide.
On November 2, protesters in Oakland, California
shut down the Port of Oakland
, the fifth busiest port in the nation. Police estimated that about 3,000 demonstrators were gathered at the port and 4,500 had marched across the city, however a member of the Occupy movement was quoted by the BBC as estimating as many as 30,000 may have taken part.
took the day of the Guy Fawkes Night
as occasion for an extra loud and long demonstration, and Occupy Portland
made its "Move Your $" campaign. November 11 was another international protest day.
On November 11, Remembrance Day
in Canada, police forcibly removed tents from Victoria Park in Halifax, Nova Scotia and arrested 15 protestors. On the night of 14 November, a coordinated crackdown was undertaken by authorities around the world, with several camps being forcibly cleared. Examples of such camps include Zuccotti Park in New York, Oakland, Oregon, Denver and Zurich. For some of the other camps such as the one at St Pauls in London, no physical action was taken, but on 15 November authorities stepped up legal action to gain authorization for a forcible eviction.
Protesters from around the world and commentators such as former Financial Times editor Richard Lambert
have suggested that the shift to confrontational tactics by authorities is more likely to spur on the movement rather than cause it to disband.
John Gapper, chief business commentator at the FT, offers a different view. Gapper says even some protestors admit it may be a good thing that camps are being closed down, as they were beginning to alienate even members of the public who were initially fully sympathetic with the movement. Gapper says some of the key intellectual action in the movement is now taking place not in the camps but in the Alternative Banking Group, which was set up by the diplomat Carne Ross
and the rocket scientist Cathy O'Neil.
Occupy Boston received a major legal victory on November 17 after a judge ordered police to allow protestors to remain encamped in the park. A hearing is scheduled for December 1.
During a November 18, 2011 demonstration at UC Davis, campus police Lieutenant John Pike used pepper spray
on seated students. The incident drew national attention and led to further demonstrations, petitions, and calls for Chancellor Linda P.B. Katehi
to resign.
and Melbourne
., as well as smaller towns around the country. At the Occupy Melbourne
protest on October 21, approximately 150 protesters defied police orders to clear the area, and were subsequently removed with force. 95 arrests were made and 43 reports of police violence were filed. Occupiers returned the following day in a walk against police violence, re-occupying multiple sites since.
a large Occupy demonstration took place on 15 October involving between 6,500 and 8,000 participants. The protest was largely peaceful, although seven people were arrested following vandalisation of the Dexia
bank headquarters and financial tower. The Occupy Antwerp (Antwerpen) movement had its first gathering on Saturday 22 October at the Groenplaats, next to the cathedral. About 150-200 people attended a speakers corner. The socialist party (PVDA) was present and served free soup as well as information about its proposed "milionaires' tax".
To date, there have been four Occupy protests in Leuven
. Three took place on the Grand Market in the centre of the city and one took place at a building of the city's Catholic university. The number of protesters in these rallies varied from 100 to 250. These protests have not included prolonged camping, but the protesters say that it is a possibility in the future.
Occupy Ghent
(Gent) began on October 29 with 400 people in the South Park (Zuidpark). They received a visit by supporters attending the "second day of Socialism" (de Tweede Dag van het Socialisme), also held in Ghent on the same day.
Beginning on October 23, 2011 approximately 40 people occupied Memorial Park on Minto St in downtown Sudbury and still continue to do so.
Events have been concentrated in provincial urban areas, and there have yet to be any demonstrations in the territories of Yukon, Northwest Territories, or Nunavut.
On November 5, 2011, Ashlie Gough, 23, was found dead in one of the tents at Occupy Vancouver. The cause of death is determined to be overdose of cocaine and heroin.
There are currently a number of court proceedings across Canada on whether or not the eviction of protestors and violence from police is an infringement of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
's financial district, La Défense
, on November 4 2011. Since then, their camp has been torn down almost daily by police forces, who have even confiscated blankets and food, leaving protesters sleeping in the cold outdoors without protection. On November 11th, following a call made on social networks, some 400 additional people joined the occupation. Occupy protests have also begun at Nantes, Lyon, Grenoble and Perpignan.
, Occupy movement together with Occupy Frankfurt
and Hamburg
initiated its protests outside the Reichstag
on Friday 15 October. Occupy Frankfurt has now taken residence in front of the European Central Bank
, and a similar action is being prepared on the premises of the St. Mary's Church, Berlin
. On 12 November major Occupy protests took place in Berlin and Frankfurt. Police reported that around 9,000 people peacefully protested near the headquarters of the European Central Bank, and that "several thousand" people took to the streets of Berlin; organisers of the protests claimed that turnout was around 8,000 in Berlin and 10,000 in Frankfurt.
. As of November 11 the camp was still in place, with around 20 permanent residents.
, Tel Aviv
. The occupation was related to the 2011 Israeli social justice protests
which began in Rothschild on July 14.
to protest against economic inequality
and the influence of the European Commission
, the European Central Bank
and the International Monetary Fund
on government. Many other protests occurred in other Italian cities the same day.
In Rome masked and hooded militants wearing makeshift body armor, in black bloc
fashion, infiltrated the protests centered in St John Lateran square
and committed numerous violent acts, throwing Molotov cocktails and other homemade explosives, burning and blowing up cars, burning buildings, and smashing up property such as ATMs and shop windows. The Roman Catholic church Santi Marcellino e Pietro al Laterano received extensive damage, including a statue of the Virgin Mary being thrown into the street and destroyed. Several unexploded petrol bombs were reportedly found on several streets by Italian police. Over 1,000,000 euros of damage (equivalent to over 1.3 million dollars) was recorded. At least 135 people were injured in the resulting clashes, including 105 police officers, several of whom were left in critical condition, and two news crews from Sky Italia
. Two protesters had their fingers amputated by exploding smoke bombs. Almost 20 people have been arrested in connection with the violence.
After the October 15 demonstration, peaceful people occupied the Santa Croce in Gerusalemme
square and started camping as in other cities worldwide. The name of this Rome's group, related to international Occupy movement, is Accampata Roma.
(Independence Square) 7 weeks before Occupy Wall Street
on July 30, 2011 to create an alternative to the current representative democracy
using the popular assembly
model based on principles of participatory democracy
. As part of the 15 October 2011 global protests
, over 200 people took part in 15 October's Occupy Dataran, the largest assembly to date. In late October, the movement spread to Penang
with Occupy Penang and Kelantan
with Occupy Kota Bharu.
.
A seventh Occupy protest started on November 19 in the Lower Hutt suburb of Pomare by a group called "Pomare Community Voice" to highlight what they call the "loss of community" caused by the demolition of state homes in the area.
Waterford, Letterkenny, and Athlone. It is expected that Roscommon will follow. Protests were held in Dublin, Cork
, and Galway
. The Irish Times
described the movement in the following terms: "The group has no hierarchical structure, has set up a Facebook page and Twitter account – with the social media links attracting a very mixed, and sometimes critical, reaction." The protest in Dublin was organized by the "Real Democracy Now! Ireland", and "Occupy Dame Street" protest, set up outside the Central Bank of Ireland in solidarity with the Occupy Wall Street
movement in New York. On 22 October is was reported that over 2,000 people took part in the Occupy Dame Street demonstration.
on October 15 and October 22 under the slogan of "Occupy Seoul". Protesters focused on issues such as a recent free trade agreement with the United States as well as costs of tuition and rent.
on the Paradeplatz in Zurich
. 100 protesters later established an occupation on the nearby Lindenhof, which was evicted by the police on November 15th.
, protesters gathered in London, Bristol, Birmingham, Glasgow and Edinburgh. The London Stock Exchange
in Paternoster Square
was the initial target for the protesters of Occupy London on October 15, 2011. Attempts to occupy the square were thwarted by police. Police sealed off the entrance to the square as it was private property, and a High Court injunction had been granted against public access to the square. 2500-3000 people gathered nearby outside St Paul's Cathedral
, with 250 camping overnight. The canon
of St. Paul's, Reverend Giles Fraser, said he was happy for people to "exercise their right to protest peacefully" outside the cathedral and an indefinite encampment was established. Additional smaller protests occurred in Birmingham and Nottingham. As of 17 October an indefinite encampment
had also been established on College Green
in Bristol
. On 29 October a camp was also established in Victoria Gardens, Brighton
, and grew from six tents to around twenty within one week. Further Occupy camps are taking place in Bath
, Bradford
, Cardiff
Leeds
, Sheffield
, Newcastle upon Tyne
, Plymouth
, Exeter
, and Norwich
.
In Northern Ireland
, Occupy Belfast
initiated its protest outside the offices of Invest NI on Friday 21 October. Occupy Belfast has now taken residence at Writer's Square, in the Cathedral Quarter
. It is expected that an Occupy Derry
will take place in the near future.
In Scotland
camps have been organised around the financial district of St. Andrew Square, Edinburgh since 15 October.
St. Andrews Square is the home of the Royal Bank of Scotland
headquarters in the Dundas House
mansion. Edinburgh City Council has officially backed the Occupy Edinburgh
Movement and all Occupy movements worldwide.
Protesters from Occupy Glasgow
had set up in the civic George Square
on 15 October but moved to Kelvingrove Park
where the council would provide running water, toilets and safety fences after the council obtained a court order.
On 11 November, police arrested 170 EDL
members on Armistice Day when intelligence revealed EDL members planned to attack campers at St Paul's Cathedral.
On 15 November an Occupy camp was established in the centre of Leicester
near the Highcross shopping centre.
As of 30th November 2011 following national strike action, a body of students occupied The University of Sheffield Arts Tower in solidarity with, but not limited to, the occupy movement.
protests began in New York City
in September 2011. The Canadian activist group Adbusters initiated the protests which have since become a worldwide movement. The protests have focused on social and economic inequality, high unemployment, greed and corruption, and the undue influence of corporations—particularly that of the financial services sector—on government. The protest movement uses the slogan "We are the 99%" in reference to discrepancies in income or political power between the elites and all the remaining citizens of the United States. By October 9, similar demonstrations were either ongoing or had been held in 70 major cities and over 600 communities across the U.S.
