The Protester

I’ve been meaning to write this post for a while but Time today has finally convinced me by declaring The Protester as the person of the year for 2011.

It started with a spark, Mohamed Bouazizi, a fruit vendor, sacrificed his own life as a sign of protest against the corrupt Tunisian government. This sparked the Arab Spring in which hopefully when all is said and done, 6 corrupt leaders will be out of office one way or another. 4 countries have achieved their goal while Syria and Bahrain are still paying dearly for their attempts at freedom. On a side note it was reported yesterday that over 5,000 people have been killed in incidents related to the protests in Syria (most killed by Assad’s army).

This brings me to America. Occupy started with a small group of folks over two months ago and quickly spread across America. I guess because folks know that I am fairly politically active, but I get asked about Occupy quite frequently.

My short answer is- I stand with Occupy.

My long answer is a little more detailed. I believe the Atlantic gets it right:

                And yet it is all too American. America has a very long history of protests that meet with excessive or violent response, most vividly recorded in the second half of the 20th century. It is a- common fantasy among people born in the years since the great protests movements -- and  even some not so great ones -- that they would have stood on the bold side of history had they been alive at the time and been called to make a choice. But the truth is that American protest  movements in real time -- and especially in their early days -- often appear controversial, politically difficult, out-of-the-mainstream, and dangerous. And they are met with fear.

When will people realize that true movements and ideas can’t be snuffed out with violence. I think many news channels and political groups are trying to write off Occupy as lazy college students, crazy homeless people or just unintelligent folks in general. Sure those demographics could make up some of Occupy but at its core, Occupy is and has a great potential to address real social inequalities that are truly facing this country.  

Those standing in Occupy’s way and trying to marginalize the movement will look back and see themselves on the wrong side of justice.

Again, Occupy isn’t perfect. They really need to articulate an ask and definitively go forward with a more clear message but as for now, I stand with Occupy.