The Occupation at 2 months and 24 days

Last night Occupy Austin held a General Assembly at the Capitol. (We've been doing this for about a month now). It might have been the shortest GA in Occupy Austin history. It clocked in at just under 25 minutes. I know, pretty amazing huh! I think it's amazing though that we still came out and we still followed our process and we still are doing what we're doing.

Maybe this doesn't make much sense, but I think Occupy Austin is doing okay. I don't want to say there aren't things we need to improve (and many of them!) but I do want to say that we're doing pretty well.

Three months I had never even heard of Occupy Wall Street, Consensus Process or Guerilla Gardening. Now, I know what all of those things are. Two months ago I could not even make it through an entire GA before I thought it was 'too late' or this is 'too boring'. Now, I am part of the facilitation team and moderate GA's at least once a week. I have edited more Press releases and newsletters in the past two months than ever before in my life. We are making this Occupation a reality.

Reality is not necessarily pretty, but it is real. Our Occupation has much to improve on, but I think we need to start seeing that we're not doing too badly.

We're doing something that has never been done before. We're writing the new American History. We are creating the future that we want to live in right now.

I attended a 'Strategy and Tactics' meeting a few nights ago. This meeting made it clearer than ever before that the Occupy movement is not a political movement. We are not concerned with just making politics better. We are concerned with the whole society. We are trying to find a way to build a society that values people over money. We have lived for so long in a world where everything is based on monetary value. You pay for what you learn in school. If you have a job, you are valued based on how much you earn for that job. As a culture we say that the money we earn gives us value. That is why people have been spending more than they earn because they are trying to create the illusion of value with things. Yet, we all know, somewhere deep inside us, that our value does not lie in anything monetary. Our value lies in our humanity.

Last night I caught the very tail end of the women's meeting. We had an incident of domestic violence that caused many of us in the movement to realize just how much we need to educate and empower all people. If people are empowered than they will say something when they see something. Speaking up is valuing someone else's humanity.

We are learning to Occupy. We are learning to live.


Check out the Austin Chronicle Photo Spread on Occupy

What is 'endorsing'?

A few weeks ago a proposal came before the General Assembly of Occupy Austin. (I was on the facilitation team so I was not an active part of this discussion - but an observer). In my opinion the proposal was ill-formed and should not (and could not because it was not clear what was in fact being proposed) be consensed upon. Nevertheless, the General Assembly gathered that night consensed on the proposal.

It was, more or less:

"I need $125 dollars for some supplies for an action. We are either going to have this action in this city or in another city."

Although the supplies needed for the action were the same, the action itself would be different depending on the location. Furthermore, the legal ramifications of these actions would be completely different depending on which action was actually undertaken. During the discussion of the proposal it became clear that not only was the proposer asking for the funds to purchase the unspecified supplies she was also seeking Occupy Austin's endorsement of the action. This is where it becomes tricky. If she was only seeking funds and the same supplies were needed no matter which action was actually chosen then this could have been done. Seeking endorsement for two completely different actions with different outcomes should not be done in one proposal. (However there are questions about if simply giving money is a form of endorsing)

This proposal has been hashed out in many facilitator meetings as an example of what not to do. Yet, it still passed. If that had been the end of it that would have been, simply, a learning experience.

However, when the action took place eight occupiers were arrested, three of them from Austin. They are possibly facing felony charges. Since Occupy Austin endorsed this action at a previous GA we are facing a litany of legal and ethical questions. Does Occupy Austin owe those that were arrested bail and legal support? (Occupy Austin can, and does, bail anyone out who is arrested while engaging in an act of Civil Disobedience for the Occupy Movement.) The tactics that were used were beyond normal Civil Disobedience tactics. Where does Occupy Austin, as an organization, draw the line on what it can endorse? Does giving the money to support this action mean that we, as a movement, endorsed this particular instance of Civil Disobedience? This action was poorly planned and, in my opinion, hurt the reputation of the movement and it's relationship with Labor. What does it mean that Occupy Austin endorsed this? Did Occupy Austin endorse this act?

I know I'm ending with a lot of questions - but I guess I still haven't figured everything out in my own head yet. I'm putting this out here to get feedback and see if anyone else has any ideas/opinions/feelings about this.

Some time off and some time to reflect

This past week I've only been down to Occupy Austin a few times. I could only make it to one GA. Although, I really wanted to participate in other GA's previous commitments prevented me from doing so.

What is great about this is that Occupy Austin is still going strong. This movement is so much bigger than me. The Occupy movement is so much bigger than Austin. We have just gotten started. All of us that are involved in Occupy on a daily basis need to take some days off. We need to remember that as much as much each of us brings to this movement, we will not bring anything if we burn out.

I plan to be part of this movement for a long time. Whatever happens this movement will shape American history. Some of my friends at Church were saying on Sunday that the Occupy movement has restored their hope in this generation. We look to the 50's, 60's and 70's and think of the Civil Rights Movement and the Vietnam protests. This generation has never protested on such a large scale. We are finally standing up for our rights.

