Adriana Maestas
+ FollowIn the Streets: Occupy L.A.
(Special from The Daily Grito)
Angelenos pumped up kicks this past weekend as Occupy Los Angeles (yet another urban front in the Wall Street-born global economic protest movement) moved into its third week of agitation. Organizers attempted to generate enthusiasm with a recent Saturday march from Pershing Square through downtown to the “Occupy Los Angeles compound” on City Hall grounds that celebrated a global day of action.
Countless picket signs took aim at corporate greed and the growing wealth gap in America. But, it was the peaceful crowd of thousands that captured the imagination as protesters walked past the city’s normally quiet financial district to the tent village that had been organized at City Hall since Day One.
Los Angeles is a bit unique in that its “Occupy” protest has the support of the City Council. Last week, the Council voted on a resolution supporting the Occupy Los Angeles demonstrations while demanding “responsible banking.” The resolution, which was co-sponsored by Councilman Richard Alarcon and Bill Rosendahl, will score banks by “… how they accommodate home loans and contribute to affordable housing.”
However, when one has a glimpse of the signs on display at Occupy LA, it becomes apparent that housing and banking aren’t the only issues on the agenda.
Walking through the Occupy LA tent encampment, there are signs on display addressing a number of concerns, from oil profits and the need for jobs in Los Angeles, to a tent “occupy-your-mind” library, poster displays of historical events leading to the economic downturn, and a food dispensing receptacle space for recyclables.
Like Los Angeles, the crowd is diverse – although the age of the typical Occupy LA protester tends to skew on the younger side. And of course, references to the 99% of Americans – poor, middle class and frustrated because they aren’t receiving a bailout – are very visible.
In observing Saturday’s Occupy LA actions, it’s also apparent that no single organization or leader defines what is going on in the tent city outside of City Hall. While there are tables for petitions and leaflet distribution, it doesn’t seem like a single organization is dominating the discourse. Yet some organizations, who feel that their goals are in sync with the message about creating jobs and ending the vast wealth inequalities, have joined in to lend a supporting role to Occupy Los Angeles.
Good Jobs LA, a multi-ethnic coalition of grassroots organizations representing education, immigrant rights and labor within the region, is one organization standing in support of Occupy LA.
“When we saw the Occupy LA movement start, we realized that their message of holding corporations accountable has really been our message all along,” Refugio Mata, spokesman for Good Jobs LA, explained. “We are about holding corporations accountable, making sure that banks and big corporations pay their fair share of taxes, and support the creation of good jobs in Los Angeles.”
Mata believes that Occupy LA’s strength is in its scattered self, with no single organization dominating the protests. “If you attend a general assembly at Occupy LA, one thing you notice is the level of discussion,” says Mata. “When you hear the young people talking in terms of social inequality and how it is affecting them, you realize that they are having really intelligent conversations referencing facts and their own reality.”
This week at Occupy LA, some unions plan to take action in a show of solidarity with the protesters, and the UCLA Department of Education has even lent its support to the movement in a letter explaining that economic inequalities system are undermining educational opportunity.
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The Occupy protesters need to vote for change. Protesting a business or person for doing something that is legal is the wrong argument. It's your lawmakers that need to be challenged.