At least 80 arrests were made on September 24, after protesters started marching uptown and forcing the closure of several streets. Most of the 80 arrests were for blocking traffic, though some were also charged with disorderly conduct
and resisting arrest. Police officers have also been using a technique called kettling
which involves using orange nets to isolate protesters into smaller groups.
On October 1, 2011, protesters in New York City set out to march across the Brooklyn Bridge
. The New York Times
reported that more than 700 arrests were made. The police used ten buses to carry protesters off the bridge. Some said the police had tricked protesters, allowing them onto the bridge, and even escorting them partway across. Jesse A. Myerson, a media coordinator for Occupy Wall Street said, "The cops watched and did nothing, indeed, seemed to guide us onto the roadway."
On October 25, 2011 during the Occupy Oakland
protests, following multiple violation notices from city officials, police officers in riot gear from various Bay Area
law enforcement agencies cleared both camp sites during the early hours of the day. Police fired tear gas canisters at the protestors, allegedly in response to objects being thrown at them. Protest organizers said that many of the troublemakers were not part of the Occupy movement. Two MSN
reporters described the raid was described as "violent and chaotic at times" and resulted in over 102 arrests. Scott Olsen, a former Marine
and Iraq War veteran, and a member of Veterans for Peace
, suffered a skull fracture
caused by a projectile
that witnesses believed was a tear gas or smoke canister fired by the police.
On November 2, protesters in Oakland
, California shut down the Port of Oakland
, the fifth busiest port in the nation. Police estimated that about 3,000 demonstrators were gathered at the port and 4,500 had marched across the city, however a member of the Occupy movement was quoted by the BBC as estimating as many as 30,000 may have taken part.
Brazil On 15 October 2011, President Dilma Rousseff
said, "We agree with some of the expressions that some movements have used around the world [in] demonstrations like the ones we see in the US and other countries."
Canada On 15 October 2011, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty
expressed sympathy with the protests, stating "There's growing worry about a lack of opportunities for the younger generation — particularly in the United States — and it's up to governments to ensure youth are able to capitalize on their education and find good jobs." He later commented, "I can understand some legitimate frustration arising out of that."
India On 19 October 2011, Manmohan Singh
, Prime Minister of India
, described the protests as "a warning for all those who are in charge of the processes of governance".
United Kingdom On 21 October 2011, Former Prime Minister Gordon Brown
said the protests were about fairness. "There are voices in the middle who say, 'Look, we can build a better financial system that is more sustainable, that is based on a better and proportionate sense of what's just and fair and where people don't take reckless risks or, if they do, they're penalized for doing so.' " On 6 November 2011, Opposition leader Ed Miliband
: "The challenge is that they reflect a crisis of concern for millions of people about the biggest issue of our time: the gap between their values and the way our country is run." He mentioned that he is "determined that mainstream politics, and the Labour Party in particular, speaks to that crisis and rises to the challenge".
On Saturday 26 November 2011, Edinburgh City Council set a worldwide precedent by voting in favour of the motion to support the aims and sentiments of Occupy Edinburgh and the Occupy Movement as a whole. This motion was presented by the Scottish Green Party, was seconded by the Scottish Labour Party and was slightly amended by the SNP and LibDems. The only party not to back the motion was the Conservatives. "We regard this as a fantastic step forward in the opening of dialogue with the Scottish government.", stated Occupy Edinburgh.
United States On 16 October 2011, President Barack Obama
spoke in support of the movement, though also asked protesters not to "demonize" finance workers.
Local authorities in the United States have collaborated to develop strategies to respond to the Occupy movement and its encampments, and political leaders in eighteen United States cities consulted on cracking down on the Occupy movement, according to Oakland Mayor Jean Quan
, who participated in a conference call. Within a span of less than 24 hours, municipal authorities in Denver, Salt Lake City
, Portland
, Oakland
and New York City
sent in police to crack down on the encampments of the Occupy movement.
Venezuela Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez
condemned the "horrible repression" of the activists and expressed solidarity with the movement.
published on 25 November criticised the Occupy protesters as representing "an unpalatable smorgasbord of religious, political and cultural ideas."
The Korean Central News Agency
of North Korea
has described the Occupy movement as being "in protest against exploitation and oppression by capital, shaking all fabrics of society."
ian protesters from Tahrir Square have lent their support of the movement. A message of solidarity issued by a collective of Cairo-based protesters declared: "As the interests of government increasingly cater to the interests and comforts of private, transnational capital, our cities and homes have become progressively more abstract and violent places, subject to the casual ravages of the next economic development or urban renewal scheme. An entire generation across the globe has grown up realizing, rationally and emotionally, that we have no future in the current order of things."
The increased public focus on the growing income gap between economic elites and the middle class and on the importance of the rights of ordinary workers brought about by the Occupy Movement gave a significant boost to organized labor's campaign to repeal anti-labor union law passed in the State of Ohio known as Ohio Senate Bill 5 (SB5). In the November 2011 elections, Ohio voters repealed SB 5.
Labor unions have become bolder in the tactics they employ and have been using digital social media more effectively because of the Occupy movement. In New York City, the Occupy Wall Street protest has also provided hundreds of protesters to help in picket actions conducted by labor unions.
On November 10, 2011, The Daily Telegraph
reported that occupy had been the "most commonly used English word on the internet and in print" over the past 12 months according to a top ten list published by media analysis company Global Language Monitor
.
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which is primarily directed against economic
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and social inequality
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. The first Occupy protest to be widely covered was Occupy Wall Street
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Arab Spring
The Arab Spring , otherwise known as the Arab Awakening, is a revolutionary wave of demonstrations and protests occurring in the Arab world that began on Saturday, 18 December 2010...
, especially Cairo's Tahrir Square protests, and the Spanish Indignants
2011 Spanish protests
The 2011 Spanish protests, also referred to as the 15-M Movement and the Indignants movement, are a series of ongoing demonstrations in Spain whose origin can be traced to social networks and Real Democracy NOW among other civilian digital platforms and 200 other small associations...
. The movement commonly uses the slogan We are the 99%, the #Occupy hashtag format, and organizes through websites such as "Occupy Together". According to the Washington Post, the movement, which has been described as a "democratic awakening" by Cornel West
Cornel West
Cornel Ronald West is an American philosopher, author, critic, actor, civil rights activist and prominent member of the Democratic Socialists of America....
, is difficult to distill to a few demands.
Just after midnight on November 9 in London, Ontario
London, Ontario
London is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada, situated along the Quebec City – Windsor Corridor. The city has a population of 352,395, and the metropolitan area has a population of 457,720, according to the 2006 Canadian census; the metro population in 2009 was estimated at 489,274. The city...
, police evicted protesters from the city's Victoria Park, becoming the first forced evictions in Canada. On the afternoon of November 11 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and later on the night of November 14, authorities forcefully closed down camps around the world in cities such as New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, Oakland
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
and Zurich
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
. Occupy protestors immediately regrouped and vowed to continue their protests, often defiantly returning to the cleared sites.
In a worldwide precedent, Occupy Edinburgh has gained full official recognition from a government body, the Edinburgh City Council.
Background
On May 30, 2011, a leader in the Spanish Indignants movement2011 Spanish protests
The 2011 Spanish protests, also referred to as the 15-M Movement and the Indignants movement, are a series of ongoing demonstrations in Spain whose origin can be traced to social networks and Real Democracy NOW among other civilian digital platforms and 200 other small associations...
, inspired by the Arab Spring
Arab Spring
The Arab Spring , otherwise known as the Arab Awakening, is a revolutionary wave of demonstrations and protests occurring in the Arab world that began on Saturday, 18 December 2010...
, made a call for a worldwide protest on October 15
15 October 2011 global protests
The 15 October 2011 global protests were part of a series of protests inspired by the Arab Spring, the Spanish "Indignants", the Greek Protests and the Occupy movement. Global demonstrations were held on October 15 in more than 950 cities 82 countries. The date was chosen to coincide with the 5...
. In mid-2011, the Canadian-based group Adbusters Media Foundation, best known for its advertisement-free anti-consumerist
Anti-consumerism
Anti-consumerism refers to the socio-political movement against the equating of personal happiness with consumption and the purchase of material possessions...
magazine Adbusters
AdBusters
The Adbusters Media Foundation is a Canadian-based not-for-profit, anti-consumerist, pro-environment organization founded in 1989 by Kalle Lasn and Bill Schmalz in Vancouver, British Columbia...
, proposed a peaceful occupation of Wall Street to protest corporate influence on democracy, address a growing disparity in wealth, and the absence of legal repercussions behind the recent global financial crisis. According to the senior editor of the magazine, "[they] basically floated the idea in mid-July into our [email list] and it was spontaneously taken up by all the people of the world, it just kind of snowballed from there." One of the inspirations for the movement was the Democracy Village set up in 2010, outside the British Parliament in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. The protest received additional attention when the internet group Anonymous
Anonymous (group)
Anonymous is an international hacking group, spread through the Internet, initiating active civil disobedience, while attempting to maintain anonymity. Originating in 2003 on the imageboard 4chan, the term refers to the concept of many online community users simultaneously existing as an anarchic,...
encouraged its followers to take part in the protests, calling protesters to "flood lower Manhattan, set up tents, kitchens, peaceful barricades and Occupy Wall Street
Occupy Wall Street
Occupy Wall Street is an ongoing series of demonstrations initiated by the Canadian activist group Adbusters which began September 17, 2011 in Zuccotti Park, located in New York City's Wall Street financial district...
". They promoted the protest with a poster featuring a dancer atop Wall Street's iconic Charging Bull
Charging Bull
Charging Bull, which is sometimes referred to as the Wall Street Bull or the Bowling Green Bull, is a bronze sculpture by Arturo Di Modica that stands in Bowling Green Park near Wall Street in Manhattan, New York City...
. The first protest was held at Zuccotti Park
Zuccotti Park
Zuccotti Park, formerly called Liberty Plaza Park, is a publicly accessible park in Lower Manhattan, New York City. It is a controlled by Brookfield Properties. The park was created in 1968 by Pittsburgh-based United States Steel, after the property owners negotiated its creation with city...
in New York City on September 17, 2011. The protests were preceded by a similar Occupy Dataran
Occupy Dataran
Occupy Dataran is an autonomous grassroots initiative based in Kuala Lumpur, that aims to create a platform to experiment participatory democracy based on the popular assembly model....
movement in Kuala Lumpur
Kuala Lumpur
Kuala Lumpur is the capital and the second largest city in Malaysia by population. The city proper, making up an area of , has a population of 1.4 million as of 2010. Greater Kuala Lumpur, also known as the Klang Valley, is an urban agglomeration of 7.2 million...
in July, three weeks before Occupy Wall Street.
