In Hurricane Sandy Relief, a Reminder of Occupy’s Original Spirit

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from YES! Magazine:



In Hurricane Sandy Relief, a Reminder of Occupy’s Original Spirit
Commentators in the mainstream media have said the effective hurricane relief accomplished by Occupy Sandy represent a new direction in the movement. In fact, nothing could be closer to its founding ideas and actions.

by Jeffrey Lawrence, Luis Moreno-Caballud
posted Nov 28, 2012

[font size="1"]This article is adapted from a blog entry that appeared on the Huffington Post.[/font]

[font size="1"]An Occupy Sandy relief hub in the Rockaways, Queens. Photo by Occupy Sandy.[/font]


Mainstream media outlets from The New York Times and the Washington Post to the online magazine Slate have reported on the swift and effective response of the umbrella group known as Occupy Sandy. To borrow a metaphor from Times reporter Alan Feuer, it would seem that after nearly a year of "wander(ing) in a desert of more intellectual, less visible projects, like farming, fighting debt and theorizing on banking,” the Occupy movement has finally found its true cause and ultimate commandment: just helping out.

In fact, this determination to address basic needs has been a concern of the Occupy movement from the very beginning. For those who have followed the movement since its early days, the emergence of Occupy Sandy looks less like the endpoint of an erratic and itinerant journey than a necessary step in the ongoing evolution of the Occupy movement.

Where Feuer suggests that Occupy Sandy “renew[ed] the impromptu passions of Zuccotti,” we see the relief efforts as evidence of the continuity of Occupy’s aims. What started on September 17 of last year as a protest against the disproportionate influence of Wall Street on the American political and economic systems quickly transitioned into an effort to create sustainable networks of community organization.

The impetus, it is true, was simple. Occupy wanted community support networks that were not determined by the corporate logic of the "bottom line" or the victimization stigma that attaches to any movement that demands "entitlements" or "handouts" from the government. The encampment in Zucotti Park, where all could freely come and go, symbolized an aspiration that would be central to the 2012 election. The country did not want to divide itself into givers and takers, corporate "job creators" and Romney's now-infamous "47 percent." ................(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.yesmagazine.org/people-power/in-hurricane-sandy-relief-reminder-occupy-original-spirit

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