--------------------------------------------------------------------------
This week we reflect on the second anniversary of Occupy Wall Street and the fifth anniversary of the financial collapse. This newsletter is also available on the web here (http://www.popularresistance.org/popular-resistance-newsletter-celebrate-the-culture-of-resistance/) . ------------------------------------------------------------ This week we reflect on the second anniversary of Occupy Wall Street and the fifth anniversary of the financial collapse. There are reasons to celebrate despite continued economic stagnation and growing debt: the culture of resistance in the US is here and itâs having an effect. There are cracks in the pillars of power, and itâs up to us to pry them open and shine light on the lies and corruption that have been used to steal our future. We see a movement that is building momentum. We look back over the events of the past two years and feel cautiously optimistic. As we met to organize the occupation of Freedom Plaza in Washington, DC, there was a strong sense of suspense. Some said that Americans werenât feeling enough pain, that we hadnât reached the tipping point. Similarly, the organizers of Occupy Wall Street acted out of anticipation. They staked out a place in the heart of the monster and held it. At first there were only a few hundred, but by holding that space courageously, more people were inspired to join them. Excitement and wonder were in the air. Could the people really take on Wall Street? http://www.popularresistance.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/1policeows.jpgObviously Wall Street thought so because they ordered excessive and constant police protection. They must have seen something brewing because Wall Street firms donated anunprecedented millions to the NYPD (http://www.salon.com/2011/10/07/the_nypd_now_sponsored_by_wall_street/) over the previous year. It was police aggression towards peaceful protesters that grabbed public attention and sympathy. A few weeks after the start of Occupy Wall Street, an amazing 43 percent of Americans supported Occupy. Two years later, the physical encampments are gone, but the Occupy Movement remains. Occupying public space was a tactic, not an end in itself. It was a way to make the issues visible, a place for people to gather, a model for a new way of doing things based on respect, mutual aid and democracy and a metaphor for claiming what has been taken. The âpublicâ is disappearing, not just public space but also public services, research and resources have been privatized, expropriated for the profits of a few. When the financial crisis hit in 2008, there was an expectation that the government would respond appropriately to stabilize the economy and that we simply had to weather the storm. What we saw instead were massive bailouts of the industry that caused the crash and greatly inadequate steps to secure jobs, housing and health care. As Jerome Roos writes (http://www.popularresistance.org/the-catastrophic-management-of-catastrophe/) , âthe most catastrophic thing about neoliberal crisis management is not only that it has a penchant to turn already catastrophic financial crises caused by runaway private speculation into an immense source of private gain for the same very financiers responsible for the catastrophe to begin with; but, even more nefariously, that it makes those catastrophes so much more catastrophic than they really need to be for almost everyone else.â http://www.popularresistance.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/1billion.jpgAs Les Leopold points out (http://www.popularresistance.org/billionaire-bailout-society-99-may-never-recover-in-our-lifetimes/) , âWeâre not heading toward greater income equality. Weâre not building up the middle class or supporting unionization. Weâre not eradicating poverty and hunger. Weâre not expanding educational opportunity. Weâre not rebuilding infrastructure. Nothing weâre doing looks anything like the society we built from the New Deal through the 1960s. Weâre not doing any of the things that would lead to a more stable and just economy. In fact, weâre doing just the opposite, which means the billionaire bailout society will become even more firmly entrenched.â This means that if left unchecked, the trends towards greater inequality and suffering will continue. But the billionaire bailout society went too far. According to a Stanford study (http://www.popularresistance.org/five-years-after-collapse-americans-still-angry-at-wall-street/) , âanimosity toward the financial sector reached its highest level in 40 years in 2010â which probably fueled the Occupy Movement, and anger remains high. A majority of Americans believe that ânot enough was done to prosecute the bankers.â When drowning in so many crises it is sometimes hard to see above the surface of the water, but the anti-globalization movement and its offspring, the occupy movement, are having an effect. Since 2000, the World Trade Organization has been unable to advance its agenda and 14 free trade agreements have been stopped by public pressure. The Trans-Pacific Partnership and its sister the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership known as TAFTA, are being negotiated in secret as a way to pursue the WTO agenda through the backdoor. A recent study (http://www.popularresistance.org/study-trade-deal-would-mean-pay-cut-for-90-of-u-s-workers/) found that the TPP will reduce wages for the bottom 90 percent of people in the US while significantly increasing the wealth of the top 1 percent. The AFL CIO passed a resolution (http://www.popularresistance.org/afl-cio-to-fight-trade-deals-like-tpp/) opposing the TPP and Teamster President James Hoffa wrote (http://www.popularresistance.org/u-s-needs-to-rethink-free-trade-agreements/) , âWorkers on both sides of the deal get screwed while corporations rake in record profits. Like low-wage workers in the fast food and retail industries, workers must join together to let Congress know that the TPP is not the right path for the U.S.