As many of you following the movement know, the city of New York has been trying their hardest to keep press from filming police action. As a consequence, a web phenomenon was born, in the form of live feed on LiveStream and UStream broadcasts from amateur videographers. The most watched of these was Tim Pool, www.ustream.tv/theother99 who became a web sensation with over 30,000 viewers as he attempted to navigate the chaos of the Zuccotti Park eviction, and retaliatory Wall Street shutdown.
Tim's footage was riveting (if you consider Blair-Witch style, low resolution footage of fat, tired old police hogs kicking people's teeth out to be entertainment. I do.). I was enthralled, and spent most of the day glued to his report.
By the evening of 11/17/11, the street reporters were attempting to walk towards what appeared to be the Brooklyn Bridge when they encountered some rather hostile crowd organizers in professionally printed white t-shirts. These organizers were stationed near a large rally with a stage, check-in tent, and pro stage amplification.
These people were not friendly when speaking to the live-streamers. They refused Tim access when the film crew tried to look into the event. They also seemed to be acting in a crowd-direction capacity, and for a moment it seemed as though they were trying to either block the street, or mis-direct the march. The question from the videographer, passers-by, and UStream chat audience seemed to be: "Who the fuck are these guys?" The first reaction seemed to be that they were either plain-clothes police or some private security firm providing intentional mis-direction.
Several audience members attempted to research the group, and ended up briefly crashing http://unitedny.org/ .
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I looked into this rally. Apparently it was a union event that had been scheduled for months, and decided to provide solidarity. Supporting the 99% message of the #OccupyWallStreet movement, it would at first seem like a good addition. Union support provides credibility. The inclusive nature of the movement allows any working-class concerns to be voiced. There is no harm in gathering large numbers.
Here's my problem (I always have one, with everything); was this a show of support, or a show of pre-election co-opting?
As a movement that can be summed up as "We're getting fucked by everyone with political or financial power," there is a general feeling of unease about politicians trying to "get in on the crowd action". Visiting senators have been shouted down, and told to go back to the cue. The movement has rebelled against any party-line generalization. Many have noted it is a minefield for the Democratic Party, as many former Obama voters now have scathing criticism about the Obama administration's role in the bank bail-outs, as well as a prolonged, hawkish presence in the Middle East.
I've heard several political science majored friends speculating that the Dems will try ride the coat-tails of this new mob. They will try to welcome them back to the fold, much as the Republican party tried to co-opt the Tea Party. They will try to infiltrate the marches, over-ride the tone of the event, direct actions towards a decidedly non-aggressive, pro-Democratic direction; in other words, they will co-opt.
Why does this one rally disturb me? Because of one logo which I noticed on their website, you white-shirted mother-fuckers; MoveOn.
MoveOn used to be ok. I may have even given them some money way back in the day. They galvanized a lot of the anti-war protests of the early 2000's. They theoretically contribute to socially left-leaning political causes with which I agree. However, it should be noted that they are among the "big guns" of political contributors. They raised almost $40,000,000 (yes, the zeros are correct; forty million) dollars for the 2008 Democratic Party. They already have $4,000,000 riding on 2012, so maybe they're out looking for fresh blood.
MoveOn hasn't dropped their support of the Dems, even though they are clearly NOT an anti-war party. Their beloved Obama administration is still in Afghanistan, has authorized Predator Drone bombings across borders in non-war zones (often killing civilians), has failed to stand up to Israel's escalation of the Palestine conflict, likely instigated several middle east uprisings, openly approved of several assassinations, engaged in nuclear sabre-rattling with Iran, pissed off China over their currency inflation, and is now using their clout to unleash Homeland Security on the very rioters they're cozying up to. Don't get me started on the amount of lobbyist cash flowing into willing Democratic election coffers from the defense industry.
Some of the more savvy crowd members are pointing to this already. A popular chant at a recent mid-west event was "MoveOn Out", not in reference to marching, but to this mega-PAC's covert sponsorship in street theatre, despite their history of feeding the 2-party election beast.
Look; the 99% Movement has room for everyone, even Democrats, and possibly even special interest groups. I support unions, having worked in several manufacturing labor industries. A movement needs middle ground, and needs to ignore the faults and alliances of its united participants.
But I draw the line at privilege-pulling from a group of known lobbyists. The Zuccotti Park kids used a 'human mic' technique of crowd repetition because the city would not allow amplified microphones; MoveOn gets a stage and a pro PA system. The kids get their tents torn down, receiving many kicks to the face and arrests in the process; MoveOn gets a special pavilion and pop-up tent. There is a clear message from NYC that the MoveOn event was "Sponsored," "Permitted," "Allowed," and that any other event organizers should just fuck off and die in a jail cell.
