At a second planning meeting last night, nearly 1,000 activists filled the United Methodist Church on Arch Street to determine the start of Occupy Philadelphia.
Following in the footsteps of, and in solidarity with, Occupy Wall Street, a large protest in New York City now in its third week, the Philadelphia action was determined to start tomorrow, Oct. 6, at 9 a.m. near City Hall. Protestors will camp out near Love Park, as well.
The packed pews of the church were filled with people of all ages and ethnicities, coming together for what one speaker called a “progressive moment in democracy.”
The facilitators of the meeting focused mainly on setting a location and time for the occupation to begin.
Options consisted of Rittenhouse Square, City Hall, Love Park and Logan Square. The town-hall style meeting allowed a democratic decision-making process by allowing people to voice their concerns and thoughts. They simply voted by raising their hands until a consensus was reached.
The Oct. 6 date was much more easily decided. It’s also the 10-year anniversary of the war in Afghanistan, one man in the crowd announced, receiving raucous approval.
“This is what democracy looks like,” one facilitator yelled triumphantly into the microphone as many hands in the audience shot up in agreement.
Although some have criticized the similar actions that have popped up from coast-to-coast as being broad and unfocused, soon-to-be protestors are demonstrating to stop things such as income inequality, wealth, unequal education and healthcare systems.
“If you feel unrepresented in government, feel corporations have too much control over the government, or are just generally angry or disappointed at the state of our country or world, join us,” said Chuck Cannon, a freshman Latin American studies major planning to take part in tomorrow’s action.
Amanda Plaksin can be reached at a.plaksin@temple.edu.
Hope we start at City Hall, but camp out at Love Park. I just love this logo connecting the two…
http://www.newsworks.org/images/stories/flexicontent/l_occupy_phillyx300.jpg
Dont people realize that whining will accomplish nothing in the face of a multibillion dollar industry?
Jack, that’s just the kind of complacent attitude that allows them to wield their power over us.
Jack, you have to start somewhere.
Casey Anthony is hott.
I must say that I’m really happy this is happening here in Philly. Kudos to Obama for organizing such a powerful movement. Hopefully people will realize the problems we have in this country.
Dan, Mark,
You have to start somewhere? Sitting around city hall is going to accomplish nothing. It isn’t a complacent attitude that we’re facing its called multi-billion wealth force. If a group of bike riding, smelly, unshowered hippies think that sitting around with some posters is going to do anything then you’re probably one of them. They’re also pretty weak. Hippies are poor and dont have money for a gym membership. I think that these hipsters will probably just end up looking like a family of homeless people who the tourists will shower with their quarters and other change. Then they will probably just buy more posters and before we know it there will be about 7-10 hipsters living in a poster village by city hall. Then one night im going to get drunk and vomit all over there poster village. In the morning they won’t realize that they’re covered in vomit because they already have worse hygiene than the residents of a brazilian whore house. But hey, if thats your thing… enjoy!
Mike, Casey Anthony is hot but i have to give the nudge to pre-4 years in an italian jail Amanda Knox. She looks beat up now. The nickname “Foxy Knoxy” didn’t come from her having a hairy tail.
To Jackson,
I am 68 years old, retired. I “whined’ for civil rights, agianst the Vietnam War and sat in for gays and women. I am well off, but many of our citizens aren’t. It is time to begin to agitate. Sitting back is not an option. I hope you and others join us.
I fought for American rights. Like willingly joined the military and went to a war zone. I actually did something. I didn’t grow my hair out, throw up some peace signs, and bitch about how the government was ruling my life.
All you said was that you are an old hipster that I’ll heckle at about 2:30 am on some night this weekend after i leave a bar. That is if the hipster mob is still there. If thats what you meant by join then I’ll be there. Hope to see ya!
It’s severely hypocritical to judge protesters you don’t agree with while praising those you do. I’m sick of people saying they’re rich kids with time on their hands. What are tea party protesters? Oh so virtuous and pure? Who decides who has the right to be unhappy? If you really think there should be such a person, then you’re way too far gone to have an intelligent conversation with.
Everybody has a right to voice descent. Old people say young kids are lazy and have no motivation. Then when they express their opinions, they complain. Those American rights you went overseas to defend? Those include the right to assemble and the right to free speech. And this is what people are using. What in the utterest of hell is the problem here?
We should all support these protests, even if they are only vaguely connected to each other. When politicians and candidates for office start to listen to the electorate voice their disappointments and frustrations in dealing with a rotten job market, a disastrous real estate market and the sheer audacity displayed in arrogant tax avoidance and wealth inequality…then PERHAPS…just maybe, we will get a better quality of candidate, and representatives who are far more responsive to the common people who lend them their authority.
