I applaud the idealistic kids taking part in the “Occupy ABQ” movement, and I stand with them in their efforts to create a more equitable future for everyone.
The complaints that they lack cohesiveness or any specific agenda are utterly irrelevant. The fact that critically-thinking young people are finally waking up to their fate is encouraging enough.
It’s all about fairness and democracy. How can we blame them for being frustrated when they have no future to look forward to?
For those who decry public dissent or question the motives of the protesters, go back and read your Constitution. What is the Tea Party, after all, but a bunch of well-organized, well-funded protesters? The only difference is that the Occupy Wall Street is a true grassroots movement encompassing all ethnic groups, ages and income levels.
Civil disobedience and passive resistance can be powerful and effective expressions of political dissent because such tactics are a source of strength and solidarity among the participants — and, more importantly, they attract media attention.
Organized protests and civil disobedience offer concerned citizens a chance to collectively make their voices heard. Broadcasting the message to a wider audience and the ability to articulate the issues properly to both the media and the general public are crucial.
The right of free speech, the right of assembly and the right to address our grievances with the government are the cornerstones of public dissent, which is protected by the Bill of Rights. The right to dissent is the duty of citizens to organize themselves, to associate with each other and to make themselves heard as a way to achieve positive political and social change. It is our Constitutional right to oppose unjust government policies without fear of reprisal or impediment from the authorities.
The history of social movements in the United States has shown that some kind of social disruption needs to be created for change to occur through the principled use of strategic nonviolence, or “tension,” as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. called it.
Any form of violent protest, whether it involves property damage or battles in the streets with opponents and police, will turn off the majority of Americans and initiate overwhelming police and military suppression. It will be interesting to see how the Occupy Wall Street movement plays out over the next few months. Already there have been accusations of police brutality in dealing with these peaceful protesters.
MLK argued against those who seek to perpetuate injustice either through ignorance, complacency, or tacit approval. He spoke of bringing “tension” into the community as a necessary component of creating positive social change. Tension creates an uncomfortable strain in the local population with the ultimate goal being re-negotiation of the social pact through nonviolent, yet forceful and direct (legal) actions. None of the concessions achieved by Dr. King or any progressive movement would have been possible had they not created tension in the minds of the opposition. Occupy ABQ is creating that tension.
Successful social movements are all about forming broad social alliances with like-minded people who are connected through a shared interest (or outrage) in order to affect some kind of positive social change. Multiple alliances can work together for common causes to produce positive outcomes on many levels. It’s wise to remember that social activism also requires us to actually do something rather than just sit around and talk about a problem or complain about it. We must take action.
Truly successful social movements go nowhere without some kind of legislative component, as we have seen in cases such as women’s rights, civil rights and disability rights movements. Changes in government policy were the end result in every case, but it came grudgingly and only after a lot of hard (and sometimes dangerous) work on behalf of the oppressed parties.
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The status quo never gives up its power voluntarily. Power must be taken from it. The initial legislation usually doesn’t go far enough, either; it’s a small step in the right direction, but that just means another cycle of activism is necessary to re-articulate the struggle while at the same time continuing to pursue active, non-violent engagement for concessions with the applicable power structures.
Aside from street protests and marches, successful organizers must also be encouraged to work within the system, going through the appropriate channels, using proper legal and political means to achieve their goals, such as public forums, “teach-ins” and petitioning of local judges and legislators. The bottom line is that social change can happen when creative and dedicated individuals are able to successfully confront unresponsive public bureaucracies and force them to act.
The drawbacks to using protest and social activism to expose injustice is that people’s attitudes sometimes get in the way. Too often people are held back because they don’t want to ‘be obnoxious’ or piss people off (including risking arrest), but those things are usually necessary to get the point across.
Along those lines, UNM has seen much worse than Occupy Albuquerque. Back in May of 1970, following the killing of four unarmed students protesting the Vietnam war at Kent State University in Ohio, actress Jane Fonda (then a passionate anti-war critic) spoke to a huge crowd at the University of New Mexico, and that night student activists took over the Student Union Building in protest.
Students gave a list of demands to then-UNM President Ferrel Heady that included removing the ROTC from campus and more scholarships for Native American students. About 400 protesters occupied the SUB for 4 days until the UNM Regents obtained a court order to clear the building, which resulted in violent confrontations with the New Mexico National Guard.
The Guard arrived with bayonets drawn, wearing gas masks. A full-scale riot broke out at the SUB and spilled onto Central Avenue.
It took just 10 minutes for the guardsmen to clear the mall outside the SUB, and at least 11 people were stabbed in the melee.
Thankfully, none of the victims died. In the end, all of the protesters surrendered to police, resulting in hundreds of arrests.
The advantages to non-violent protest are many. For one thing, peaceful protests bring awareness to the community (which may not be conscious that such issues even exist). For another, they help to empower people and encourage them to connect with others. In doing so, they can become more involved in their community — and this allows them to take charge of their own lives.
I am very encouraged that it’s mostly young people who are driving the Occupy Wall Street movement, and their intentions are honorable. They perceive the extreme injustice and inequality in this country, and they can see that it’s tearing us apart. The protesters seem to be well-behaved and responsible. Most are thoughtful, compassionate and highly educated.
This generation has finally spoken. This is their moment. After all, it is their future that’s being mortgaged. I just hope to God they don’t blow it.
