Wall Street has long been the home of the biggest threat to American Democracy. Now it has become home to what may be our best hope for rescuing it.
For everyone who loves this country, for everyone whose heart is breaking for the growing ranks of the poor, for everyone who is seething at the unopposed demolition of America's working and middle class: the time has come to get off the fence.
A new generation has gone to the scene of the crimes committed against our future. The time has come for all people of good will to give our full-throated backing to the young people of the Occupy Wall Street movement.
The young heroes on Wall Street today baffle the world because they have issued no demands. The villains of Wall Street had their demands -- insisting upon a massive bailout for themselves in 2008, while they pocketed million dollar bonuses. The Wall Street protesters are not seeking a bailout for themselves; they are working to bail out democracy.
The American experiment in self-governance is at a moment of crisis. The political system thus far has proven itself incapable of responding to a once in a lifetime economic calamity. With income inequality and unemployment at the highest rates since the Great Depression, it's no wonder that almost 80 percent of the country thinks we're on the wrong track.
But the crisis of American Democracy did not start with the financial collapse. For at least 30 years, the system has been rigged by the wealthy and privileged to acquire more wealth and privilege. At this point, 400 families control more wealth than 180 million Americans.
This great wealth divergence has resulted in an unjust and dangerous concentration of economic and political power in the hands of the few. It has pushed millions -- especially the rising generation and communities of color -- into the shadows of our society. The middle class continues to shrink, and the ranks of the poor have swelled. The political elite has failed to take the necessary steps to provide opportunity to the majority of Americans.
A movement was born after Madison, Wisconsin, to oppose these injustices. It has now spread to every Congressional District. We call ourselves the American Dream Movement. We engaged 130,000 people to crowd-source our own jobs agenda -- the Contract for the American Dream. In August, tens of thousands demonstrated for jobs in rallies across the nation. Next week in DC, we host our first national gathering: the Take Back The American Dream conference.
The Occupation of Wall Street -- and the occupations throughout the country -- are expressions of the same spirit and dynamic. And these particular demonstrations, perhaps uniquely, contain the spark to grow into a movement that can be transformative. They are the first, small step in the creation of a movement that can restore American Democracy, and renew the American Dream.
The hundreds of young people from all five boroughs that camp out every night, in the heart of the financial district, in the rain and the cold, at risk of arrest, are providing the inspiration to draw more and more out of the shadows and into the bright light of the public square. The occupation grows larger and more diverse every day. Young people, the majority of whom are under 25 and have never before engaged in activism, are managing the arduous task of a consensus rules meeting with no sound system. The nightly general assemblies are attracting crowds in the thousands to stand amongst a group of their peers and debate our path forward as a people.
The occupation is a revival of a proud tradition of authentic, people-powered movements that have been dormant -- and that we need now more than ever. It is building into the kind of massive public demonstrations -- like those in Egypt, Madison, and Santiago -- that can shake the foundation of a system of power that has lost sight of the public good.
Now is our time to choose. Will we keep rewarding those whose financial manipulations have brought us to ruin? Or will we stand with those whose democratic innovations are breathing life into our finest ideals? Both groups are within blocks of each other in downtown Manhattan.
For the past 30 years, the country has stood behind the titans on Wall Street and their values. We listened when they said that their banks were too big too fail. Today, there is only one thing that's too big to fail: the dreams of this new generation, finding its voice in Liberty Park. All of America should now stand with them.
Authored by Van Jones, President of Rebuild The Dream, and Max Berger, a youth organizer with the American Dream Movement.
Follow Van Jones on Twitter: www.twitter.com/VanJones68
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Gov't out of business, business out of gov't, and gov't out of our lives.
we're all disposable pawns on some little oligarch's game board.
the truth never gets old and the facts never change!
oligarchs BANK on their disposable pawns, us, forgetting their constant rape and pillaging via a flood of inane jabbering like dancing with the stars, the latest fashion, people magazine, voyeurism, gossip, the latest "BREAKING NEWS" of cat stuck in tree or manufactured tragedies, anything on fox, pretty much anything on tv, after all our media is owned by the oligarchs and they laugh all the way to the bank as we amuse ourselves to death or hide from their manufactured fear.
the one thing that's still manufactured in the US - FEAR!
