Not all foreclosures have occurred via unsavory people in the home finance industry. A growing number have lost their homes because they lost their jobs either by “downsizing” or company bankruptcies or closures or outsourcing or other questionable corporate practices. Some corporations have taken millions in government loans and then filed bankruptcy and told everyone to hit the road.
Some people have lost their homes due to fraudulent lending practices AND the loss of employment—a combo. Foreclosures are still growing and it is anticipated we haven’t seen the end of it. Another huge number of them will take place in 2012. Without employment and a decent home millions of us are suffering solely due to financial malfeasance created by corporations/Congress. And so I joined the Occupy S.F. movement last weekend with my son. What a tremendous experience. It was glorious!
We got up early and took the ferry to San Francisco. I live about 60 miles north of the city. Parking is always a problem so we chose the ferry. The movement was stationed near the Ferry Building so in a hop, skip, and a jump—there we were. When we arrived at the “camp” we were surprised it was such a small group. However, we soon learned these were the permanent bunch of people truly occupying space with sleeping bags and food stations and port-a-potties and sign making stations and information “booths” and lecture podiums and the like. I was taken back to the ‘60s and I loved it. In fact, it was glorious.
Most of the people we met were not around in the ‘60s for the great Viet Nam marches and the marches with Dr. King. But I was and I participated then and was happy to see Americans fighting for Americans all over again. Also a little sad to realize that we have to fight again. I guess maintaining our Constitution is a lifelong ongoing process. The minute our “leaders” decide to interpret the Constitution the average American starts getting cheated out of the promise so we must take to the streets from time to time to set them straight. I’m absolutely thrilled that we can—otherwise we would be living in North Korea. I don’t think any of us want that. I thought about North Korea a lot during that Saturday event. Shivers ran down my spine. When people complain about protestors they should spend a couple of months in a country where protesting isn’t allowed. They will find it’s life altering, like, you know, death.
The movement “headquarters” was in front of the Federal Reserve Bank and everyone there calmly went about their assigned tasks before the big march. Some took naps, some chatted with the police officers who were stationed there, others ran food runs and brought back food and beverages to share, and others started speeches and small groups would appear and listen. We stood there and chatted with people for a few hours until everything magically changed. Suddenly, excitement filled the air.
The parade was scheduled to begin at 3:00 p.m. Up till around 2:30 not too much had changed in the group we had joined then a huge mass of people started arriving and we all spilled out into the streets. At 3:00 p.m. the march began. It was spectacularly organized by both the police and protest leaders. They worked hand in hand and it was no easy task. They had expected several hundred and instead several thousand had appeared. The organizers were grinning ear-to-ear. Switching crowd control methods on the spot must have been daunting and yet it went off without a hitch. It was glorious.
Participating in huge events where there is the possibility of being crushed by a surging crowd has never been a favorite activity of mine. Sporting events, concerts, parades, huge public forums, all have had terrible things go wrong. Crowd crushing is a serious concern without expert organization. But soon we were underway and there was a calm presence throughout the event and no pushing, shoving, or aggression by anyone—including the police presence.
There were many officers assigned to the march to protect us, the marchers, and the traffic and people just shopping and walking on the sidewalks who were not part of the protest. Amazingly, as we progressed many tourists and locals joined the march and every time they did the crowd roared with excitement. Soon we had roughly six thousand marchers. Cable cars rang their bells keeping time with our chants. It was glorious. (How many times can I say it was glorious?) It was glorious.
As expected at any large event, the march was filled with the good, the bad, and the disappointing. Many homeless people live in San Francisco and some tried to join us but failed due to poor health and mental issues that were sadly all too apparent. They did not present a problem that day but I understand they have been a problematic presence at all the “Occupy” camps and then shown on the evening news as problem people as though they are part of the movement. It’s natural for them to gravitate to the people camping out and I’m sure many hope to find food and companionship. It can be a problem with people with addictions and mental disorders. However, the Occupy group is a humane organization and they turn no one away, even if the people are detrimental to the true mission. (And actually, homelessness and the mentally challenged are part of the human movement every day.)
We hear many negatives about hygiene problems and trouble makers at some of the camps and some have been torn down but it’s
mostly due to people who are not true to the movement but just people who need help with so many personal issues. So Occupy must constantly move and keep some semblance of organization for the big events they plan for. Not easy. It’s been an age-old problem with all demonstrations. Or people who beat people in the parking lots of our major sporting events. Those people do not represent the entire group of sports spectators just as a few difficult people do not represent the Occupy movement.