We are the 99%
The phrase "The 99%" is a political slogan used by protesters of the Occupy movement. It was originally launched as a Tumblr blog page in late August of 2011. It refers to the concentration of wealth among the top 1% of income earners compared to the other 99 percent; the top 1 percent of income earners nearly tripled after-tax income over the last thirty years according to a Congressional Budget OfficeCongressional Budget Office
The Congressional Budget Office is a federal agency within the legislative branch of the United States government that provides economic data to Congress....
(CBO) report.
The report was released just as concerns of the Occupy Wall Street movement were beginning to enter the national political debate. According to the CBO, between 1979 and 2007 the incomes of the top 1% of Americans grew by an average of 275%. During the same time period, the 60% of Americans in the middle of the income scale saw their income rise by 40%. Since 1979 the average pre-tax income for the bottom 90% of households has decreased by $900, while that of the top 1% increased by over $700,000, as federal taxation became less progressive
Progressive tax
A progressive tax is a tax by which the tax rate increases as the taxable base amount increases. "Progressive" describes a distribution effect on income or expenditure, referring to the way the rate progresses from low to high, where the average tax rate is less than the marginal tax rate...
. From 1992-2007 the top 400 income earners in the U.S. saw their income increase 392% and their average tax rate reduced by 37%. In 2009, the average income of the top 1% was $960,000 with a minimum income of $343,927.
In 2007 the richest 1% of the American population owned 34.6% of the country's total wealth, and the next 19% owned 50.5%. Thus, the top 20% of Americans owned 85% of the country's wealth and the bottom 80% of the population owned 15%. Financial inequality (total net worth minus the value of one's home) was greater than inequality in total wealth, with the top 1% of the population owning 42.7%, the next 19% of Americans owning 50.3%, and the bottom 80% owning 7%. However, after the Great Recession which started in 2007, the share of total wealth owned by the top 1% of the population grew from 34.6% to 37.1%, and that owned by the top 20% of Americans grew from 85% to 87.7%. The Great Recession also caused a drop of 36.1% in median household wealth but a drop of only 11.1% for the top 1%, further widening the gap between the 1% and the 99%. During the economic expansion between 2002 and 2007, the income of the top 1% grew 10 times faster than the income of the bottom 90%. In this period 66% of total income gains went to the 1%, who in 2007 had a larger share of total income than at any time since 1928. This is in stark contrast with surveys of US populations that indicate an "ideal" distribution that is much more equal, and a widespread ignorance of the true income inequality and wealth inequality.
Aims
Initially, journalists such as Shannon Bond for the Financial TimesFinancial Times
The Financial Times is an international business newspaper. It is a morning daily newspaper published in London and printed in 24 cities around the world. Its primary rival is the Wall Street Journal, published in New York City....
had said it was hard to discern a unified aim for the movement, though by later October Adbusters had been trying to "rally it around a single, clear demand" for a Robin Hood tax
Robin Hood tax
The Robin Hood tax commonly refers to a package of financial transaction taxes , proposed by a campaigning group of civil society NGOs. Campaigners have suggested the tax could be implemented globally, regionally or unilaterally by individual nations...
, with a global march in support of the tax planned for October 29.
Naomi Wolf
Naomi Wolf
Naomi Wolf is an American author and political consultant. With the publication of The Beauty Myth, she became a leading spokesperson of what was later described as the third wave of the feminist movement.-Biography:...
has argued that the impression created by much of the media that the protestors do not have clear demands is false. Wolf argues they do have clear demands including a desire to end what they see as the corrupting effect of money on politics.
According to Bloomberg Businessweek, protesters want more and better jobs, more equal distribution of income, bank reform, and a reduction of the influence of corporations on politics.
In late November 2011, the aims of US protestors were incorporated into a fuller list which includes eleven "demands": 1) campaign finance reform, 2) media democratization: "that media companies be owned and managed by their staff," 3) the creation of "citizen boards" to influence corporate regulation and deter regulatory capture
Regulatory capture
In economics, regulatory capture occurs when a state regulatory agency created to act in the public interest instead advances the commercial or special interests that dominate the industry or sector it is charged with regulating. Regulatory capture is a form of government failure, as it can act as...
, 4) "expropriation
Expropriation
Expropriation is the politically motivated and forceful confiscation and redistribution of private property outside the common law. Unlike eminent domain or laws regulating the foreign investment, expropriation takes place outside the common law and may be used to denote an armed robbery by...
of the health insurance industry," 5) "immediate review" of the constitutionality
Constitutionality
Constitutionality is the condition of acting in accordance with an applicable constitution. Acts that are not in accordance with the rules laid down in the constitution are deemed to be ultra vires.-See also:*ultra vires*Company law*Constitutional law...
of the Patriot Act, 6) immediate student loan reform and "gradual implementation of a publicly funded...education system," 7) "restoration of the social safety net
Social safety net
Social safety nets, or "socioeconomic safety nets", are non-contributory transfer programs seeking to prevent the poor or those vulnerable to shocks and poverty from falling below a certain poverty level. Safety net programs can be provided by the public sector or by the private sector...
," 8) "an end to imperialistic wars" 9) "employee ownership plans" be required of private corporations, 10) investigation of crimes of the existing financial industry and replacement of that industry by "publicly owned, worked-managed" institutions, and 11) a truly democratic "economy and political system that works for the 99%."
Also in late November, the London contingent of the Occupy movement released their first statement on Corporations, where they called for measures to end Tax evasion
Tax evasion
Tax evasion is the general term for efforts by individuals, corporations, trusts and other entities to evade taxes by illegal means. Tax evasion usually entails taxpayers deliberately misrepresenting or concealing the true state of their affairs to the tax authorities to reduce their tax liability,...
by wealthy firms. The reason for the delay in articulating a clear demand was given as the time it takes to reach a consensus with the sometimes slow processes of participatory democracy.
Efforts are still underway to reach consensus with other occupy groups around the world for a global statement.
Methods
A November article published in the Financial TimesFinancial Times
The Financial Times is an international business newspaper. It is a morning daily newspaper published in London and printed in 24 cities around the world. Its primary rival is the Wall Street Journal, published in New York City....
argued that a lack of unified aims is still preventing the movement having much influence on the political mainstream, with recent events at the 2011 G-20 Cannes summit
2011 G-20 Cannes summit
The 2011 G-20 Cannes Summit is the sixth meeting of the G-20 heads of government in a series of on-going discussions about financial markets and the world economy....
suggesting the banks will succeed in forestalling the implementation of a "Robin Hood" style transaction tax.
The director of the Human Rights Coalition (Australia) believes the Occupy Movement must have a simple and ethical objective that can achieve mass support or it will fail. Namely the introduction of Swiss style direct democracy
Direct democracy
Direct democracy is a form of government in which people vote on policy initiatives directly, as opposed to a representative democracy in which people vote for representatives who then vote on policy initiatives. Direct democracy is classically termed "pure democracy"...
(citizen initiated referenda
Initiative
In political science, an initiative is a means by which a petition signed by a certain minimum number of registered voters can force a public vote...
) to ensure governments are more democratically accountable. He believes the world needs more democracy to counteract fiscal irresponsibility, not socialism or fascism.
Adbusters have been encouraging protesters to use tactical frivolity
Tactical frivolity
Tactical frivolity is a form of public protest involving humour, often including peaceful non-compliance with authorities, carnival and whimsical antics. Humour has played a role in political protests at least as far back as the Classical period in ancient Greece...
by improvising theatrics, pranks and "subversive performances".
The movement has been compared to the Situationists and the Protests of 1968
Protests of 1968
The protests of 1968 consisted of a worldwide series of protests, largely participated in by students and workers.-Background:Background speculations of overall causality vary about the political protests centering on the year 1968. Some argue that protests could be attributed to the social changes...
, although according to Adbusters co-founder Kalle Lasn
Kalle Lasn
Kalle Lasn is an Estonian Canadian author, magazine editor and activist. Near the end of World War II his family fled Estonia and Lasn spent his childhood in a German refugee camp. He was then resettled in Australia. In the 1960s, he founded a market research company in Tokyo, and in 1970, moved...
, this time the "stakes are much higher".
Indeed, the movement has gone further to create a diverse, multi-media culture of art production and distribution, which is being archived and gathered by institutions such as the National Museum of American History
National Museum of American History
The National Museum of American History: Kenneth E. Behring Center collects, preserves and displays the heritage of the United States in the areas of social, political, cultural, scientific and military history. Among the items on display are the original Star-Spangled Banner and Archie Bunker's...
and New York Historical Society. The purpose of much of the art produced is to visually impact the mainstream through imagery to create solidarity and unity among the 99%.
Activists have used web technologies and social media like IRC, Facebook
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
, and Meetup to coordinate the events. Indymedia have been helping the movement with communications, saying there have been conference calls on Skype
Skype
Skype is a software application that allows users to make voice and video calls and chat over the Internet. Calls to other users within the Skype service are free, while calls to both traditional landline telephones and mobile phones can be made for a fee using a debit-based user account system...
with participants from up to 80 locations. Interactive live streams of events by independent journalists such as Tim Pool
Tim Pool
Timothy Pool is an American journalist from Chicago, Illinois. His unique 21-hour marathon reporting earned him fame during the Occupy Wall Street protests. Utilizing a unique style of first-hand reporting and insightful commentary, Pool's reputation spread quickly across social and mainstream media...
have been used to augment Mainstream media
Mainstream media
Mainstream media are those media disseminated via the largest distribution channels, which therefore represent what the majority of media consumers are likely to encounter...
coverage. The progressive provider May First/People Link
May First/People Link
May First/People Link is a non-profit membership organization that uses mutual aid to provide Internet services, such as web hosting to progressive organizations and individuals. Founded in 1995 and based in New York City, MF/PL is one of the Internet's oldest progressive organizations...
offered cost-free memberships for dozens of groups, including in Iran and Germany, to host websites, emails, and email lists securely.