â http://www.popularresistance.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Dunlea-OWS-S-17-5.jpgA broad coalition of groups have come together to stop the TPP. At the Occupy Wall Street protests this week in New York, the TPP was a top theme. In addition to marches and teach-ins focused on the TPP, the Money Wars street theater group (http://www.popularresistance.org/money-wars-the-transpacific-partnership/) performed its epic battle of Princess Laid-Off and the rebels against the TPP Death Star, Emperor Pipeline and Dark Banker. Actions are taking place this weekend and next week (http://www.popularresistance.org/sign-up-for-stop-fas-track-action-camp-days-of-action/) in Washington. If we are successful, this will be a huge victory against transnational corporate power. There have been a number of wins recently against top corporations. The Nez Perce tribe and allies took on General Electric (http://www.popularresistance.org/victory-judge-halts-tar-sands-megaloads-through-natl-forest/) and won a case to stop megaloads for the tar sands from crossing their land in Idaho. Exxon was charged (http://www.popularresistance.org/exxon-charged-with-illegally-dumping-hydro-fracking-waste-in-pennsylvania/) for illegally dumping toxic fracking waste in Pennsylvania. And JP Morgan (http://www.popularresistance.org/finally-jpmorgan-admits-the-bank-broke-the-law/) CEO Jamie Dimon admitted that the bank broke the law. Another important win (http://www.popularresistance.org/video-colombian-farmers-win-back-control-of-their-seeds-after-prolonged-strike/) that is inspiring many in the US took place in Colombia where farmers went on a prolonged strike to win back the right to use their own seeds. The anti-Monsanto and anti-GMO movement is strong here. Thousands of people marched this week in Kauai (http://www.popularresistance.org/thousands-of-kauai-residents-take-to-the-streets/) for a law to protect themselves from pesticides. Marches are being planned for another global day of action against Monsanto on October 12 (http://www.popularresistance.org/global-march-against-monsanto-meet-me-in-st-louis/) . And, despite an outpouring of money, a vote to label GMO products (http://www.popularresistance.org/bigag-dumps-millions-to-defeat-gmo-labeling-in-washington/) in Washington State is still holding strong. And stopping the imminent attack on Syria was a win for people everywhere and a loss for the military industrial complex. Raytheon and Lockheed Martin (http://www.popularresistance.org/how-much-money-will-weapons-makers-make-on-bombing-syria/) in particular were set to make hundreds of millions from it. We must be vigilant though because the current diplomatic path could be used to justify an attack (http://www.truth-out.org/opinion/item/18858-is-broad-opposition-to-war-on-syria-an-opportunity-to-end-american-empire-responsibly) in the future. http://www.popularresistance.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Fast-Food-Workers-Strike1.pngIt is important to recognize these wins and to build from them. It is also important to remember that we never know how close we are to achieving significant change. The occupy movement spawned the idle no more, workersâ rights and climate change movements. David Callahan writes about the 7 ways (http://www.popularresistance.org/seven-ways-occupy-changed-america-and-is-still-changing-it/) that the occupy movement changed America. Our eyes are open and we canât ignore what we now see; as this article describes (http://www.popularresistance.org/how-millions-in-america-get-entrenched-in-poverty/) , we know that it is the plutocratic system, not individual inadequacy that is causing poverty in America. We know that the $1 trillion (http://www.popularresistance.org/the-fed-gave-banks-1-trillion-last-year-instead-of-creating-20-million-jobs/) given by the Federal Reserve to private banks could have created 20 million desperately-needed jobs. We know that the 400 richest people in the US (http://www.popularresistance.org/400-richest-americans-worth-more-than-gdp-of-canada-or-mexico/) have more wealth than the GDP of entire countries like Canada and Mexico. And we know the names (http://www.popularresistance.org/the-financial-core-of-the-transnational-capitalist-class/) of those who control the wealth and exploit people and the planet for it. We no longer expect âleadersâ to create the change we need. We are all leaders and change depends on our actions. http://www.popularresistance.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Nuclear-chaining-themselves-to-Vermont-Yankee-e1379591872506.jpg Anneke Corbett, left, of Florence, VT assists Frances Crowe of Northampton, VT in locking her chain to the Vermont Yankee gate The culture of resistance necessary to create the kind of world we want to live in is here. Actions are taking place daily in the US and around the world. You wonât hear about most of them in the mass media. This week alone,more than one hundred women (http://www.popularresistance.org/more-than-100-women-arrested-blockading-congress-on-immigration/) , most of them undocumented, were arrested in Washington, DC to protest the ways that immigration policies harm their families. Dairy workers (http://www.popularresistance.org/milk-cows-not-workers/) in New York protested their abusive working conditions. Protesters in Vermont (http://www.popularresistance.org/vermont-activists-shut-nuclear-plant-down-today/) , ages 65 to 94, chained themselves to the entrance of the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power plant to demand its immediate closure andMarylanders protested (http://www.popularresistance.org/peace-activists-protest-airforce-arms-bazaar-in-maryland/) outside an âarms bazaar.