I wrote this piece because I hear negative comments about people who protest, that they are un-American, that they are not patriotic, that they are Communists, etc. It is, in fact, the very epitome of being a true American. People who fight like hell either in or out of uniform to keep our country strong and free from takeover by foreign interests and out of control government and corporate shenanigans. We are drowning on all fronts and we need to stand up and fight for ourselves and our way of life because our
government has let us down.
Along with the problem people that cling to these types of events there are inevitably “plants,” people who are placed in the events to spy, to cause trouble deliberately to appease a personal agenda or an opposite point of view, and even government infiltration. Government plants may not be evil in design but just used to make sure no one is toting a bomb or some nasty device designed to hurt people. I thought about that all day as I marched along and wondered how many people were not true members of the movement but, well, spies. It was starting to make me uncomfortable so I stopped that line of thinking. I think I’ve watched “MI-5” too much, the wonderful British series about spies and the nastiness of it all.
Movements sometimes shoot themselves in the foot. The good intentions take on monstrous out of control proportions with no control and before long we end up with power mongers fighting power mongers. None of this was apparent at this gathering. In
fact, the leaders were easily identifiable and they were continuously working crowd control and smiling and encouraging people to move left or right and at one point we were asked to slow down so that the stragglers in the very back could catch up, people in wheelchairs and people with kids and strollers. It was a family event. It was glorious.
Not long after the march began my son and I took inventory and noticed the participants were mostly middle class types, diversely represented. Many wore suburban style clothing, brought their kids and dogs, and had picnic totes. Many times we fell into brief conversations with one another and overheard conversations and a majority of the people there had lost their jobs and homes. Typical middle class folks who had lost it all. Add to that the chronically unemployed and it quickly jumps to millions of disenfranchised Americans. Hence, the popularity of this movement. If you haven’t lost a home or a job you probably know someone who has. I do.
It is my understanding that the Tea Party movement has similar issues as far as why members join their protests and events. Americans who have lost everything—or are worried they will—are clinging to the Tea Party or the Occupy movement for help and answers. All movements open to anyone must be ever vigilant to make sure the movement and its beliefs are not violated. Many have compared the Occupy movement with the Tea Party in that both groups have been infiltrated with people who have very different agendas. It’s the price we pay to have our voices heard and we must simply pay attention to people around us. For the most part, both groups do want the same things but are going about it somewhat differently with different goals and expectations. Everyone is spying on everyone but we shouldn’t allow that situation to deter us from our goal: peaceful, passive, civil disobedience.
1. Passive Resistance: Opposition to a government or to specific governmental laws by the use of noncooperation and other nonviolent methods, boycotts, and protest marches.
2. Civil Disobedience: The refusal to obey certain laws or governmental demands for the purpose of influencing legislation or government policy characterized by the employment of such nonviolent techniques as boycotting, picketing, and nonpayment of taxes.
3. Anarchy: Absence of any form of political authority. Political disorder and confusion. Absence of any cohesive principle, such as a common standard or purpose.
Choice number 3 is not what protesting is all about. Nor should it be. There were those who made changes for humanity without
anarchy. Jesus, Gandhi, and Dr. King were very successful with passive resistance and civil disobedience. They all gave their lives for the people they served and loved. (Saddam Hussein, Moammar Gadhafi, and Kim Jong Il—not so much.)
We must not forget the sacrifices of our great leaders and always fight to protect those who are not able—or unwilling—to fight for what is right. It’s who we are.
[For more information on the great “1967 Spring Mobilization Against the War in Viet Nam” click on the link and further links with additional information will appear!]
http://www.vietnamwar.net/SpringMobilization.htm
Vent all you want, it's healthy and the women here will listen. I suggest that when things get overwhelming, grab a bed pillow, go into the bathroom and scream into the pillow, or beat the hell out of it. That should help with the frustration a bit
Thanks for your support - supporting caregivers and those with Alzheimer's is so important!
I'm not going to have an affair. I'm getting divorced. I wouldn't have an affair. I feel guilty talking.
I’m not sure how I feel about the protesters but I’m thrilled to see it. I may not agree with what you have to say but I will defend to the death your right to say it. We need this even if ‘this’ is vague.
I’m always supportive of our right to protest and I never want to see that right taken away. Ever.
What I have a huge problem with is the destruction. Peaceful demonstrations, organized political demonstrations, showing up to have your voice heard and being relentless…..those things will get attention.