Structure
The movement has been described as having an "overriding commitment" to Participatory democracyParticipatory democracy
Participatory Democracy, also known as Deliberative Democracy, Direct Democracy and Real Democracy , is a process where political decisions are made directly by regular people...
.
Much of the movement's democratic process occurs in "working groups," where any protestor is able to have their say. Important decisions are often taken at "General assemblies" , which can themselves be informed by the findings of multiple working groups. General assemblies take place at most Occupy sites every evening at 7PM. Decisions are made using the consensus model of direct democracy, waving hands in various simple signals and operating with discussion facilitators rather than leaders, a system that may have originated in the Quaker movement several centuries ago. At the assemblies, working group proposals are made to meeting participants, who comment upon them using a process called a "stack," a queue of speakers that anyone can join. In New York, Occupy Wall Street uses what is called a progressive stack
Progressive stack
A progressive stack is a technique used in some general assemblies in the Occupy movement, designed to ensure that people from marginalized groups get a chance to speak....
, in which people from marginalized groups are sometimes allowed to speak before people from dominant groups, with facilitator
Facilitator
A facilitator is someone who helps a group of people understand their common objectives and assists them to plan to achieve them without taking a particular position in the discussion...
s, or stack-keepers, urging speakers to "step forward, or step back" based on which group they belong to, meaning that women and minorities get to go to the front of the line, while white males must often wait for a turn to speak. The progressive stack concept has been criticized by some outside of the movement as "forced equality" and "unfair."
Chronology of events
The Occupy Wall StreetOccupy Wall Street
Occupy Wall Street is an ongoing series of demonstrations initiated by the Canadian activist group Adbusters which began September 17, 2011 in Zuccotti Park, located in New York City's Wall Street financial district...
protests began in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
on September 17, 2011. On 9 October 2011, activists in cities in over 25 countries made calls for global protests on 15 October
15 October 2011 global protests
The 15 October 2011 global protests were part of a series of protests inspired by the Arab Spring, the Spanish "Indignants", the Greek Protests and the Occupy movement. Global demonstrations were held on October 15 in more than 950 cities 82 countries. The date was chosen to coincide with the 5...
. A list of events for October 15 included 951 cities in 82 countries. On October 15 events were held in many cities worldwide.
Weeks 1 - 4 (September 17 – October 14)
On September 17, 1,000 protesters marched through the streets, with an estimated 100 to 200 staying overnight in cardboard boxes. By September 19, seven people had been arrested.At least 80 arrests were made on September 24, after protesters started marching uptown and forcing the closure of several streets. Most of the 80 arrests were for blocking traffic, though some were also charged with disorderly conduct
Disorderly conduct
Disorderly conduct is a criminal charge in most jurisdictions in the United States. Typically, disorderly conduct makes it a crime to be drunk in public, to "disturb the peace", or to loiter in certain areas. Many types of unruly conduct may fit the definition of disorderly conduct, as such...
and resisting arrest. Police officers have also been using a technique called kettling
Kettling
Kettling is a police tactic for controlling large crowds during demonstrations or protests. It involves the formation of large cordons of police officers who then move to contain a crowd within a limited area. Protesters are left only one choice of exit, determined by the police, or are completely...
which involves using orange nets to isolate protesters into smaller groups.
Videos which showed several penned-in female demonstrators being hit with pepper spray
Pepper spray
Pepper spray, also known as OC spray , OC gas, and capsicum spray, is a lachrymatory agent that is used in riot control, crowd control and personal self-defense, including defense against dogs and bears...
by a police official were widely disseminated, sparking controversy. That police official, later identified as Deputy Inspector Anthony Bologna, was shown in other videos hitting a photographer with a burst of spray.
Initially Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly
Raymond W. Kelly
Raymond Walter Kelly is the current Commissioner of the New York City Police Department and the first person to hold the post for two non-consecutive tenures. A lifelong New Yorker, Kelly has spent 31 years in the NYPD, serving in 25 different commands and as Police Commissioner from 1992 to 1994...
and a representative for Bologna defended his actions, while decrying the disclosure of his personal information. After growing public furor, Kelly announced that Internal Affairs
Internal affairs (law enforcement)
The internal affairs division of a law enforcement agency investigates incidents and plausible suspicions of lawbreaking and professional misconduct attributed to officers on the force...
and the Civilian Complaint Review Board were opening investigations, again criticizing Anonymous for "[trying] to intimidate, putting the names of children, where children go to school," and adding that this tactic was "totally inappropriate, despicable." Meanwhile, Manhattan District Attorney
District attorney
In many jurisdictions in the United States, a District Attorney is an elected or appointed government official who represents the government in the prosecution of criminal offenses. The district attorney is the highest officeholder in the jurisdiction's legal department and supervises a staff of...
Cyrus Vance, Jr.
Cyrus Vance, Jr.
Cyrus Roberts Vance, Jr. is an American trial lawyer. He is the incumbent New York County District Attorney , and was previously a principal at the law firm of Morvillo, Abramowitz, Grand, Isaon, Anello & Bohrer, P.C...
started his own inquiry.
Public attention to the pepper-sprayings resulted in a spike of news media coverage, a pattern that was to be repeated in the coming weeks following confrontations with police. Clyde Haberman, writing in The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, said that "If the Occupy Wall Street protesters ever choose to recognize a person who gave their cause its biggest boost, they may want to pay tribute to Anthony Bologna," calling the event "vital" for the still nascent movement. "After Ron Kuby, an attorney for one of the protesters, demanded Mr. Bologna’s arrest, [Bologna] was instead docked 10 vacation days and given a [...] reassignment to Staten Island, where he lives," according to an account by blogger Daniel Edward Rosen.
On October 1, 2011, protesters set out to march across the Brooklyn Bridge
Brooklyn Bridge
The Brooklyn Bridge is one of the oldest suspension bridges in the United States. Completed in 1883, it connects the New York City boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn by spanning the East River...
. The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
reported that more than 700 arrests were made. The police used ten buses to carry protesters off the bridge. Some said the police had tricked protesters, allowing them onto the bridge, and even escorting them partway across. Jesse A. Myerson, a media coordinator for Occupy Wall Street said, “The cops watched and did nothing, indeed, seemed to guide us onto the roadway.” However, some statements by protesters supported descriptions of the event given by police: for example, one protester Tweeted that "The police didn't lead us on to the bridge. They were backing the [expletive] up." A spokesman for the New York Police Department, Paul Browne, said that protesters were given multiple warnings to stay on the sidewalk and not block the street, and were arrested when they refused. By October 2, all but 20 of the arrestees had been released with citations for disorderly conduct and a criminal court summons. On October 4, a group of protesters who were arrested on the bridge filed a lawsuit against the city, alleging that officers had violated their constitutional rights by luring them into a trap and then arresting them; Mayor Bloomberg, commenting previously on the incident, had said that "[t]he police did exactly what they were supposed to do."
On October 5, joined by union members, students, and the unemployed, the demonstration swelled to the largest yet with an estimated 15,000 marchers joining the protest. Smaller protests continue in cities and on college campuses across the country.
Thousands of union workers joined protesters marching through the Financial District. The march was mostly peaceful—until after nightfall, when scuffles erupted. About 200 protesters tried to storm barricades blocking them from Wall Street and the Stock Exchange. Police responded with pepper spray and penned the protesters in with orange netting.
Inspired by Occupy Wall Street, British protesters organized an occupation of the London Stock Exchange to bring attention to what they saw as unethical behavior on the part of banks. One of the organizers of the protest said the protests are focused against "increasing social and economic injustice in this country." In his opinion, "the Government has made sure to maintain the status quo and let the people who caused this crisis get off scot-free, whilst conversely ensuring that the people of this country pay the price, in particular those most vulnerable."
Week 5 - 7 (October 15 – November 4)
On October 15, tens of thousands of demonstrators staged rallies in 900 cities around the world, including Auckland, Sydney, Hong Kong, Taipei, Tokyo, São Paulo, Paris, Madrid, Berlin, Hamburg, Leipzig, and many other cities. In Frankfurt, 5,000 people protested at the European Central Bank and in Zurich, Switzerland's financial hub, protesters carried banners reading "We won't bail you out yet again" and "We are the 99 percent." Protests were largely peaceful, however a protest in Rome that drew thousands turned violent when "a few thousand thugs from all over Italy, and possibly from all over Europe" caused extensive damage. Thousands of Occupy Wall Street protesters gathered in Times SquareTimes Square
Times Square is a major commercial intersection in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, at the junction of Broadway and Seventh Avenue and stretching from West 42nd to West 47th Streets...
in New York City and rallied for several hours. Several hundred protesters were arrested across the U.S., mostly for refusing to obey police orders to leave public areas. In Chicago there were 175 arrests, about 100 arrests in Arizona (53 in Tucson, 46 in Phoenix), and more than 70 in New York City, including at least 40 in Times Square. Multiple arrests were reported in Chicago, and about 150 people camped out by city hall in Minneapolis.
In the early morning hours of October 25, police cleared and closed an Occupy Oakland encampment in Frank Ogawa Park in Oakland, California. The raid on the encampment was described as "violent and chaotic at times," and resulted in over 102 arrests but there were no injuries.
A street march that afternoon protesting the closure culminated in a confrontation between police and protesters, who sought to re-establish the Ogawa Plaza encampment. During this confrontation, protester Scott Olsen, a former Marine and Iraq War veteran, suffered a skull fracture caused by a tear-gas projectile or smoke canister fired by police.
By 29 October 2011, there were about 2300 occupied zones around 2000 cities worldwide.
On November 2, protesters in Oakland, California
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
shut down the Port of Oakland
Port of Oakland
The Port of Oakland was the first major port on the Pacific Coast of the United States to build terminals for container ships. It is now the fifth busiest container port in the United States, behind Long Beach, Los Angeles, Newark, and Savannah...
, the fifth busiest port in the nation. Police estimated that about 3,000 demonstrators were gathered at the port and 4,500 had marched across the city, however a member of the Occupy movement was quoted by the BBC as estimating as many as 30,000 may have taken part.
