[lbo-talk] State of the Occupations

Carrol Cox cbcox at ilstu.edu
Thu Feb 9 09:16:35 PST 2012


I was one of many who on this list and elsewhere who proclaimed loudly within weeks of the first Occupation that already at that time, whether or not the Occupations fizzled out, they were already a complete and unqualified victory for left causes. (I had also claimed, and would repeat now, that Wisconsin was also a victory.) Working-class movements are episodic, they never proceed smoothly with a progressive unfolding of the initial expression. Who could predict that the Montgomery Bus Boycott would produce the Free Speech Movement, the giant anti-war demos in D.C., and the Gay Revolt, and the drive for an ERA? Clearly no connection among these events. Hah.

OWS has had and continues to have world-wide reverberations, most of which are visible only to the local activists building on the opening created. No one can predict (or even try to predict) what will be the next highly visible 'event' or campaign with its roots in Wisconsin and/or OWS.

The East Remains Red.

Carrol

-----Original Message----- From: lbo-talk-bounces at lbo-talk.org [mailto:lbo-talk-bounces at lbo-talk.org] On Behalf Of Jordan Carroll Sent: Thursday, February 09, 2012 10:42 AM To: lbo-talk at lbo-talk.org Subject: [lbo-talk] State of the Occupations

There seems to be a disconnect between the current conversation and what's going on right now within the occupations. Or, at least, the conversation seems to be looking backward, toward the initial flourishing of the occupations. I can't speak for what's happening for all of the occupies, but I know that Occupy Sacramento abandoned any sustained presence at Cesar Chavez park a long time ago and still holds a sizable contingent of libertarian capitalists, while Occupy UC Davis only boasts a few tents and seems to have fractured after a particularly contentious, autonomous action. The occupations aren't as cohesive or well-attended as they were in the fall, despite fairly warm weather, a massive outpouring of support and the non-interference of the police after the pepper spray incident.* Am I correct in my assessment? Why is this the case and what should be done? It seems like these are maybe more critical questions than whether Marxist-Leninists on the Internet are "just jealous" of anarchists' unqualified success.

We can say that this the natural progression of the movement, but we've yet to see an organizational form, anarchist or otherwise, that can hold a public space in the face of consistent police repression or even, apparently, hold the dispersed constituents of the movement together in long-term collective struggle. While we might pretend that these aren't necessary - that whatever atomized and dispersed groupuscles that come after this are somehow carrying out the spirit of occupation -- occupying space and bringing disparate groups together under "the 99%" are what set Occupy apart from previous protests.

* Though there is good news: the Occupiers here have shut down US Bank everyday for weeks with no one stopping them!

-- Best,

Jordan ___________________________________ http://mailman.lbo-talk.org/mailman/listinfo/lbo-talk



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