As Chicago prepares to join other cities in marking May Day with a march and a general strike, it is interesting to think about these actions in the context of May Day's Chicago origins and Chicago's role in labor history. [more inside]
posted by Westringia F. on Apr 30, 2012 - 20 comments

Why are we striking? Why should you strike? And, what do we mean by General Strike?

You've probably heard of the General Strike called for May Day by Occupy Wall Street and affiliated groups. For those who want to know what the whole thing is about, or how to get involved, this link may answer some of your questions. [more inside]
posted by eviemath on Apr 26, 2012 - 229 comments

Having survived the winter, New England's longest surviving Occupy encampment, Occupy New Haven was finally evicted yesterday from the New Haven Green. The camp had held on where others had not because of the Green's unique history[pdf] and status as a privately held park overseen since the 17th century by a group known as "the Committee of the Proprietors of Common and Undivided Lands". The last few months have seen many twists and turns including numerous legal maneuvers, last minute reprieves, an attempt to enlist the support of the Quinnipiac tribe and finally, allegations of rape in one of the encampment's tents. In the end, only thirteen Occupiers remained for the final showdown. [more inside]
posted by Lazlo Hollyfeld on Apr 19, 2012 - 78 comments

Twelve years before Occupy Wall Street Wendell Berry imagined something like it. [more inside]
posted by eustacescrubb on Feb 4, 2012 - 53 comments

“The United States [owes] its fall of 27 places [to 47th] to the many arrests of journalist covering Occupy Wall Street protests.” -Reporters Without Borders

Btw, Occupy Wall St. has begun heating up again for the spring with 400 arrested in Oakland yesterday. And a blooming Occupy K Street movement (DC, FB) [more inside]
posted by jeffburdges on Jan 30, 2012 - 232 comments

We Will Survive Capitalism! flash mob with US Uncut [previously] and the Brass Liberation Orchestra
Previous BLO flash mobs include Bad Hotel [previously], Operation Hey Mackey [previously], and "PAY UP!" (demanding Bank of America pay their taxes). Speaking of BofA, in San Francisco on Thursday activists turned every Bank of America ATM in the city into an Automated Truth Machine, using special non-adhesive stickers designed to look exactly like BoA’s ATM interface. But instead of checking and savings accounts, these new menus offered a list of everything BoA customers’ money is being used for, including investment in coal-fired power plants, foreclosure on Americans’ homes, bankrolling of climate change, and paying for fat executive bonuses. [more inside]
posted by finite on Jan 15, 2012 - 42 comments

Some context for today's general strike, the Occupy Nigeria movement, and growing frustration over government corruption in Nigeria.
posted by latkes on Jan 9, 2012 - 21 comments

On Monday, the Occupy Wall Street movement disrupted ports in its West Coast Port Blockade. [more inside]
posted by jeffburdges on Dec 13, 2011 - 210 comments

Scott Walker, Michele Bachmann, Robin Vos, Karl Rove, Joe Moore, Ron Paul, Scott Serota, Newt Gingrich, Rahm Emanuel, Eric Cantor, and, today, Barack Obama
posted by finite on Nov 22, 2011 - 195 comments

While the nation's attention has been recently drawn to the student protests at UC-Davis after video showing UCPD pepper-spraying a group of peaceful students went viral, this is merely one incident in a wave of student activism over the last three years with the goal of "reclaiming" the University of California for students. Some place the beginning of this mass student movement around the 2009 decision to implement a 32% tuition hike, which led to protests that drew over 5,000 students and a damning expose and condemnation from the President of the UC Faculty Association. (Budget Cuts Previously) [more inside]
posted by Chipmazing on Nov 19, 2011 - 674 comments

Occupy Wall Street is building the barricades at this very moment. NYPD has begun clearing Zuccotti Park.
posted by ReeMonster on Nov 14, 2011 - 2900 comments

While Occupy Wall Street has captured the attention of major American politicians, its counterpart in Canada has been mainly a municipal headache. Despite inequality north of the border rising at a comparable rate, and similar political sentiments, most Canadians also believe the movement is ineffective, though their hearts are in the right place. As the movement slows as winter weather sets in, cities are taking various measures to discourage the protests, hoping a combination of inconvenience and weather will disperse the encampments. [more inside]
posted by mek on Nov 3, 2011 - 83 comments

After deftly calming negative press coverage of his administration's handling of the Wall Street occupation by announcing that protestors may remain at the privately held public park in lower Manhattan which they have held for 26 days, Mayor Bloomberg has told the activists that they must vacate the premises by tomorrow (Friday) morning at 6AM for "cleaning." [more inside]
posted by fartron on Oct 13, 2011 - 435 comments

We are the 53% - the conservative response to We are the 99%. Every American has a story and an opinion. Amazing diversity on display. The LA Weekly looks for commonality. [more inside]
posted by Argyle on Oct 11, 2011 - 476 comments