Sure, go out there and sit around and draw on posters and sing kumbaya. Sit around and talk about how bad some things suck in America. Sit around and get each other all riled up about how things are going in corporate America and how they’re ruining our lives. You know what the common theme is there? Sitting. This accomplishes nothing. If these hippies are so effing smart, propose a realistic solution. Outside of just having pure hatred for hipsters within every fiber of my being, my main problem is that organizing a protest is futile. You have to realize that this is not going to accomplish anything substantial. Get promises from whatever public leader you wish about how things will change. Then will you feel accomplished?
My argument could not be more pro-right to assemble and free speech just don’t make a mockery of it like I know hippies will. These hipsters can sit around and comb their beards, put anti-corporate stickers on their bikes, and put off doing laundry for another 6 months but in the end they’re still hipsters and will have no impact on whatever their trying to combat. I bet if you asked everyone of them less than 5% of these “protestors” could propose any type of viable solution or even worse state what they’re protesting in any real detail. That’s my problem. Well, that and their hipsters, not sure if i mentioned that before.
My name doesn’t matter, my voice does. Our voices do. Our numbers matter. When we have these demonstrations popping up across the country, someone will notice. We have every right to be represented in our country. We have every right to speak up against what we feel is unfair. Even if we are a union of many complaints, all voices are accounted for and represented in each person. Thank you, Jackson, for your service to our country, but if you disagree with what is going on, now, across our nation, then you’re still “bitching and whining about how our government is ruling our lives.” Instead of insulting an elderly man who obviously has a generous heart, who fought for our rights, grow up and do something productive. Or if you don’t, because you feel that your service has been enough, stay out and let these people exercise the very rights that YOU YOURSELF fought for them to have.
Random Hipster that didn’t spell out his name,
What would you recommend to your representative be done?
What fundamental changes would you make to American economic policy that would make this situation better?
Having a voice is great but if your screaming “I DON’T KNOW WHATS GOING ON!!!” or “I’M A HIPSTER, WHERE’S MY BIKE” then what good is this voice of yours?
Riddle me that hipster nation.
Jackson Mehoff (clever boy), in your long posts you seem to be trying to convince yourself of what you’re saying more than others. Enjoy getting drunk and vomiting this weekend. The rest of us will be trying to create a better world to live in.
Oh no no no,
I thoroughly enjoy the society that America has built for me. As it turns i feel no need for improvement. I have an education, a job, and enjoy getting drunk and throwing up on dirty dirty hipsters.
Am i being fooled by the government in to this fake fantasy of being a happy American? What do I care? Turns out, not at all. My world is plenty happy enough for me and thats all I care about. It doesn’t get any more American than that.
I would say cheers to that but you’ll all be sitting outside wrapped up in wet poster and hipster stink. Enjoy that.
im the single mother of a Temple student. working 6-7 days week at 2 jobs just to make ends meet & pay the tuition that gov’t loans won’t cover. my son & i aren’t rich enough to keep all the bills paid OR poor enough to qualify for free education and food stamps. we fall in that bracket that soooo many others do in this country. the ‘barely getting by’ group. He went to the meeting last night, (with clean clothes on & a shower. lol), not to whine, but to have a voice. to meet with like-minded people, to find out how to participate in this movement. He was a ‘City Year’ volunteer a couple of years ago & found his passion; education. He is pursuing a double major at Temple in Secondary Education and History with minors in Political Science and Psychology. It’s people like him that are attending this protest, not to complain & whine, but to join together, to stand for equality in this country. A country where it’s so apparent that equality doesn’t exist…in income, education & healthcare.
Jackson Hemoff is a hipster. It’s cool to call people hipsters nowadays.
I am repulsed that you would ever consider one of those vile people. They couldn’t spell personal hygiene if you asked them to and refuse to pay rent. They’re barely a step above the homeless and communists.
