Is Occupy Wall Street Really a Beginning?

OPINION/ Aditya Divakaran

Protests at the Wall Street are creating ripples across the globe. Occupy Wall Street (OWS), a non leadership, demand-less protest against the monopoly of financial system by corporate and other lobbyist has had repercussions around the globe just in a mater of a month of its starting.

This movement has gathered support unofficially by Adbusters a Canadian-based not-for-profit, anti-consumerist, pro-environment organization. However, many other activist groups have joined later on.

OWS is an outright people-powered movement that began on September 17, 2011, in Liberty Square in Manhattan’s Financial District.
It has currently inspired similar protests in over 100 more cities in the United States including NYC. OWS protesters claim that this is the fight back of majority of the US populace, against major banks and multinational corporations, degrading the democratic system. Wall Street corporate and investment bankers are accused of playing major role in the recent recession. This is due to their role in directing the impact of recession solely on the US population and keeping their pockets safe.

The activists make it clear that they have been inspired by recent popular uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia. They are enraged by how the wealthiest one percent of the population is bending rules in their favor, thereby harming the global economy and future of the citizens. The protest till date has been peaceful and legal.

With the world economy predicted to witness yet another recession, the protest aims at sweeping away the corporate greed and lobbying climbing up the ladder. Social and economical inequality have created a vast void between rich and poor in the world, it is felt.

The movement has opened doors in many countries in Europe and Asia as well. Though the movement represents the sentiments of “we are the 99%”, it shamelessly lacks an alternate ideology or solutions for the change. It can be more described as a united sulk than a productive initiative.
Inspired by the Egyptian revolution of 2011 for democracy, this one wants to cut rising unemployment, anemic economic growth and inadvertent impacts of wars fought by the US. With high hopes about guaranteed economic growth by the freshly elected president turned out disappointing, citizens feel that their rulers are numb to their troubles.

However, this is a new type of movement, which the protesters have tactfully targeted on the private park grounds near the influential Wall Street.
European countries are right away inspired by this stride against greed and corruption. The streets of Madrid were packed with thousands Indignados (indignant) activists to protest against cutbacks to health and education spending, unemployment and corporate greed as part of a global day of protest.
This also motivated alike movements in Greece, Rome and Frankfurt. China also witnesses its people disparaging centralized wealth in Hong Kong.
However, India is most unlikely to witness such a mass movement as the country has already seen a definite movement against corruption under the leadership of Anna Hazare.
More than 1500 cities in 82 countries around the globe are currently witnessing protests. On October 15 around one month after the start of protest, remonstrations were held from North and South America to Asia, Africa and Europe as part of a global day of action.
Many famous personalities who has come forward supporting the movement includes Naomi Klein, Julian Assange, Michael Moore, Glen Beck and many more.

Though the reasons for the protest are wide and clear, the aim of the protest still seems vague. Another main back-puller is lack of a bolstering leadership and an endpoint to protest. Likelihood for this movement for being another one of the urge to-part-of-making-history movement cannot be neglected as well.
Even though the movement has garnered attention and support from American citizens, confusions regarding the ado are still lingering in their psyche, which can be counter-productive.

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Is Occupy Wall Street Really a Beginning?

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