But, violence and destroying physical property will do nothing to endear most Americans to a cause. Unfortunately, the occupy protestors are a hodge-podge of different view points. I think that is their bigger issue. They are disjointed, confused and completely without focus.
Apply that to your daily life and you get nothing accomplished. It’s no different on a larger scale.
Say what you want about the Tea party, but you never saw this kind of behavior with them. Not only that, they affected the entire landscape of our political environment. That is because they are organized and focused.
Magnolia
There are businesses all around the Occupy Oakland site, small cafés mostly, and there has been no window-breaking or even graffiti. In fact, I heard that one of the cafés let the Occupation use their kitchen to make soup for the protesters and homeless people. There was a report that someone’s dog bit a newsman, but in fact the dog tore the newsman’s sleeve when he poked into one of the tents without asking. Dogs do protect their home, even if it is a tent. That was the only destruction of property I know of until the police moved in and wrecked people’s tents. That destruction I do not approve of, but it was not the doing of the protesters.
His side, her side and the truth. I have no idea what really happened there (LA Times; Youtube) but I’ve heard both sides of the story thus far. ♥
I’ve been following this fairly closely since about a week or so after it began. It seems to provide an entire spectrum of people and ideas from one extreme to the other (not meaning they’re extremists). While I know media doesn’t always get things right (pun not intended, but should have been), I have watched videos and seen various pictures, signs and so on as well. Nothing in it to like, for me.
Any comparison that I’ve seen to the Tea Party is very superficial. While I’m sure anything can be “infiltrated,” the ideas I’ve read about that are floating around are definitely not ideas of securing our Constitution. They seem to be saying, as I read somewhere, “Corporations control the Government. We need Government Regulation to Protect us from these Corporations.” This is the antithesis of the Tea Party who tends to want less government.
While I’m totally with WM on fighting for their right to protest, I’m not in favor of this “occupy” thing and the filth that has apparently come with it. I also think they’re occupying the wrong place. Totally. ♥
I have visited both Occupy Berkeley and Occupy Oakland. Both have/had a number of homeless people in them, partly because they offer free food and community, but also because homeless people hung out in the area BEFORE the Occupy movement. There have been problems with sanitation but port-a-potties in Oakland were provided by the teachers’ union, SEIU, and a local barbecue chain. A neighbor of mine threw a fund-raising party for their upkeep. The camps were/are well organized in spite of the problems, and when I visited were calm, and the police at the Oakland march on Saturday were as cooperative as you describe the SF police being.
Sunday I told stories at the children’s tent in Oakland and with some friends sang songs in the adult meeting area last Thursday. Today, with the situation in Oakland iffy, we are going to sing at the Occupy tables in front of the Bank of America on Shattuck in Downtown Berkeley from 12:30 to 2 p.m.
While most of the occupiers are young (the homeless are all ages) there have been a number of grey-heads at Occupy Oakland. I saw two grey-haired women picking up trash last week.
Different people at the encampments and marches have different reasons for being there, but I think the common message of the occupiers is that the banks need better oversight, and that despite what the Supreme Court says, corporations are not people and do not deserve “free speech” in election campaigns (meaning unlimited and undisclosed donations) and other rights we actual humans have. Banks have been caught illegally foreclosing on mortgages and have refused to negotiate longer payment plans for people who have lost jobs and are working for lower pay or part-time. Foreclosures don’t just hurt the mortgagee–they also hurt neighbors and tenants. And it was Wall Street banks gambling on cut-up and bundled mortgages that got us into this mess. Local banks didn’t do that, and didn’t get caught when the bubble burst. Protesters are thrown in jail, but the bankers who have broken the law have so far not been indicted.
I understand what you are saying to a point about the banks, but unfortunately, the banks are very reulated, and the problem a lot of people are having is that they are not in the situation where they can really afford the homes they are in, which is why there are so many short sales. If you bought a home when you had a job and could afford it then, but then lost your job, the banks have to look at your situation now. One of the reasons we got in this mess, is that banks were forced to loan money to people who couldn’t afford it, with no underwriting, etc., and going back to that is not the way to get out of this mess. I am in real estate, and during the housing bubble, I saw a lot of people who I knew were getting in over their heads, wanted to get as much as they could from the banks, and it will be painful in the short term, but we have to get back in a fiscally sound place as a country. I know it’s not what people want to hear, but it is the only way we will survive.
