The Occupy London protest
On 15 October 2011, an Occupy London (actually Occupy the London Stock Exchange) protest began and now looks like being around for a long time. The protest was a British version of a protest that started in New York’s financial district and has since spread all around the USA and indeed the world.
The protesters initially intended to marshall in front of St Paul’s Cathedral prior to occupying the close-by London Stock Exchange in Paternoster Square. But the police put a stop to that (and still do) and the protest turned into a tent site in front of the Cathedral and all along its north side.
It was only this week that I found myself in the area and decided to have a quick look around the tent city. I was only there for a short time, but I was really impressed at the degree of organisation on show and the evident willingness of the protesters to engage with passers-by who wished to discuss and debate with them.
At home, I checked out the Occupy London web site. Three weeks into the demonstration, the nearest there is to a set of demands or a policy programme is the Initial Statement which insists: “The current system is unsustainable. It is undemocratic and unjust. We need alternatives.” There are a few Key Facts on the economic crisis and the inequalities in our society.
Every day, there is a lot of activities and debate and there is a real effort to make the process democratic and inclusive, There is a General Assembly and working groups with minutes and a process for consensual decision-making – for a flavour, see here.
It would be easy to dismiss or trivialise this protest, but it has clearly tapped into a mood in the wider populace and achieved an unexpected degree of publicity. This is an event worth watching.