Jackson you’re a sick person, careless, heartless. You really think that everyone out here is a “dirty hipster” for wanting to cause some positive change in this world. You’re deluded. If you enjoy your freedoms, enjoy them, but don’t discourage those who are calling out, exercising their rights. You’re a hypocrite. You fight willingly for our country on the battlefield, but deny what’s going on inside our nation. What is wrong with you? You’re asking everyone on here why they’re fighting? We’re out here asking for the change we were promised. For a little bit of money to trickle through the system. Why did you fight for our country? We see reason to change it, that you are apparently blind to. You blame me for wasting my voice. You’re wasting your voice by telling us that we’re all wrong. We’re being productive, you’re being an asshole. Re-evaluate your thoughts and come back here. Maybe ask yourself “what fundamental changes you could make to improve our economic position,” instead of sitting back and merely accepting that this is the way it is. And years from now, when you reflect on your life in the new era that we shaped through our protests, that you remember the arrogant attitude you had towards this movement.
Major change will only happen from within and from above. The allure of being an “activist” is to many more important than actually accomplishing anything. It may draw attention to the issues and people, but is unlikely to effect real change.
Long as they don’t screw up any buildings or disrupt the public they’re fine in my eyes.
And if they do, gtfo my city.
Nuff said.
Dear he who thinks his name doesn’t matter,
Unfocused protesting without any particular proposed solution is not productive. It’s screaming at the wind. Good luck with that.
I am another temple mom. My daughter also went to the meeting and will be at the event, clean, and fed, and happy to have a voice finally about the state of our country, a country that she and the others of her generation will inherit from the generations before that have really messed things up. The ‘Hippie” days of being ‘unclean’ and homeless are long gone. Do you not know what year this is???? If you truely think that voicing your opinion in this great country is futile, then by all means take yourself and your misguided views to some place else. This country was founded by people who had a different thought about how to live and be free and have equality be everyone’s RIGHT, not just for the privileged few. Many members of my daughter’s family have fought in all wars to allow her the RIGHT to speak her voice. AND just maybe if enough people speak up, someone will listen, and that is how change happens. Change has to start somewhere, let it begin with those who really care about the future……
I’ll be there tomorrow, sign and all. SITTING ON OUR LAURELS WILL ACCOMPLISH NOTHING! This will turn people heads to whats really going on.
I don’t have a problem with this kind of thing, unless they’re causing a major buildup of city traffic, which could be very dangerous. However, they won’t get anything done if they don’t actually propose a SOLUTION to the problems they are marching for. A question for the people (or parents of the people) who are involved in this: have the demonstrators actually said anything about what should be done (in other words, have they given a solution to the issues)? I’m genuinely asking.
Also, Jackson Hemoff: can’t tell if trolling or closet hipster. GTFO.
Also, Chuck Cannon was a friend of mine back in junior high :D.
If you think you don’t have a job now, wait until these OWS guys get what they want. Take a macroeconomic class here at Temple and in the first 2 weeks you will see what high taxation on corporations does to the economy. Double taxation, stifling growth. The answer is not higher taxation (and to what ends do you want to use the money for?) the answer is less corporate taxation (income taxation is completely different) to make businesses more competitive.
What exactly is wrong with capitalism and incorporation? What’s your beef? The lobbying? You do realize everyone from unions and corporations to the national endowment of the arts lobbies, right?
FY2010 4th Quarter, top 50 employers in PA: http://www.paworkstats.state.pa.us/admin/gsipub/htmlarea/uploads/paagg_t50.pdf
The top two employers – the Federal and State Governments – are only able to hire thanks to the labors of the businesses in Pennsylvania and across the United States. You want to ruin the corporations? They are the reason why the Federal Government and the State Government can hire so many people.
I suppose you could sum up my last statement as: don’t bite the hand that feeds you. Because that’s what income and corporate taxes do – they feed the government. If you tax corporations more, you’ll have less income tax, lower growth, lower profits (which means lower profit tax revenues) and you keep chewing on that hand that feeds you.
Also, I should add that while this *is* democracy, if the “99%” of the people think they are right, that doesn’t mean they are right. That’s text book ad populum logical fallacy.
If 99% of the people thought the Earth was flat, are they right because a democratic majority said the Earth was flat?
Oh, Cory, not again. Geez, what did you take one course in Economics and you think you know it all, because dude, you really do think you know it all, which leads to a superiority complex, which leads to being a worthless contributor to society only spreading mayhem. Cory, read about the 1980’s, the wonderful world of Reagan – must remind folks that he was a freaking President of the United States after being an actor most of his life – go figure. Reagan switched everything up, lowering the corporate tax rate, raising middle class which is composed of all those not living in poverty to those who, help me here, Cory, up to what level of income? In 1986, Ronald Reagan decided it was a good thing to tax unemployment. Tell the good people all the changes Ronald Raegan instituted while President and just being the actor that he is, like they all are, telling the people what the folks in power, want them to hear – i.e,, the wealthiest of world.