I was listening to Dr. Christiane Northrop on the radio the other day and she said two things that really hit home with me. The first is that at this time the planets are aligned in the same position as they were back inthe 60′s during those protests (The Age of Aquarius?), and that we became the people we were protesting against back there… we grew up to be the decision makers, the congress, the corporate CEO’s. We are the ones we have been waiting for. If we aren’thappy with the decisions we made, then we are the ones that need to change them. It starts at the ballot box. The 1% may have all the money, but the 99% have the votes. That’s real power. That’s where you make your voice heard.
Thank you Sharon Lee for sharing your experiences at Occupy SF. I saw the movie, “Margin Call,” this weekend. It gave some great insight into the Wall Street greed and its affect on some of the financial firms but did not include anything about the havoc it caused to the people of this country.
I am delighted that our generation realizes the necessity to call the government officials and banking institutions on the carpet for unAmerican behavior toward our citizens. I was a part of the Vietnam protests, where so many of my friends were affected and are still affected by its aftermath.
I have been bringing out bottled water and fruit to the protesters for a few weeks. It is time we stand behind our citizens and call attention to the plight of all Americans. The banks and government have a stranglehold on us and we need to restructure things so Americans can all live free of the restraints. I’m glad you went to join the OWS in SF. I will continue to support our protesters in our state.
” I am delighted that our generation realizes the necessity to call the government officials and banking institutions on the carpet for unAmerican behavior toward our citizens.” Me too.
I’ve been on the fence about the movement because I didn’t know enough about it until someone told me how they made decisons. I went to the Occupy Atlanta website. and was pleased with what I read.
The General Assembly is worth looking at as a model. I don’t feel like I have a voice in our government and I bet businesses don’t feel the same.
What we are doing is not working. It’s working for some of the people and those people want things to continue. We must be willing to engage in this conversation if we are to move forward. It will be a messy process but if we get distracted by the process I think we will miss the point. The government is not working and hasn’t worked in a long time. It’s not making decisions that work for the citizens. I don’t want more government. I do want them to get out of bed with corporations. Everyone talks about the free market. How free is it when the government makes decisions that support the corporations to the detriment of it’s citizens?
Sharon Lee, Thanks for sharing your inside view of the Occupy movement. I will get out there and give some support.
In response to Magnolia’s comment ”Unfortunately, the occupy protestors are a hodge-podge of different view points. They are disjointed, confused and completely without focus.”
That is simply because people are experiencing things from where they stand, their own life situations. They are not all the same: some are students with huge loans who can’t get jobs. Others are mid-aged people losing their jobs. Yet, underneath these differences, we share the same problem: the inequities created by the lack of corporate accountability, global injustice, and many more issues in the system that need to be addressed, including just plain greed!
I agree is the privilege as well as the duty for citizens to make their voices heard. It seems to me the protestors are voicing their opinions in the wrong forum. It was Washington that allowed the financial fiasco; Washington has oversight, de-regulated, etc., so it follows it is Washington that should hear the outrage.
One other point, in interviews some of the protestors voice ideas that are both naive and uninformed. Granted, young people may not have the experience and background to understand how the economy really works so perhaps fingers should point at parents and an education system that omit basic life skills and basic civic and economic knowledge.
Sharon Lee, thanks for sharing your experience! I joined Occupy Austin not too long ago (neither of my 20-something sons have yet but seem proud that I have)and it was fascinating. People who haven’t been there have lots of different and inaccurate ideas about the Occupy movement, and of course, each one in each city is different. I was so impressed with how well-organized this group was. geralyne gave a good explanation of why they seem to be disjointed and without focus. In reality, they are not; they are very clear on what this is about, as am I. As for their “naive and uninformed” ideas — I am sure we sounded and appeared that way to those older than us when we protested in the 60′s and 70′s, but we did effect significant changes. I am thrilled that people are fed up and are finally trying to change things, and are trying to do it nonviolently.
Another point of view that I read in a local newspaper this week:
“.It takes longer when a group does not force its members to fit into a pre-constructed box. Our Founding Fathers certainly didn’t have it all figured out when they..” began meeting.
The sheer act of this group joining together in a common cause against the plight of millions of Americans who cannot find a job, cannot keep their house, and can’t pay off their college loans is reason enough.
Good responses, all. I’m thinking I need to go join the Occupy Phoenix soon, as theirs has not been an easy venture. I am pleased to see so many out protesting peacefully, letting their numbers speak and raise awareness that so many are “mad as hell” and “are not going to take it anymore”. Which is the reason the protests have spread west across this great country. We trusted Washington and we trusted various Federal agencies to protect our interests, and they did not. Now, it’s time to grab “their” attention just before an election year and effect changes in that status quo.
