Occupy Wall Street and the Changing Face of Activism

While the issues surrounding the #OccupyWallStreet movement are of deep significance to me, I have to admit that I’ve been more impressed with the way the movement was born and has continued to grow.

Though the protest traces its roots to Adbusters, the movement which has spread across the nation and the globe, is leaderless. There is no one person or central committee organizing and mobilizing the large groups in over 900 cities worldwide. Instead, it has been allowed to grow organically. It is a movement that sprung from built up anger and frustration, a movement that has grown because of its universal appeal. People are allowed to assess their personal needs and the needs of their community and participate as they see fit.

Occupy Wall Street has been criticized because of its lack of a logical approach and concrete manifesto. That is what has made Occupy Wall Street so mutable and relatable. The downward spiral of our economy has affected us all differently. That’s why we need a movement that we are able to make sense of, one that can serve the needs of the 99% and this means allowing each community to articulate just what they need.

Maybe this is the type of activism we need right now. Not a movement that different groups of people have to adjust to, but one that can evolve to serve the needs of each group it reaches. No figurehead; just people gathering in support of one another, in the face of a crumbling economy and saying exactly what’s on their minds.