Week 9 - 11 (November 5 – November 25)
On November 5th, FrankfurtFrankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
took the day of the Guy Fawkes Night
Guy Fawkes Night
Guy Fawkes Night, also known as Guy Fawkes Day, Bonfire Night and Firework Night, is an annual commemoration observed on 5 November, primarily in England. Its history begins with the events of 5 November 1605, when Guy Fawkes, a member of the Gunpowder Plot, was arrested while guarding...
as occasion for an extra loud and long demonstration, and Occupy Portland
Occupy Portland
Occupy Portland is a protest and demonstration that began on October 6, 2011 in downtown Portland, Oregon. It is based on the Occupy Wall Street movement that began in New York City on September 17, 2011....
made its "Move Your $" campaign. November 11 was another international protest day.
On November 11, Remembrance Day
Remembrance Day
Remembrance Day is a memorial day observed in Commonwealth countries since the end of World War I to remember the members of their armed forces who have died in the line of duty. This day, or alternative dates, are also recognized as special days for war remembrances in many non-Commonwealth...
in Canada, police forcibly removed tents from Victoria Park in Halifax, Nova Scotia and arrested 15 protestors. On the night of 14 November, a coordinated crackdown was undertaken by authorities around the world, with several camps being forcibly cleared. Examples of such camps include Zuccotti Park in New York, Oakland, Oregon, Denver and Zurich. For some of the other camps such as the one at St Pauls in London, no physical action was taken, but on 15 November authorities stepped up legal action to gain authorization for a forcible eviction.
Protesters from around the world and commentators such as former Financial Times editor Richard Lambert
Richard Lambert
Sir Richard Peter Lambert is the former Director-General of the CBI, and the present Chancellor of the University of Warwick.-Education:...
have suggested that the shift to confrontational tactics by authorities is more likely to spur on the movement rather than cause it to disband.
John Gapper, chief business commentator at the FT, offers a different view. Gapper says even some protestors admit it may be a good thing that camps are being closed down, as they were beginning to alienate even members of the public who were initially fully sympathetic with the movement. Gapper says some of the key intellectual action in the movement is now taking place not in the camps but in the Alternative Banking Group, which was set up by the diplomat Carne Ross
Carne Ross
Carne Ross is founder and director of Independent Diplomat, a diplomatic advisory group. Born in 1966, Ross has a fraternal twin, Oliver Ross, a successful paediatric anaesthetist in UK. Ross taught in Zimbabwe before attending the University of Exeter where he studied economics and politics. He...
and the rocket scientist Cathy O'Neil.
Occupy Boston received a major legal victory on November 17 after a judge ordered police to allow protestors to remain encamped in the park. A hearing is scheduled for December 1.
During a November 18, 2011 demonstration at UC Davis, campus police Lieutenant John Pike used pepper spray
Pepper spray
Pepper spray, also known as OC spray , OC gas, and capsicum spray, is a lachrymatory agent that is used in riot control, crowd control and personal self-defense, including defense against dogs and bears...
on seated students. The incident drew national attention and led to further demonstrations, petitions, and calls for Chancellor Linda P.B. Katehi
Linda P.B. Katehi
Pisti Basile "Linda" Katehi-Tseregounis is a Greek-American engineer and university administrator. Since 2009, she has served as the sixth chancellor of the University of California, Davis.-Early life and education:...
to resign.
Australia
"Occupy" demonstrations are taking place in Canberra, Wollongong, Perth, Sydney, Brisbane, AdelaideAdelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
and Melbourne
Occupy Melbourne
Occupy Melbourne is a social movement currently taking place as part of the global Occupy movements, in Melbourne, Australia. The occupation began on October 15 in City Square and has since moved to four other sites, currently occupying the Gordon Reserve Triangle...
., as well as smaller towns around the country. At the Occupy Melbourne
Occupy Melbourne
Occupy Melbourne is a social movement currently taking place as part of the global Occupy movements, in Melbourne, Australia. The occupation began on October 15 in City Square and has since moved to four other sites, currently occupying the Gordon Reserve Triangle...
protest on October 21, approximately 150 protesters defied police orders to clear the area, and were subsequently removed with force. 95 arrests were made and 43 reports of police violence were filed. Occupiers returned the following day in a walk against police violence, re-occupying multiple sites since.
Belgium
In BrusselsBrussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
a large Occupy demonstration took place on 15 October involving between 6,500 and 8,000 participants. The protest was largely peaceful, although seven people were arrested following vandalisation of the Dexia
Dexia
Dexia N.V./S.A., also referred to as the Dexia Group, is a Belgian-French financial institution active in public finance, providing retail and commercial banking services to individuals and SMEs, asset management, and insurance...
bank headquarters and financial tower. The Occupy Antwerp (Antwerpen) movement had its first gathering on Saturday 22 October at the Groenplaats, next to the cathedral. About 150-200 people attended a speakers corner. The socialist party (PVDA) was present and served free soup as well as information about its proposed "milionaires' tax".
To date, there have been four Occupy protests in Leuven
Leuven
Leuven is the capital of the province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region, Belgium...
. Three took place on the Grand Market in the centre of the city and one took place at a building of the city's Catholic university. The number of protesters in these rallies varied from 100 to 250. These protests have not included prolonged camping, but the protesters say that it is a possibility in the future.
Occupy Ghent
Ghent
Ghent is a city and a municipality located in the Flemish region of Belgium. It is the capital and biggest city of the East Flanders province. The city started as a settlement at the confluence of the Rivers Scheldt and Lys and in the Middle Ages became one of the largest and richest cities of...
(Gent) began on October 29 with 400 people in the South Park (Zuidpark). They received a visit by supporters attending the "second day of Socialism" (de Tweede Dag van het Socialisme), also held in Ghent on the same day.
Canada
"Occupy" demonstrations have been taking place in at least 20 Canadian cities since October 15. On that day, 5,000 people gathered in Vancouver to protest social injustice, while 150 stayed the night in front of the Vancouver Art Gallery. 2,000 people marched in Toronto on October 15 and around 100 continued to occupy St James Park, and 1,000 gathered in Montreal to march down Ste-Catherine Street; 85 tents were set up in Victoria square.Beginning on October 23, 2011 approximately 40 people occupied Memorial Park on Minto St in downtown Sudbury and still continue to do so.
Events have been concentrated in provincial urban areas, and there have yet to be any demonstrations in the territories of Yukon, Northwest Territories, or Nunavut.
On November 5, 2011, Ashlie Gough, 23, was found dead in one of the tents at Occupy Vancouver. The cause of death is determined to be overdose of cocaine and heroin.
There are currently a number of court proceedings across Canada on whether or not the eviction of protestors and violence from police is an infringement of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Colombia
Around 800 student protesters began occupying universities across Colombia on 12 November.Cyprus
On the 19th November 2011 protesters started the "No Borders Camp" Or "Occupy Buffer Zone", a permanent occupation of the United Nations controlled buffer zone in the centre of the capital, Nicosia, demanding an end to the decades-long division of the Island. The movement uses the Twitter hashtag "OccupyBufferZ".France
Some 300 protesters started occupying ParisParis
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
's financial district, La Défense
La Défense
La Défense is a major business district of the Paris aire urbaine. With a population of 20,000, it is centered in an orbital motorway straddling the Hauts-de-Seine département municipalities of Nanterre, Courbevoie and Puteaux...
, on November 4 2011. Since then, their camp has been torn down almost daily by police forces, who have even confiscated blankets and food, leaving protesters sleeping in the cold outdoors without protection. On November 11th, following a call made on social networks, some 400 additional people joined the occupation. Occupy protests have also begun at Nantes, Lyon, Grenoble and Perpignan.
Germany
In BerlinBerlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, Occupy movement together with Occupy Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
and Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
initiated its protests outside the Reichstag
Reichstag
Reichstag may refer to:*Reichstag – the diets or parliaments of the Holy Roman Empire, of the Austrian-Hungarian monarchy, and of Germany from 1871 to 1945** Reichstag ** Reichstag...
on Friday 15 October. Occupy Frankfurt has now taken residence in front of the European Central Bank
European Central Bank
The European Central Bank is the institution of the European Union that administers the monetary policy of the 17 EU Eurozone member states. It is thus one of the world's most important central banks. The bank was established by the Treaty of Amsterdam in 1998, and is headquartered in Frankfurt,...
, and a similar action is being prepared on the premises of the St. Mary's Church, Berlin
St. Mary's Church, Berlin
St. Mary's Church, known in German as the Marienkirche, is a church in Berlin, Germany. The church is located on Karl-Liebknecht-Straße in central Berlin, near Alexanderplatz. Its exact age is not known, but it was first mentioned in German chronicles in 1292. It is presumed to date from earlier...
. On 12 November major Occupy protests took place in Berlin and Frankfurt. Police reported that around 9,000 people peacefully protested near the headquarters of the European Central Bank, and that "several thousand" people took to the streets of Berlin; organisers of the protests claimed that turnout was around 8,000 in Berlin and 10,000 in Frankfurt.
Hong Kong
On October 15 an Occupy camp was established outside the Asian headquarters of HSBC Holdings in Central, Hong KongCentral, Hong Kong
Central is the central business district of Hong Kong. It is located in Central and Western District, on the north shore of Hong Kong Island, across Victoria Harbour from Tsim Sha Tsui, the southernmost point of Kowloon Peninsula...
. As of November 11 the camp was still in place, with around 20 permanent residents.
Israel
On October 15 an occupation named "Occupy Rothschild" began in Rothschild BoulevardRothschild Boulevard
Rothschild Boulevard is one of the principal streets in the center of Tel Aviv, Israel, beginning in Neve Tzedek at its southwestern edge and running north to Habima Theatre. It is one of the busiest and most expensive streets in the city, being one of the city's main tourist attractions...
, Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
. The occupation was related to the 2011 Israeli social justice protests
2011 Israeli social justice protests
The 2011 Israeli social justice protests , which are also referred to by various other names in the media, are a series of ongoing demonstrations in Israel beginning in July 2011 involving hundreds of thousands of protesters from a variety of socio-economic and religious backgrounds opposing the...
which began in Rothschild on July 14.
