By Cynti Oshin
Director Business Development/Client Services
What’s the unifying message for the Occupy Wall Street, Atlanta, Seattle, etc.? I work two
buildings away from the Westlake Center Park where the Occupy Seattle protesters
have been for the past 10 days or so. I
have walked through the Park on several occasions and can hear much of what goes
on from my own little office: drums beating, whistles blowing, people
chanting. I could hear the
helicopters circling overhead, police sirens and more last week when they were
trying to move the crowd on so that the Park could be accessible to
others.
I have watched on TV as Civil Rights Leader and
Representative John Lewis was turned away, for reasons that are still not understood to me, when he showed up to support and
address the Occupy Atlanta crowd. And I have watched Bill Maher and his guests discuss the efforts of the Occupy Wall Street participants and Michael Moore almost reduced to tears about how gratified he was at witnessing
the uprising.
But I still don’t get it.
I haven’t seen the “Why”. Why the
protesters are getting out of their sleeping bags every morning at sunrise to lift up their signs and occupy their space one more day. I’ve seen lots of different messages. But not a single rallying cry. Not a
single cohesive message that
communicates succinctly that to which we should emotionally attach
ourselves.
What are the ‘Occupiers’ rallying against? Is it corporate
greed? Is it the crumbling of
democracy? Is it the demolition of our
infrastructure that supports libraries, schools, etc? Is it the people who make more than $25K a
year? (There was a rather unsavory sign
here in town that told those who did so what they could do with this particular
sign holder’s anatomy.)
You know, there’s almost nothing that I cannot bring back
around to a brand/communications perspective.
And this is no exception. These
people need to get one clear message and get it fast before this effort goes awry – and they
are not taken seriously. Because right now I want to understand
better. I want a reason to support
them. But I have a hard time doing
so.
Although there have been comparisons made to the civil rights effort and its grass roots origins - I remain incredulous. I am no historian and have no place pretending to know one iota more than what little I do. But I believe the civil rights movement had one unifying message - equal rights for ALL citizens. It was for this reason that black, white, brown and more got up every morning to fight the good fight. Whether you were for or against equal rights - there was no ambiguity. You knew what the line in the sand was and you were able to stand on one side or the other. Right now, today in Seattle, not so clear.
Posts
I think it has something to do with economic injustice. Yes, I'm sure of it.
ReplyDeleteAnd do you feel that is clearly communicated?
ReplyDeleteEconomic injustice is broad, has far-reaching implications, and affects everyone in different ways. We are the 99%, therefore it's going to a very diverse movement.
ReplyDeletePlus, this is an uprising the likes we have never seen before. In the past, it's been:
Injustice > Demand > Organization > Protest
and the protests happen, people go home, demands are ignored.
Now it's inverted:
Injustice > Protest > Organization > Demand
The protest has happened first because people are fed up with being screwed over. And this isn't just a protest, it's an occupation, where we take over public space that's ours, then we occupy the politics so that it truly represents us.
I am merely one, but we are all one together.
I get it. Diversity is a thing to be honored. But I am coming at this from a communications perspective. And how to reach out to a diverse group and achieve a common purpose, a synchronized effort? Perhaps someone lhas been alienated in the process by a lack of effective communication. You never know, the Occupy movement might benefit from a whole host of voices, not the least might be that of someone like John Lewis.
ReplyDeleteHelp me to understand. I am open to listening.
Tom Tomorrow's take on the communications gulf is perfect: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/10/10/1024469/-But-what-do-they-want
ReplyDeleteAnonymous: Maybe it's not that simple. Maybe somewhere in between vacuous talking heads - and Tom Tomorrow's activist reiterating over and over again 'economic injustice' - there's a universe of good people who might be willing to support the cause if they didn't get lost when they read the Seattle guy's sign telling anyone who made more than 25K what to do. This is not a conversation about the value of the struggle for economic justice - rather a conversation about how to get there.
ReplyDelete