Category Archives: Uncategorized

The Occupation trap in history

Posted on November 16, 2011 by David S. Meyer

Occupation isn’t a new tactic.  Protesters have established permanent encampments to make political claims and support activism many times in the past.  (See our Veterans Day discussion of the Bonus Army.) The camps, dramatic demonstrations of commitment, provide an ongoing … Continue reading →

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Occupy without the Occupation

Posted on November 15, 2011 by David S. Meyer

The police in Oakland and New York City have cleared out their local Occupy encampments.  Oakland Mayor Jean Quan, who claims to be a supporter of Occupy efforts, saw the downtown encampment as unsustainable–and dangerous.  The shooting death of one … Continue reading →

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Veterans Day, Occupy, and the Bonus March

Posted on November 11, 2011 by David S. Meyer

Occupation isn’t a tactic that started this fall. In 1932 US military veterans of the Great War (now World War I), facing a job market even worse than today, demanded that the Federal government pay them their promised bonuses–no more … Continue reading →

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Occupy is not an island (I)

Posted on November 9, 2011 by David S. Meyer

How does sleeping out in an urban park do anything about income inequality?  I get this question at least a few times a week, often from one of my kids. One answer is that social movements work when dramatic action … Continue reading →

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Elizabeth Warren: Occupy’s Michele Bachmann?

Posted on November 7, 2011 by David S. Meyer

Take a minute before you get offended.   Of course, there are differences–more below. Elizabeth Warren, candidate for the Democratic nomination for the US Senate from Massachusetts, is the closest thing to an institutional face of a movement that has, … Continue reading →

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Occupy, sexual assault, and internal control

Posted on November 3, 2011 by David S. Meyer

An ABC News reporter called me yesterday to ask about the spate of sex crimes taking place in the Occupations (here’s Alyssa Newcomb’s story).  I didn’t know anything, but a moment of online searching generated plenty of stories. A lot … Continue reading →

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The politics of deflection; Occupy and local politics

Posted on November 2, 2011 by David S. Meyer

While most of the physical confrontation of the nearly two months of Occupy protests has been between demonstrators and local governments, particularly police, the conflicts aren’t very well connected to the substance of the grievances.  It’s not clear that mayors … Continue reading →

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Violence, democracy, and a general strike

Posted on October 29, 2011 by David S. Meyer

The efforts to clear out Occupiers in Atlanta, Oakland, and San Diego emphasize the difficult stalemate between local governments and the emergent Occupy movement. Although local officials may be mostly sympathetic to the concerns of the Occupiers, they’re also responsible … Continue reading →

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Irvine City Council adopts Occupation

Posted on October 27, 2011 by David S. Meyer

City governments have options in dealing with dissent, including the Occupy campaigns.  In Irvine, the heart of Orange County where I live, the City Council unanimously endorsed an agreement that will allow an Occupation in front of City Hall indefinitely. … Continue reading →

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Occupation is a tactic; violence demands innovation

Posted on October 26, 2011 by David S. Meyer

Police and Occupiers in Atlanta and Oakland have engaged in violent confrontations, with the protesters getting the worst of it.  What’s all this mean?  What happens next? Let’s start at the beginning.  Protesters are occupying Wall Street–and hundreds of other … Continue reading →

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