Italy
On October 15, 2011, about 200,000 people gathered in RomeRome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
to protest against economic inequality
Economic inequality
Economic inequality comprises all disparities in the distribution of economic assets and income. The term typically refers to inequality among individuals and groups within a society, but can also refer to inequality among countries. The issue of economic inequality is related to the ideas of...
and the influence of the European Commission
European Commission
The European Commission is the executive body of the European Union. The body is responsible for proposing legislation, implementing decisions, upholding the Union's treaties and the general day-to-day running of the Union....
, the European Central Bank
European Central Bank
The European Central Bank is the institution of the European Union that administers the monetary policy of the 17 EU Eurozone member states. It is thus one of the world's most important central banks. The bank was established by the Treaty of Amsterdam in 1998, and is headquartered in Frankfurt,...
and the International Monetary Fund
International Monetary Fund
The International Monetary Fund is an organization of 187 countries, working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world...
on government. Many other protests occurred in other Italian cities the same day.
In Rome masked and hooded militants wearing makeshift body armor, in black bloc
Black bloc
A black bloc is a tactic for protests and marches, whereby individuals wear black clothing, scarves, ski masks, motorcycle helmets with padding, or other face-concealing items...
fashion, infiltrated the protests centered in St John Lateran square
Basilica of St. John Lateran
The Papal Archbasilica of St. John Lateran , commonly known as St. John Lateran's Archbasilica and St. John Lateran's Basilica, is the cathedral of the Diocese of Rome and the official ecclesiastical seat of the Bishop of Rome, who is the Pope...
and committed numerous violent acts, throwing Molotov cocktails and other homemade explosives, burning and blowing up cars, burning buildings, and smashing up property such as ATMs and shop windows. The Roman Catholic church Santi Marcellino e Pietro al Laterano received extensive damage, including a statue of the Virgin Mary being thrown into the street and destroyed. Several unexploded petrol bombs were reportedly found on several streets by Italian police. Over 1,000,000 euros of damage (equivalent to over 1.3 million dollars) was recorded. At least 135 people were injured in the resulting clashes, including 105 police officers, several of whom were left in critical condition, and two news crews from Sky Italia
Sky Italia
Sky Italia S.r.l. is an Italian digital satellite television platform owned by News Corporation launched on 1 August 2003, when the former platforms TELE+ and Stream TV merged together...
. Two protesters had their fingers amputated by exploding smoke bombs. Almost 20 people have been arrested in connection with the violence.
After the October 15 demonstration, peaceful people occupied the Santa Croce in Gerusalemme
Santa Croce in Gerusalemme
The Basilica of the Holy Cross in Jerusalem is a Roman Catholic parish church and minor basilica in Rome, Italy. It is one of the Seven Pilgrim Churches of Rome....
square and started camping as in other cities worldwide. The name of this Rome's group, related to international Occupy movement, is Accampata Roma.
Malaysia
The Occupy Dataran movement first held their assembly at Dataran MerdekaDataran Merdeka
Merdeka Square is located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It is situated in front of the Sultan Abdul Samad Building. It was here the Union Flag was lowered and the Malayan flag hoisted for the first time at midnight on August 31, 1957...
(Independence Square) 7 weeks before Occupy Wall Street
Occupy Wall Street
Occupy Wall Street is an ongoing series of demonstrations initiated by the Canadian activist group Adbusters which began September 17, 2011 in Zuccotti Park, located in New York City's Wall Street financial district...
on July 30, 2011 to create an alternative to the current representative democracy
Representative democracy
Representative democracy is a form of government founded on the principle of elected individuals representing the people, as opposed to autocracy and direct democracy...
using the popular assembly
Popular assembly
A popular or people's assembly is a gathering called to address issues of importance to participants. Assemblies tend to be freely open to participation and operate by direct democracy...
model based on principles of participatory democracy
Participatory democracy
Participatory Democracy, also known as Deliberative Democracy, Direct Democracy and Real Democracy , is a process where political decisions are made directly by regular people...
. As part of the 15 October 2011 global protests
15 October 2011 global protests
The 15 October 2011 global protests were part of a series of protests inspired by the Arab Spring, the Spanish "Indignants", the Greek Protests and the Occupy movement. Global demonstrations were held on October 15 in more than 950 cities 82 countries. The date was chosen to coincide with the 5...
, over 200 people took part in 15 October's Occupy Dataran, the largest assembly to date. In late October, the movement spread to Penang
Penang
Penang is a state in Malaysia and the name of its constituent island, located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia by the Strait of Malacca. It is bordered by Kedah in the north and east, and Perak in the south. Penang is the second smallest Malaysian state in area after Perlis, and the...
with Occupy Penang and Kelantan
Kelantan
Kelantan is a state of Malaysia. The capital and royal seat is Kota Bharu. The Arabic honorific of the state is Darul Naim, ....
with Occupy Kota Bharu.
Mexico
Occupy began Mexico City 11 October with a hunger strike in front of Mexican Stock Market. Edur Velasco, a 56-year old labor economist and university professor, sitting in a tent outside Mexico's stock market. Velasco has been on a 42 day-long hunger strike outside the stock market, demanding the government guarantee greater access to higher education among the youth. Days after it was a surprise to see a lot of tents set up outside Mexico’s stock market. Now the movement have a broad base. Police were around the corner sitting in trucks, discreetly hidden from view but there nevertheless.Mongolia
S. Ganbaatar, the head of Mongolia's Confederation of Trade Unions (CTU), has announced that the association joins the worldwide occupy protests of Wall Street and other high streets on 20 October 2011. He claimed that bankers are charging higher interest rates from customers and corporates. In the most recent data in September 2011, the weighted average annual MNT lending rate is 16% in MongoliaMongolia
Mongolia is a landlocked country in East and Central Asia. It is bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south, east and west. Although Mongolia does not share a border with Kazakhstan, its western-most point is only from Kazakhstan's eastern tip. Ulan Bator, the capital and largest...
.
New Zealand
Six cities across New Zealand have seen "Occupy" protests arise in October, namely Auckland, New Plymouth, Wellington, Christchurch, Dunedin, and Invercargill. Protests in Auckland have drawn up to 3,000 supporters.A seventh Occupy protest started on November 19 in the Lower Hutt suburb of Pomare by a group called "Pomare Community Voice" to highlight what they call the "loss of community" caused by the demolition of state homes in the area.
Norway
The Occupy movement in Norway began on October 15 with protests in Oslo and Bergen as part of the Global Day of Action. In Oslo the movement has since then met every Saturday in the city centre, usually at Eidsvolls plass in front of the Parliament, but sometimes at other sites, like Spikersuppa and Youngstorget. In Bergen the movement meet on Saturdays at Vågsallmenningen 4 (Holbergsstatuen).Republic of Ireland
Six towns and cities in Ireland are now being occupied; Dublin, Cork, Galway,Waterford, Letterkenny, and Athlone. It is expected that Roscommon will follow. Protests were held in Dublin, Cork
Cork (city)
Cork is the second largest city in the Republic of Ireland and the island of Ireland's third most populous city. It is the principal city and administrative centre of County Cork and the largest city in the province of Munster. Cork has a population of 119,418, while the addition of the suburban...
, and Galway
Galway
Galway or City of Galway is a city in County Galway, Republic of Ireland. It is the sixth largest and the fastest-growing city in Ireland. It is also the third largest city within the Republic and the only city in the Province of Connacht. Located on the west coast of Ireland, it sits on the...
. The Irish Times
The Irish Times
The Irish Times is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Kevin O'Sullivan who succeeded Geraldine Kennedy in 2011; the deputy editor is Paul O'Neill. The Irish Times is considered to be Ireland's newspaper of record, and is published every day except Sundays...
described the movement in the following terms: "The group has no hierarchical structure, has set up a Facebook page and Twitter account – with the social media links attracting a very mixed, and sometimes critical, reaction." The protest in Dublin was organized by the "Real Democracy Now! Ireland", and "Occupy Dame Street" protest, set up outside the Central Bank of Ireland in solidarity with the Occupy Wall Street
Occupy Wall Street
Occupy Wall Street is an ongoing series of demonstrations initiated by the Canadian activist group Adbusters which began September 17, 2011 in Zuccotti Park, located in New York City's Wall Street financial district...
movement in New York. On 22 October is was reported that over 2,000 people took part in the Occupy Dame Street demonstration.
South Korea
Hundreds of protesters held rallies in the South Korean capital SeoulSeoul
Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...
on October 15 and October 22 under the slogan of "Occupy Seoul". Protesters focused on issues such as a recent free trade agreement with the United States as well as costs of tuition and rent.
Switzerland
On October 15, Occupy protests, its participants numbering at about 500-1,000 took place in front of the offices of UBS and Credit SuisseCredit Suisse
The Credit Suisse Group AG is a Swiss multinational financial services company headquartered in Zurich, with more than 250 branches in Switzerland and operations in more than 50 countries.-History:...
on the Paradeplatz in Zurich
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
. 100 protesters later established an occupation on the nearby Lindenhof, which was evicted by the police on November 15th.
United Kingdom
As part of the 15 October 2011 global protests15 October 2011 global protests
The 15 October 2011 global protests were part of a series of protests inspired by the Arab Spring, the Spanish "Indignants", the Greek Protests and the Occupy movement. Global demonstrations were held on October 15 in more than 950 cities 82 countries. The date was chosen to coincide with the 5...
, protesters gathered in London, Bristol, Birmingham, Glasgow and Edinburgh. The London Stock Exchange
London Stock Exchange
The London Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located in the City of London within the United Kingdom. , the Exchange had a market capitalisation of US$3.7495 trillion, making it the fourth-largest stock exchange in the world by this measurement...
in Paternoster Square
Paternoster Square
Paternoster Square is an urban development, owned by the Mitsubishi Estate Co., next to St Paul's Cathedral in the City of London, England. In 1942 the area, which takes its name from Paternoster Row, centre of the London publishing trade, was devastated by aerial bombardment in The Blitz during...
was the initial target for the protesters of Occupy London on October 15, 2011. Attempts to occupy the square were thwarted by police. Police sealed off the entrance to the square as it was private property, and a High Court injunction had been granted against public access to the square. 2500-3000 people gathered nearby outside St Paul's Cathedral
St Paul's Cathedral
St Paul's Cathedral, London, is a Church of England cathedral and seat of the Bishop of London. Its dedication to Paul the Apostle dates back to the original church on this site, founded in AD 604. St Paul's sits at the top of Ludgate Hill, the highest point in the City of London, and is the mother...