My daughter tells me there is even an Occupy Prescott, which she has visited.
Between B of A’s new card fees and the Occupy movement, Fox Chicago News reports that half a million people have opened accounts at credit unions in the past month.
Nancy, I’m delighted in the willingness in American’s to open checking and savings accounts in local credit unions. It is difficult to leave a big bank and go to a credit union. There are less perks, I’m sure. But the credit union is owned by the people who use it; while the banks are making the fat cats rich.
If enough people move their money, it should get some attention and make people pay attention.
i haven’t had a bank account for over 40 years. I joined the teachers’ credit union in my home state because I was angry with the local bank–long before they were part of a larger national bank, which has since gone under–and I have remained a member of that original credit union ever since.
I don’t know what is meant by a difference in “perks”.
I can certainly see no advantage to being part of a huge bank when my credit union meets all my needs, from credit card and convenient a.t.m. machines, all do-able with the one same card. My C.U. has financed several of my autos at reasonable and lower rates than banks, and it also did a re-finance home mortgage. I am able to complete most inquiries or account transfers or credit card payments with either a call to the automated phone line 24/7 or by calling a person during regular hours. There are no fees for any of these or a.t.m. usage. I find all this very user-friendly.
Why on earth would I ever use a bank?
Incidentally the C.U. described above is unique as I also joined one in my new state that is not as user-friendly, so I retain the first account as my primary, but use the second mainly for its no-fee a.t.m. access as I am 2,100 miles from the other C.U.’s a.t.m. machines.
I am just disgusted with the greed of bank owner boards, and all they’ve done to push all of us into the current financial mess that Congress has not had the desire to correct. Remember the unethical practices of banks like Countrywide and others? The best way to effect change in this industry is to vote with our feet, aka move that account to a C.U. where you are one of the owners by virtue of membership!
My credit union can’t handle business accounts or SEP-IRAs, but does everything else for me. I am changing my SEP-IRA from Wells-Fargo to a local bank when it comes due on November 21. Unfortunately the local bank can’t handle foreign exchange in-house, so we are keeping the Wells-Fargo account for incoming payments, but will transfer money to a business account at the local bank for checking. That way the bulk of our money will be in the local bank, and WF doesn’t have the use of it. And the local bank has free business checking!
There are solutions to dependency on large banks. Good thinking, Nancy S.
I thought of another advantage to credit unions: when my recently departed tenant in a rental property was paying with rubber checks, my local C.U. did not charge high fees to my account. They were in the $5-$15 range, unlike banks who charge $25 and up for the same inconvenience.
I get so mad when I pass the occupy folks. Let me tell you why…..the other night as I drove by they were sitting by their bonfire in their camp chairs eating dinner. And the next day when I went by during daylight I could see the remains of their “occupied” time all over the park. In any other time that’s called vagrancy or loitering so why allow it now? Why is it ok when a middle class uprising does this but if a large group of homeless folks or say immigrants do it, it becomes an offense?
Part of the problem which I do not hear folks talking about is that greed went all the way down. How many of those folks over-extended themselves buying houses/cars/toys they couldn’t afford? Several of the folks I know supporting this did all those. I could of but instead we chose to live otherwise. I drove my car till it dropped, we buy less home than we “qualified” for, and we deprive ourselves of our desired toys because we couldn’t pay cash for them. We’ve kept the bulk of our money in a credit union for the last 15 years as well as a use a bank for when we travel. We’ve been happy with that.
I agree with not wanting the government involved in everything. We have worked hard to get where we have. We have made many sacrifices along the way and now are enjoying the fruits of our labor. We have always made it a point to help the less fortunate but the day I heard someone say “I can’t use coupons it would make me look poor” as she took food from a food pantry I had partially stocked with the use of my coupon shopping it made me start looking at the way some of those folks lived and I realized that they had bigger houses, newer cars and lots of toys I couldn’t afford. I still give but more cautiously.
I agree the system is broken but how will it change if we don’t change it from the bottom down. Already big business is feeling the effects of Americans saving more and changing their shopping patterns. Let the voices of the many be heard from their wallets!! Don’t go somewhere and become a part of the problem (honestly camping out in city parks?) become a part of the solution…..hit them where it hurts! There’s an old adage “ He who has the gold rules!”
During the Occupy protest in my city, several participants were interviewed and didn’t have any idea why they were involved? The city worked with the people until someone was found dead in his tent – carbon monoxide?
It was a sad situation, but city officials in several cities started closing them down for disruption and sanitation….