Our Time Is NOW!
TSA in Tenn, LA, involvement in Libya, suggesting involvement in other M.E. nations, including Iran ... Go Peace Prize.
I agree that what these young people are doing is a great thing for our country. However, it will go nowhere as things stand because it is being completely ignored by the media.
We need for people like you, and those in Washington with media access to constantly mention it. If the media will not pay attention on their own, just keep bringing it up anytime you are on to force the larger population to be aware of what is happening. The same goes for the President, and members of Congress.
Thank you for your constant work, and I'm always available to you for this type of perspective/advice.
NedroidPrime
You think keeping America safe against terrorist is wrong? Because Van Jones wants an America that is safe from terrorist.
You think the richest people in America should pay 0% in taxes? Because Van Jones thinks they should pay taxes.
You think your first ammendment right should be taken from you? Because Van Jones thinks you should have the right to free speech.
The occupy wall street protest is based upon violence, coercion and is advocating more of the same economic ideas of bailouts and giveaways that put America in its current crises. The protesters are ideologically bankrupt, just filled with a sense of rage more than anything else.
Liberals, like you, are advocating and hoping for more chaos in the streets to justify the government assuming more power, spending more money and preserving their positions of privilege and financial gain.
Not sure why you think this the way to rescue America.
First lie: street protests are based on violence and coercion. Nothing could be further from the truth. The protests are awakening a common sense of outrage faced by most Americans - that Wall Street caused the greatest financial crisis since the Great Depression, and that nothing has been done to held the people responsible accountable, or even to prevent a future crisis.
Second lie: that you would call the protesters ideologically bankrupt in their stand for policies that benefit real Americans shows you as the typical tea partier - confusing policies that create jobs with the bailouts that helped only the banks.
Third lie: that the protesters want more of the same government. The protesters and most American want less of the current government actions - making ordinary Americans pay the price for Wall Street's follies, and more programs that actually create jobs and restart the economy again.
This allow 60% of Main Street profit to go directly to Wall Street
No interpretation of the Constitution, Rule of Law and punishment for those who attack the Constitution Foreign and Domestic.
No Execution without a Trial, Due Process and Habeas Corpus. That means Congress, Administration, CIA and Military
In 2008, Mr. Obama accepted more money from Wall Street executives than any candidate in US election history. Goldman Sachs, JPM, Citi, BofA, etc, etc.
Add in the money donated by and raised by Mr. Obama's campaign chairman, Frank Raines. Mr. Raines looted Fannie Mae out of nearly $100 MILLION dollars before "retiring". Yes, the same Fannie that lost BILLIONS of taxpayer dollars.
In return, Mr. Obama has refused to indict or prosecute ANY of the WS fatcats who gave him millions in campaign contributions.
Mr. Obama is neck deep in the Wall Street Scams against taxpaying Americans, and must be held accountable.
No free pass this time, Obama.
If you want to place blame on the ones that stole our future, look no further than government.
It's profligate government spending done by both parties that is stealing our future. As the enormous tax burdens that will be needed to service that debt in the future is essentially going to destroy any chances at prosperity young Americans will have.
As if it isn't bad enough that young people under the age of 30 are being crushed with student loan debt and poor job prospects, their future earnings are going to have be confiscated and stolen by government in order to bail out Social Security and Medicare.
Place the blame for stolen futures where it lies -- with government.
The truth is that an out of control Wall Street caused the financial crisis and the deficits that came with the bad economy they caused, and our government is simply trying to dig us out of it.
The House and Senate oversight committees refused, by the way, to look into F&F's operations. The NY Fed, led by Geithner, also failed to properly evaluate the mortgage based securities which, when the housing market collapsed, also started the tumble in Insurance, Banking and Securities, which led to our trillion dollar bailout.
With all due respect, you are taking a simplistic approach to analyzing the situation. Government indeed deserves a large portion of the blame here.
EVERYONE that pays taxes got a tax cut from the Bush tax cuts of 2001 and 2003.