Bloomberg backs down on Occupy Wall Street “cleaning” eviction
Image from http://www.adbusters.org/campaigns/occupywallstreet/posters
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, billionaire (roughly $18 billion) and 13th richest person in the United States, announced a few days ago that the Wall Street occupiers needed to leave for a few days so that the park could be “cleaned”. Brookfield Properties, the owner of the park, said the park had become unsanitary since the occupation began so it needed to be power washed. Ok, fair enough on the park needing to be cleaned. That many people in such a closed space will cause that to be necessary. However they apparently weren’t extending the fairness of assumption of intellect as it was an obvious ploy just to get occupiers to leave. I’d be willing to bet they smiled shook hands and patted each other on the back as they congratulated each other on their genius.
The Occupy Wall Street campers and supporters responded by beginning an effort to clean the park themselves to diffuse the argument. Again, though it was obvious that the point was to make them leave not the cleaning. It became more evident when NY Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said protestors wouldn’t be allowed back with their camping gear among other restrictions. See, it is easier to prevent them from coming back in than to move them and all their gear out. It isn’t just a few bits of camping gear and some tents. Among other things, there is a kitchen area where they serve food, a library with hundreds of books and a medical area with supplies plus the bodies. So making them leave on their own is the much easier solution to the only other alternative, one which will win them no favors, of going in there and busting peaceful protestor heads and physically dragging them out. Which it seemed the NYPD was mobilized to do just in case, well maybe not head busting. The problem with that plan is the numbers didn’t work out the way they expected.
At 6 AM this morning, 3,000+ New Yorkers, unions, students, and others joined the occupiers in the square to send a clear message to the 1% who want to silence this peaceful assembly of the 99%. Donations poured into the protesters from Italy, England, Mexico and many other countries by everyday people hoping to help the movement grow.
This is the power of the masses. As the slogans indicate, this is a case of the 99% against the 1%. That 99 is a much bigger number than 1. Now the political saving face started immediately after with Bloomberg’s office tweeting.
Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s office tweeted that Brookfield Properties, owner of the park, (and not the city) decided to postpone cleaning. The city was informed “late last night.” – @NYCMayorsOffice
If that’s how you want the story written fine. Let’s ignore the mass media coverage this standoff had garnered and the probably 10 fold increase in the crowd. Yes, the state, the country, the world was watching. A move to forcibly remove those people could have went very bad, very quickly and it would have been immediately broadcasted globally. Bloomberg, Brookfield Properties and the NYPD would have been the bad guys. The irony here is that the blame and criticism for whatever might have happened would fall on Mayor Michael Bloomberg and the NYPD. Brookfield Properties would have been an after thought because it is a faceless corporation. There is no way to personally associate it with any one person of consequence. You could call out the head of the company but in the media the name largely mentioned is Brookfield Properties. How does that idea that corporations are people too feel to Bloomberg I wonder?
I think that’s what decided to postpone the “cleaning”. But whatever you say.
Additional:
http://occupywallst.org/article/ows-victory-people-have-prevailed-gear-global-day-/
http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/headlines/2011/10/eviction-of-occupy-wall-street-from-nyc-park-postponed/
http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/manhattan/wall_street_protestors_will_tents_4IyAa1fLfXamvvwkvSbHbM
http://www.suntimes.com/news/nation/8208406-418/occupy-wall-street-protest-park-cleanup-postponed.html
Jaylon Carter is a blogger, social media marketing consultant, former Congressional Campaign Media & Communications Director, national labor union vice block leader, and a Hip Hop artist who performs under the stage name Timid (@timidmc).
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