, with 250 camping overnight. The canon
Canon (priest)
A canon is a priest or minister who is a member of certain bodies of the Christian clergy subject to an ecclesiastical rule ....
of St. Paul's, Reverend Giles Fraser, said he was happy for people to "exercise their right to protest peacefully" outside the cathedral and an indefinite encampment was established. Additional smaller protests occurred in Birmingham and Nottingham. As of 17 October an indefinite encampment
Tent City
A tent city is a temporary housing facility made using tents. Informal tent cities may be set up without authorization by homeless people or protesters. As well, state governments or military organizations set up tent cities to house refugees, evacuees, or soldiers...
had also been established on College Green
College Green, Bristol
College Green is a public open space in Bristol, England. The Green takes the form of a segment of a circle with its apex pointing east, and covers...
in Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
. On 29 October a camp was also established in Victoria Gardens, Brighton
Brighton
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...
, and grew from six tents to around twenty within one week. Further Occupy camps are taking place in Bath
Bath
Bath is a city in the ceremonial county of Somerset in the south west of England. It is situated west of London and south-east of Bristol. The population of the city is 83,992. It was granted city status by Royal Charter by Queen Elizabeth I in 1590, and was made a county borough in 1889 which...
, Bradford
Bradford
Bradford lies at the heart of the City of Bradford, a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, in Northern England. It is situated in the foothills of the Pennines, west of Leeds, and northwest of Wakefield. Bradford became a municipal borough in 1847, and received its charter as a city in 1897...
, Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
Leeds
Leeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
, Sheffield
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
, Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...
, Plymouth
Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
, Exeter
Exeter
Exeter is a historic city in Devon, England. It lies within the ceremonial county of Devon, of which it is the county town as well as the home of Devon County Council. Currently the administrative area has the status of a non-metropolitan district, and is therefore under the administration of the...
, and Norwich
Norwich
Norwich is a city in England. It is the regional administrative centre and county town of Norfolk. During the 11th century, Norwich was the largest city in England after London, and one of the most important places in the kingdom...
.
In Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
, Occupy Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
initiated its protest outside the offices of Invest NI on Friday 21 October. Occupy Belfast has now taken residence at Writer's Square, in the Cathedral Quarter
Cathedral Quarter
The Cathedral Quarter is one of Sheffield's eleven designated quarters, based around and named after the Cathedral. It is bound by Tenter Street to the Northwest, West Bar to the North, Snig Hill to the North east, Angel Street to the East, High Street and Church Street to the south and Townhead...
. It is expected that an Occupy Derry
Derry
Derry or Londonderry is the second-biggest city in Northern Ireland and the fourth-biggest city on the island of Ireland. The name Derry is an anglicisation of the Irish name Doire or Doire Cholmcille meaning "oak-wood of Colmcille"...
will take place in the near future.
In Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
camps have been organised around the financial district of St. Andrew Square, Edinburgh since 15 October.
St. Andrews Square is the home of the Royal Bank of Scotland
Royal Bank of Scotland
The Royal Bank of Scotland Group is a British banking and insurance holding company in which the UK Government holds an 84% stake. This stake is held and managed through UK Financial Investments Limited, whose voting rights are limited to 75% in order for the bank to retain its listing on the...
headquarters in the Dundas House
Dundas House
Dundas House is located at 36 St Andrew Square, Edinburgh, Scotland. It is the Registered Office of the Royal Bank of Scotland. It is protected as a category A listed building....
mansion. Edinburgh City Council has officially backed the Occupy Edinburgh
Occupy Edinburgh
Occupy Edinburgh is an ongoing peaceful protest and demonstration against what it calls "the monied corruption of our democracy". The "occupation" began with the erection of a number of tents in St. Andrew Square...
Movement and all Occupy movements worldwide.
Protesters from Occupy Glasgow
Occupy Glasgow
Occupy Glasgow is an ongoing peaceful protest in Glasgow, Scotland, a part of the global Occupy movement with the intent to resolve economic and financial inequality...
had set up in the civic George Square
George Square
George Square is the principal civic square in the city of Glasgow, Scotland. It is named after King George III.-Historical development:George Square was laid out in 1781, part of the innovative Georgian central grid plan that initially spanned from Stockwell Street east to Buchanan Street—which...
on 15 October but moved to Kelvingrove Park
Kelvingrove Park
Kelvingrove Park is a public park located on the River Kelvin in the West End of the city of Glasgow, Scotland, containing the world-famous Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum.-History:...
where the council would provide running water, toilets and safety fences after the council obtained a court order.
On 11 November, police arrested 170 EDL
English Defence League
The English Defence League is a far-right street protest movement which opposes what it considers to be a spread of Islamism, Sharia law and Islamic extremism in the UK. The EDL uses street marches to protest against Islamic extremism...
members on Armistice Day when intelligence revealed EDL members planned to attack campers at St Paul's Cathedral.
On 15 November an Occupy camp was established in the centre of Leicester
Leicester
Leicester is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England, and the county town of Leicestershire. The city lies on the River Soar and at the edge of the National Forest...
near the Highcross shopping centre.
As of 30th November 2011 following national strike action, a body of students occupied The University of Sheffield Arts Tower in solidarity with, but not limited to, the occupy movement.
United States
The Occupy Wall StreetOccupy Wall Street
Occupy Wall Street is an ongoing series of demonstrations initiated by the Canadian activist group Adbusters which began September 17, 2011 in Zuccotti Park, located in New York City's Wall Street financial district...
protests began in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in September 2011. The Canadian activist group Adbusters initiated the protests which have since become a worldwide movement. The protests have focused on social and economic inequality, high unemployment, greed and corruption, and the undue influence of corporations—particularly that of the financial services sector—on government. The protest movement uses the slogan "We are the 99%" in reference to discrepancies in income or political power between the elites and all the remaining citizens of the United States. By October 9, similar demonstrations were either ongoing or had been held in 70 major cities and over 600 communities across the U.S.
At least 80 arrests were made on September 24, after protesters started marching uptown and forcing the closure of several streets. Most of the 80 arrests were for blocking traffic, though some were also charged with disorderly conduct
Disorderly conduct
Disorderly conduct is a criminal charge in most jurisdictions in the United States. Typically, disorderly conduct makes it a crime to be drunk in public, to "disturb the peace", or to loiter in certain areas. Many types of unruly conduct may fit the definition of disorderly conduct, as such...
and resisting arrest. Police officers have also been using a technique called kettling
Kettling
Kettling is a police tactic for controlling large crowds during demonstrations or protests. It involves the formation of large cordons of police officers who then move to contain a crowd within a limited area. Protesters are left only one choice of exit, determined by the police, or are completely...
which involves using orange nets to isolate protesters into smaller groups.
On October 1, 2011, protesters in New York City set out to march across the Brooklyn Bridge
Brooklyn Bridge
The Brooklyn Bridge is one of the oldest suspension bridges in the United States. Completed in 1883, it connects the New York City boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn by spanning the East River...
. The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
reported that more than 700 arrests were made. The police used ten buses to carry protesters off the bridge. Some said the police had tricked protesters, allowing them onto the bridge, and even escorting them partway across. Jesse A. Myerson, a media coordinator for Occupy Wall Street said, "The cops watched and did nothing, indeed, seemed to guide us onto the roadway."
On October 25, 2011 during the Occupy Oakland
Occupy Oakland
Occupy Oakland is a series of demonstrations including the occupation of public spaces that began in downtown Oakland at Frank H. Ogawa Plaza in front of Oakland City Hall in Oakland, California on October 10, 2011. It is allied with the Occupy Wall Street movement in New York City and is one of...
protests, following multiple violation notices from city officials, police officers in riot gear from various Bay Area
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
law enforcement agencies cleared both camp sites during the early hours of the day. Police fired tear gas canisters at the protestors, allegedly in response to objects being thrown at them. Protest organizers said that many of the troublemakers were not part of the Occupy movement. Two MSN
MSN
MSN is a collection of Internet sites and services provided by Microsoft. The Microsoft Network debuted as an online service and Internet service provider on August 24, 1995, to coincide with the release of the Windows 95 operating system.The range of services offered by MSN has changed since its...
reporters described the raid was described as "violent and chaotic at times" and resulted in over 102 arrests. Scott Olsen, a former Marine
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
and Iraq War veteran, and a member of Veterans for Peace
Veterans for Peace
Veterans For Peace is a United States organization founded in 1985. Made up of male and female US military veterans of World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Gulf War, and other conflicts, as well as peacetime veterans, the group works to promote alternatives to war.-Foundation:The...
, suffered a skull fracture
Bone fracture
A bone fracture is a medical condition in which there is a break in the continuity of the bone...
caused by a projectile
Projectile
A projectile is any object projected into space by the exertion of a force. Although a thrown baseball is technically a projectile too, the term more commonly refers to a weapon....
that witnesses believed was a tear gas or smoke canister fired by the police.
On November 2, protesters in Oakland
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
, California shut down the Port of Oakland
Port of Oakland
The Port of Oakland was the first major port on the Pacific Coast of the United States to build terminals for container ships. It is now the fifth busiest container port in the United States, behind Long Beach, Los Angeles, Newark, and Savannah...
, the fifth busiest port in the nation. Police estimated that about 3,000 demonstrators were gathered at the port and 4,500 had marched across the city, however a member of the Occupy movement was quoted by the BBC as estimating as many as 30,000 may have taken part.
Political
Brazil On 15 October 2011, President Dilma RousseffDilma Rousseff
Dilma Vana Rousseff is the 36th and current President of Brazil. She is the first woman to hold the office. Prior to that, in 2005, she was also the first woman to become Chief of Staff of Brazil, appointed by then President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva....
said, "We agree with some of the expressions that some movements have used around the world [in] demonstrations like the ones we see in the US and other countries."