â The Cascadia Forest Defenders (http://www.popularresistance.org/cascadia-forest-defenders-drop-banner-from-golden-pioneer/) scaled the capitol building in Oregon to drop a huge banner to protest clear-cutting. Resistance is not all protesting, it also includes building alternative systems to meet our basic needs. Many who are active in OWS have been hard at work at this since the physical occupation was shut down. This week theOccupy Money Cooperative (http://www.popularresistance.org/occupy-money-cooperative-launch-party/) announced its launch with a fundraising campaign. They will provide low-cost financial services to the millions of Americans who are unbanked and underbanked and who are preyed upon by banks, check cashing services and payday lenders. It will be an opportunity for all to opt-out of big finance. Just as OWS created the infrastructure that was used to organize Occupy Sandy and continues to provide services to those affected by Superstorm Sandy, occupiers in Colorado (http://www.popularresistance.org/activists-step-up-for-flood-relief-in-denver/) responded to the needs of people in the Boulder area who were hit by massive flooding. We hope that those in the Navajo Nation (http://www.popularresistance.org/extensive-flooding-in-navajo-nation-assistance-needed/) who have been devastated by flooding will also receive aid. And Tim DeChristopher reminds us (http://www.popularresistance.org/acting-like-a-movement/) of the importance of helping each other to fight the sometimes severe charges brought about by our actions. http://www.popularresistance.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Occupy-We-the-People.jpgHard work is being done every day to take on entrenched corporate power and create a new world based on principles such as mutual aid, community, equity, solidarity and democracy. It is appropriate to stop and celebrate this work and what has been accomplished so far. Things are changing. Justin Wedes of OWS writes (http://www.popularresistance.org/occupy-wall-street-two-years-on-were-still-the-99/) , âSure, we face an uncertain future, but we embrace the chaos that defines our time. Because there is no alternative but to challenge the status quo of ever-increasing debt, shrinking job opportunities and disappearing civil rights.â We canât say what the outcome will be or whether we will live to see the world we hope to create. Can there even be an endpoint? Perhaps the most important piece of social transformation is not a goal but rather is the process of living in a way that is consistent with our values. We live in the culture of resistance which requires constant nurturing to bend the arc of time towards justice. ============================================================ Copyright © 2013 PopularResistance.org, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: PopularResistance.org PO Box 102011 Washington, DC 20001 "Because a sustainable future depends on the people willing to see the truth for what it is, and for those to stand up in unison in order to make a difference." â Jake Edwards Keli'i Eakin ** follow on Twitter (https://www.twitter.com/StopTheMach2011/ ) ** like on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/pages/Stop-the-Machine-Create-a-New-World/128235120588487) ** forward to a friend (http://us2.forward-to-friend.com/forward?u=33602bebba8fb7dd6e71fb413&id=b003a08681&e=69e1919983) ** unsubscribe from this list (http://popularresistance.us2.list-manage.com/unsubscribe?u=33602bebba8fb7dd6e71fb413&id=fda709da4c&e=69e1919983&c=b003a08681) ** update subscription preferences (http://popularresistance.us2.list-manage1.com/profile?u=33602bebba8fb7dd6e71fb413&id=fda709da4c&e=69e1919983) [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ --------------------------------------------------------------------------- LAAMN: Los Angeles Alternative Media Network --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Unsubscribe: <mailto:laamn-unsubscr...@egroups.com> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Subscribe: <mailto:laamn-subscr...@egroups.com> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Digest: <mailto:laamn-dig...@egroups.com> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Help: <mailto:laamn-ow...@egroups.com?subject=laamn> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Post: <mailto:la...@egroups.com> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Archive1: <http://www.egroups.com/messages/laamn> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Archive2: <http://www.mail-archive.com/laamn@egroups.com> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/laamn/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/laamn/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: laamn-dig...@yahoogroups.com laamn-fullfeatu...@yahoogroups.com <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: laamn-unsubscr...@yahoogroups.com <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://info.yahoo.com/legal/us/yahoo/utos/terms/
