From Counter Punch: http://www.counterpunch.org/2013/05/06/occupy-helps-build-the-popular-resistance/
by Kevin Zeese and Margaret Flowers
May 06, 2013
Yesterday, a media outlet contacted us to be on a show about how Occupy had “fizzled coming into this year’s May 1.” The media keeps looking for encampments or last year’s protests and is missing how popular resistance is growing and demonstrating all over the country.
This year there were actions in many cities on May Day. On Occupy Washington, DC we have reports from New York, NY, Denver, CO, Portland, OR and Richmond, VA as a few examples among many.
Allison Kilkenny, the movement writer for the Nation, got it right when she wrote, “Now is actually the time when the most exciting grassroots workers’ actions are taking place.” She points to the low-wage worker, fast food and non-unionized workers actions as examples. As you will see in this weekly report there are many more examples of the growing popular resistance.
Kilkenny also points out that the FBI counter-terrorism unit in Washington State remains concerned and was interviewing activists about their plans for May Day. In the end, in Seattle, there was a mass peaceful march on immigration and an anti-capitalist marchmarred by police violence and property destruction.
While a single day action can show breadth of support, we prefer campaigns to single day actions like May Day, because a campaign has the time to build, educate and energize more people. Here is news about a few recent campaigns:
The month long protests against drones ended with actions on both coasts. At the Hancock Air National Guard Base in Syracuse, NY, the Upstate Coalition Against Drones organized a banner drop, conference, rally and mass protest. Bruce Gagnon, an antiwar activist who works to keep weapons out of space and serves as the Green Shadow Cabinet’s Secretary of Space, wrote a thorough summary of all of the events, and we added photos and a video of the banner drop. Bruce was one of the 31 arrested at Hancock who participated in a die-in after reading the names of victims of drones. And, at Beale Air Force Base in California, protesters closed the base for hours resulting in long lines of cars waiting to get in. Five people were arrested.
The month-long protests against the Guantanamo prison, done in solidarity with the hunger strike at the prison, have raised awareness of the abusive detention without charges. They forced President Obama to address the issue, saying he would try again to close the prison (of course, under the law he could do a lot more than “try again”). And a petition put forward a few days ago by Col. Morris Davis, who served in the US Air Force for 25 years and was chief prosecutor for terrorism and trials at Guantanamo Bay for over two years, to close the base already has over 110,000 signers. Here is a link so you can sign it.
Continue reading at: http://www.counterpunch.org/2013/05/06/occupy-helps-build-the-popular-resistance/
