The Cohort

The Occupy Wall Street movement began on September 17, this year, and nearly a month later it is still galvanising the masses against corporate greed and the obscene disparity of wealth both within the United States and around the world. Today, on October 15, disdain for corporate influence over government, disillusionment with so-called democratic politics, and a more general dissatisfaction with the current economic system spread to cities around the world, including my own: Melbourne.

For me, today began like any other day. I got out of bed, had breakfast, showered, walked to the station (with Bob Dylan propelling me on) and caught a train to the city. I wasn’t sure what to expect; I didn’t think Occupy Melbourne would go badly, but I also wasn’t sure if it would succeed either. I was pleased to find many people already wandering around City Square when I turned up at around 10a.m. Several Working Groups had already set up stations and others were in the process. An hour or two later, the Speakers Forum began, and the enthusiasm and excitement of those gathered – now numbering well into the hundreds – was infectious. A highlight of this part of the day was the charismatic speech made by an elderly Indigenous woman, who expressed her solidarity with the movement and drew unreserved applause from the crowd.

Following the Speakers Forum, I, along with many of my fellow dissenters, joined the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Movement in their march to protest against the Max Brenner chocolate shop, whose parent company, the Strauss Group, provide financial support to Israeli military groups involved in callous attacks on Palestinians. This protest was successful in more ways than one: firstly, what perhaps would have been a smaller turn-out was increased by those attending OM who went along. Secondly, in order to prevent the BDS Movement from accessing one Max Brenner store, police shut down Melbourne Central shopping centre, which meant no business, at least for a short time. Thirdly, we seemed to garner a decent amount of attention from onlookers as we marched through the city streets, almost certainly increasing awareness of Max Brenner’s involvement in the aforementioned atrocities. The march continued with a sit-in in front of the Max Brenner store in QV, where we greeted customers with chants and speeches while they enjoyed their hot chocolates. One man sitting at an outside table repeatedly raised and an Israeli flag, much to the ire of the crowd, but protestors remained peaceful and there were no major disturbances (that I saw or heard of, at least). There was a rumour going around about mass arrests, but this proved false (unless I somehow missed it).

Later in the afternoon, OM’s first General Assembly was held, and hundreds turned up to vote on proposals from the various working groups (in such a genuinely democratic way as to put Parliament to shame). Most proposals were passed with consensus from voters, though some divided the crowd more than others. For instance, there was a proposal to “not vilify the 1%” (or something along those lines; I voted for it), which brought forth impassioned speakers from either side. Also, a member of Socialist Alternative moved to define the OM movement as “anti-capitalist” (which I voted against), and another lady proposed that there be “no buying or selling” by dissenters within City Square during the occupation (I voted against this, too). None of the aforementioned proposals received a consensus decision from the crowd, and were thus delegated to the Working Groups to consider during the coming days. After debate and discussion, the proposals may be put forward again, perhaps rethought, reworded or with added points of clarification. This is what democracy looks like.

I left before the fun of the night began (when I got back to my house, I noticed a friend’s Facebook status read: “Tribal party with drums at city square NOW!!!), but will return soon to become more involved. I leave you with something I wrote in my notebook on the return train journey:

The current system thrives on people’s ignorance of it and apathy towards it. It can only be dismantled if this changes. How this will be achieved remains to be seen. Supporting the movement in principle but not in practise is not adequate. People can theorise as much as they like, but without a presence on the ground, making information more accessible to more of the population, this theorising will essentially be useless.

I will probably revise this and/or extend it, but I think the sentiment expressed is what I intended, so that’s good. Until next time, my friends.

Peace and love.

 - Naomi Robson with a knife.