We are writing history right now. I am offered an opportunity that only comes once in a lifetime. I am part of the positive change that is sweeping this country. I am so honored that I can bring my voice to this movement - I am also deeply aware that this movement is so much bigger than my voice. It's not about me - but it is all about each of us individually coming together.

I am going to go back on Monday, refreshed and ready to keep on fighting the battle for justice. I'll leave you with one of the chants we said at Monday night's GA.

One - We are the people.
Two - We are united.
Three - This occupation has just gotten started. (repeat)

Problems in this country

Here is a Rick Perry campaign video:




I am disgusted. We have so many problems in this country. Number one is the way that money has corrupted our politicians so that they no longer represent the interest of the people. Gay people are not a threat. There is no 'war on religion' - unless it is a war on Islam.

I pray that this man is not our next President. God, help us!

Good job news?

Today many stories in the news were about the amazingly low rate of unemployment, 8.6%, I believe. What I find striking is that while they were saying the private sector gained 120,000 jobs the Government cut over 20,000 jobs. Overall employment is going up, but it looks to me like good, decent paying jobs with benefits (i.e. public sector jobs) are being cut and then they are being replaced by seasonal work that is paying lower wages without benefits. When I hear the term service sector employees I do not think high wages and benefits. How many of these jobs will be cut again in January?

Sure, more people have more jobs. But the real question is not how many people are employed. The real question should be whether or not those jobs can sustain the people that are doing them. When an employee loses a decent paying job with benefits and then is hired somewhere else with minimal wages and no benefits those two jobs are not equal. We are getting sidetracked by the sheer number of unemployed people or the number of jobs created that we are ignoring that fact that people are working so that they can have their lives and their livelihood.

Let's stop looking at facts and figures and instead focus on individual's ability to live.

Getting Arrested? For What?

On Thursday night five people got arrested at Occupy Austin. The fact that five people were arrested was covered on the local news station the next day.

If you watch that video you understand the importance of controlling the media. No one was talking about the 400 person march that happened Thursday afternoon. Instead the local news was talking about how five people had been arrested to protest power washing. Here's another Youtube video from Thursday night.





It's important that people get arrested for this movement. But, getting arrested is not the goal in and of itself. Civil Disobedience is used as a tool to make a concerted message. If people continue getting arrested at every opportunity than eventually the movement will lose some of it's strength. At Occupy Austin, right now, getting arrested is taking you out of the movement. The police, being very strategic, are charging people arrested with Criminal trespassing, which means they cannot return to City Hall. Therefore we have to think very seriously about when and why we are getting arrested.

I do support those that are choosing to get arrested, but I hope that if the future we can make these decisions as a movement instead of as individuals.

The declaration of independence.

Last night was a rally and march of the Occupy Austin movement. There were probably about 400 people altogether. We had a rally at the Capitol focusing on education and then marched down Congress Avenue to City Hall where we held the General Assembly. It was pretty amazing to march with all those people and see that we all want change. I am always so impressed at the amount of energy and happiness that comes from a protest. If you've never been to a protest you may not understand the euphoria that you get. Seeing all the other people with their signs and their chants that you're joining with is a feeling that cannot be replicated. I imagine it is something like that feeling you get at a large music festival.

The GA last night was inspiring. More people were there than I've ever seen before. Most of the people from the march stayed. What I really wanted to talk about was what happened after the march and before the GA began. There was about 15 minutes in which we were all huddled around just waiting for the GA facilitators to decide how exactly they wanted to run this meeting. We had a guy with a guitar and we sang some songs. Woody Guthrie's "This land is my land. This land is your land." We did a few chants. We did a few "mic checks." (If you're not familiar with the "mic check" let me explain. Whenever someone needs/wants to say something that everyone should hear she simply says "mic check". Then everyone repeats "mic check". Then she says what she needs to say in short 3-4 word increments. After each pause the words are repeated by everyone in the crowd. This is a very effective way for a largish crowd to hear one person. This one person becomes everyone).

One of these mic checks was a reading of part of the Declaration of Independence. The young man read (and everyone repeated) this part:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights,^[74] that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.

The Declaration goes on to say:

Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.

I know these are long quotes - but bear with me, please.

What is happening at Occupy movements around the world is patriotic. It is in fact the same thing that happened in 1776 when the founding members of this country got together and said "We can't take this any more." I'm sure the British Crown would have loved it if they had asked permission for independence. I'm sure the British Crown would have been in favor of a petition. No, the founders of this country did not ask permission. They started a new government because it is the duty of the people being governed to stand up and fight back whenever the government stops doing its job. Its job is to help the people in securing their Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.

Every year there are more Americans that are living below the poverty line. Every year there are less Americans that have stable housing. Every year there are more Americans that are food insecure. It does not seem like our government it living up to it's end of the bargain. Therefore it is our duty, as patriotic Americans to stand up and make them take notice.