Not only that, but their helpers had the nerve, the utter gall to tell the organizer's main video life-line, with 30,000 live views, over 600,000 visits, and re-broadcasts on Russia Today and Al Jazeera that he wasn't allowed in to film. Moreover, they tried to mis-direct traffic in a way that smacked of infiltration from The Authorities. All this after appropriating their logo, setting up shop on their march route, loudly proclaiming their support and affiliation with the cause. It's like inviting a stranger to your party and watching them drink your finest whiskey. They are, quite literally, party-crashers.
Groups like MoveOn want nothing more than for the same destructive cycle of lobbyists, PACs, special interests and paid politics to continue, at least until things shake out in 2012. They're in it for Obama, despite being against everything they so loudly supported in the early 2000's, and in a few months they're going to be the ones lurking at the back of your hard-earned camps, marches, and actions, soliciting money from the piss-poor, disillusioned masses that have already disavowed the gluttonous, cash-lubed orgy of electioneering.
Worse, they're the ones that will self-police "good event behavior". They're the ones who will call loudest for main-stream support, not law breaking. They are in it for election press, and they won't hesitate to watch you get roughed up a little, so long as no one throws a moltov. Think I'm wrong? I have $50 riding on the fact that the DNC & RNC both explode into total chaos, and they're going to be the ones making sure their pretty banners don't get ripped.
Also seeing as how the federal government has been virtually silent on these protests, and the fact that there are hints that orders came from above (Department of Homeland Security) to squash these protests, it's a bit of a fox in the hen house. A greedy, well-spoken, well-connected, tent-permit holding fox in a seething, rioting henhouse that is ready to boil over into revolt.
And your white shirts? I used to work in event apparel. A run of those costs at least $5k. If you're going to blow $5k on fugly shirts for one rally, I already know where your finances sit.
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Who was at that rally?
RWDSU & SEIU
The Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Workers Union... is throwing its weight behind President Obama's re-election bid. “President Obama has done more for working people than any President in recent memory,” said Stuart Appelbaum, president of the 100,000-member RWDSU, in a statement announcing the endorsement. RWDSU joins SEIU in backing Obama's hopes for a second term, and both plan to put union boots on the ground to boost his campaign at a time when labor sees itself as under siege by local governments...“When you examine his biggest victories—economic stimulus, healthcare reform, auto industry recovery, financial reform, pay equity reform, middle class tax relief, restoration of collective bargaining rights—it is clear that he has delivered on his central promises of hope and change. His presidency has been transformative under the most difficult of circumstances. He has been a stalwart defender of working men and women during a time of obscene obstructionism in Congress. Yet his record of progressive accomplishments has been woefully unacknowledged. He deserves more credit and gratitude." via http://rwdsu.info
(A "Stalwart Defender"? Are we on the set of Master and Commander here?)
During the 2010 election cycle, SEIU spent nearly $15.8 million on advertisements and other communications known as independent expenditures that overtly advocated for or against federal political candidates, with Democrats benefiting from almost all of them. via Open Secrets
The UAW - United Auto Workers
They seem pretty pro-Obama, with a lot of favorable press for Joe Biden.
That makes sense, as he is the Pontiac FireBird of Vice Presidents.
Seriously though guys...no one in the government is actually pro-labor. They are pro oil, pro defense, and pro-importing garbage from China. You might want to consider that little South Korean Free Trade thing before you go hugging Obama for the privilege to make cars.
Make the Road
This group seems to be a feel-good, 'raise our latino children to a better life' type of organization. In all fairness, small non-profits and community organziations raise money from a variety of sources, often tapping corporate donors. Part of the problem with corporations hoarding obscene wealth is they have to find a tax write-off somewhere, and end up dumping cash into the community. Then they use the rest of their money to fund policies that fuck over those very same people, in much more devastating ways. This is a piss-poor system of public funding.
I am going to weed out the worst among them who have funded this group in the past, because I am an asshole and have no journalistic qualifications:
FOUNDATIONS
Capital One Foundation
GE Foundation
Merck Family Fund
CORPORATIONS
Alliance Bernstein
Citi, N.A.
Cross County Federal Savings Bank
Fulbright & Jaworski LLP
Goldman, Sachs & Co.
IBM Corporate Giving Program
Johnson & Johnson
McGraw-Hill Education
New York Lawyers for the Public Interest
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher, and Flom, LLP
Time Warner
I don't know. Maybe a community group that took even a little money from say, Skaden-Arps or Goldman Sachs would feel a little bit awkward showing up at a rally... a rally to over-throw Goldman Sachs. And maybe at that rally they wouldn't try to cock-block the real event organizers.
NYCC- New York Communities for Change
These guys seem pretty serious about fucking over JP Morgan, and are on board with the whole Occupy thing. They should stop hanging out with MoveOn so much. You and the Communication Workers. I like how you roll.
UFT-United Federation of Teachers.
If I've learned anything from elementary school, teachers are always willing to strike, in hopes that someone, anyone, realizes how badly they're getting shafted.
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