Canada On 15 October 2011, Finance Minister Jim FlahertyJim Flaherty
James Michael "Jim" Flaherty, PC, MP is Canada's Minister of Finance and he has also served as Ontario's Minister of Finance. From 1995 until 2005, he was the Member of Provincial Parliament for Whitby—Ajax, and a member of the Progressive Conservative Party caucus...
expressed sympathy with the protests, stating "There's growing worry about a lack of opportunities for the younger generation — particularly in the United States — and it's up to governments to ensure youth are able to capitalize on their education and find good jobs." He later commented, "I can understand some legitimate frustration arising out of that."
India On 19 October 2011, Manmohan SinghManmohan Singh
Manmohan Singh is the 13th and current Prime Minister of India. He is the only Prime Minister since Jawaharlal Nehru to return to power after completing a full five-year term. A Sikh, he is the first non-Hindu to occupy the office. Singh is also the 7th Prime Minister belonging to the Indian...
, Prime Minister of India
Prime Minister of India
The Prime Minister of India , as addressed to in the Constitution of India — Prime Minister for the Union, is the chief of government, head of the Council of Ministers and the leader of the majority party in parliament...
, described the protests as "a warning for all those who are in charge of the processes of governance".
United Kingdom On 21 October 2011, Former Prime Minister Gordon BrownGordon Brown
James Gordon Brown is a British Labour Party politician who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 until 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour Government from 1997 to 2007...
said the protests were about fairness. "There are voices in the middle who say, 'Look, we can build a better financial system that is more sustainable, that is based on a better and proportionate sense of what's just and fair and where people don't take reckless risks or, if they do, they're penalized for doing so.' " On 6 November 2011, Opposition leader Ed Miliband
Ed Miliband
Edward Samuel Miliband is a British Labour Party politician, currently the Leader of the Labour Party and Leader of the Opposition...
: "The challenge is that they reflect a crisis of concern for millions of people about the biggest issue of our time: the gap between their values and the way our country is run." He mentioned that he is "determined that mainstream politics, and the Labour Party in particular, speaks to that crisis and rises to the challenge".
On Saturday 26 November 2011, Edinburgh City Council set a worldwide precedent by voting in favour of the motion to support the aims and sentiments of Occupy Edinburgh and the Occupy Movement as a whole. This motion was presented by the Scottish Green Party, was seconded by the Scottish Labour Party and was slightly amended by the SNP and LibDems. The only party not to back the motion was the Conservatives. "We regard this as a fantastic step forward in the opening of dialogue with the Scottish government.", stated Occupy Edinburgh.
United States On 16 October 2011, President Barack ObamaBarack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
spoke in support of the movement, though also asked protesters not to "demonize" finance workers.
Local authorities in the United States have collaborated to develop strategies to respond to the Occupy movement and its encampments, and political leaders in eighteen United States cities consulted on cracking down on the Occupy movement, according to Oakland Mayor Jean Quan
Jean Quan
Jean Quan is the Democratic mayor of Oakland, California. She previously served as City Council member for Oakland's 4th District...
, who participated in a conference call. Within a span of less than 24 hours, municipal authorities in Denver, Salt Lake City
Occupy Salt Lake City
Occupy Salt Lake City is a protest and demonstration that began on October 6, 2011 in downtown Salt Lake City, Utah and based in Pioneer Park. This protest is based on the Occupy Wall Street movement that started in New York City on September 17...
, Portland
Occupy Portland
Occupy Portland is a protest and demonstration that began on October 6, 2011 in downtown Portland, Oregon. It is based on the Occupy Wall Street movement that began in New York City on September 17, 2011....
, Oakland
Occupy Oakland
Occupy Oakland is a series of demonstrations including the occupation of public spaces that began in downtown Oakland at Frank H. Ogawa Plaza in front of Oakland City Hall in Oakland, California on October 10, 2011. It is allied with the Occupy Wall Street movement in New York City and is one of...
and New York City
Occupy Wall Street
Occupy Wall Street is an ongoing series of demonstrations initiated by the Canadian activist group Adbusters which began September 17, 2011 in Zuccotti Park, located in New York City's Wall Street financial district...
sent in police to crack down on the encampments of the Occupy movement.
Venezuela Venezuelan President Hugo ChávezHugo Chávez
Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías is the 56th and current President of Venezuela, having held that position since 1999. He was formerly the leader of the Fifth Republic Movement political party from its foundation in 1997 until 2007, when he became the leader of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela...
condemned the "horrible repression" of the activists and expressed solidarity with the movement.
Media
An article in the centre-left Labour Party-affiliated British magazine ProgressProgress
-History:*Progress , the idea that the world can become increasingly better in terms of science, technology, modernization, liberty, democracy, quality of life, etc....
published on 25 November criticised the Occupy protesters as representing "an unpalatable smorgasbord of religious, political and cultural ideas."
The Korean Central News Agency
Korean Central News Agency
The Korean Central News Agency is the state news agency of North Korea and has existed since December 5, 1946. KCNA is headquartered in the capital city of Pyongyang...
of North Korea
North Korea
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...
has described the Occupy movement as being "in protest against exploitation and oppression by capital, shaking all fabrics of society."
Other
EgyptEgypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
ian protesters from Tahrir Square have lent their support of the movement. A message of solidarity issued by a collective of Cairo-based protesters declared: "As the interests of government increasingly cater to the interests and comforts of private, transnational capital, our cities and homes have become progressively more abstract and violent places, subject to the casual ravages of the next economic development or urban renewal scheme. An entire generation across the globe has grown up realizing, rationally and emotionally, that we have no future in the current order of things."
Impact
It is too soon to gauge the full global impact of this fledgling and multifaceted social movement. In the United States, the protests have helped shift the national dialogue from the deficit to economic problems many ordinary Americans face, such as unemployment, the large amount of student and other personal debt that burdens middle class and working class Americans, and other major issues of social inequality, such as homelessness. The movement appears to have generated a national conversation about income inequality, as evidenced by the fact that print and broadcast news mentioned the term “income inequality” more than five times more often during the last week of October 2011 than during the week before the occupation began.The increased public focus on the growing income gap between economic elites and the middle class and on the importance of the rights of ordinary workers brought about by the Occupy Movement gave a significant boost to organized labor's campaign to repeal anti-labor union law passed in the State of Ohio known as Ohio Senate Bill 5 (SB5). In the November 2011 elections, Ohio voters repealed SB 5.
Labor unions have become bolder in the tactics they employ and have been using digital social media more effectively because of the Occupy movement. In New York City, the Occupy Wall Street protest has also provided hundreds of protesters to help in picket actions conducted by labor unions.
On November 10, 2011, The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
reported that occupy had been the "most commonly used English word on the internet and in print" over the past 12 months according to a top ten list published by media analysis company Global Language Monitor
Global Language Monitor
The Global Language Monitor is an Austin, Texas-based company that collectively documents, analyzes and tracks trends in language usage worldwide, with a particular emphasis upon the English language...
.
See also
- List of Occupy movement protest locations
- Timeline of Occupy Wall StreetTimeline of Occupy Wall StreetThe following is a timeline of Occupy Wall Street which began on Saturday, September 17, 2011 as an occupation of Wall Street, the financial district of New York City and is an ongoing demonstration....
- We are the 99%
Other U.S. protests
- 2011 United States public employee protests2011 United States public employee protestsIn February 2011, a series of public employee protests began in the United States against proposed legislation which would weaken the power of labor unions. By March, eighteen states had proposed legislation which would remove some collective bargaining powers from unions, along with another five...
- 2011 Wisconsin protests2011 Wisconsin protestsThe 2011 Wisconsin protests were a series of demonstrations in the state of Wisconsin in the United States beginning in February involving at its zenith as many as 100,000 protestors opposing the Wisconsin Budget Repair Bill. Subsequently, anti-tax activists and other conservatives, including tea...
- Tea Party protests
Other international protests
- 2010–2011 Greek protests2010–2011 Greek protestsThe 2010–2011 Greek protests are an ongoing series of demonstrations and general strikes taking place across Greece. The protests, which began on 5 May 2010, were sparked by plans to cut public spending and raise taxes as austerity measures in exchange for a bail-out, aimed at solving the...
- 2011 Chilean protests2011 Chilean protestsThe 2011 Chilean protests,Chilean Winter or Chilean Education Conflict are a series of ongoing student-led protests across Chile, demanding a new framework for education in Chile, including more direct state participation in secondary education and an end to the existence of profit...
- 2011 Israeli social justice protests2011 Israeli social justice protestsThe 2011 Israeli social justice protests , which are also referred to by various other names in the media, are a series of ongoing demonstrations in Israel beginning in July 2011 involving hundreds of thousands of protesters from a variety of socio-economic and religious backgrounds opposing the...
- 2011 United Kingdom anti-austerity protests2011 United Kingdom anti-austerity protestsThe 2011 United Kingdom anti-austerity protests were a series of anti-austerity protests that took place in the United Kingdom in early 2011...
and 2010 UK student protests2010 UK student protestsThe 2010 UK student protests were a series of demonstrations that began in November 2010 in several areas of the United Kingdom, with the focal point of protests centred in London. The initial event was the largest student protest in the UK since the Labour government first proposed the Teaching... - Arab SpringArab SpringThe Arab Spring , otherwise known as the Arab Awakening, is a revolutionary wave of demonstrations and protests occurring in the Arab world that began on Saturday, 18 December 2010...
- Iceland Kitchenware Revolution
- Spanish 15M Indignants movement2011 Spanish protestsThe 2011 Spanish protests, also referred to as the 15-M Movement and the Indignants movement, are a series of ongoing demonstrations in Spain whose origin can be traced to social networks and Real Democracy NOW among other civilian digital platforms and 200 other small associations...
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Further reading
- Berg, A.G. and Ostry, J.D. (September 2011) "Equality and Efficiency" Finance and Development (Washington, D.C.: International Monetary FundInternational Monetary FundThe International Monetary Fund is an organization of 187 countries, working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world...
)
External links
- Occupy Together
- Occupy Agenda
- Wiki Occupy
- www.15october.net
- Occupy Together Meetups Everywhere at Meetup
- National Student Protest Scheduled: 10/13/2011—List of participating colleges, from occupycolleges.org
News media
- "Occupy" photographs from around the nation from the Denver Post
Related websites