Occupied - A Visit to The Protest in Our Nation's Capital

Take a look at Occupy Washington.

Last week, I posted a blog about the ongoing protests in the Occupy Wall Street movement.
Earlier this week, I had the chance to visit the protesters in D.C. to find out why they were there and what they hoped to accomplish from their protest.

If you aren't already familiar with the movement, Occupy Wall Street or the 99 percent is a continuous protest that began on September 17, 2011. The people who are protesting are all there for different reasons, but they all share the common goal of wanting change and holding Wall Street accountable for what they see as the wholesale purchase of America and force the government to help create new jobs.

They are protesting the social and economic inequality between the top 1% and the remaining 99%, corporate greed, the power that corporations have over our government and elections, the influence that lobbyists have over our legal process and the power that the banks and Wall Street have over our entire way of life.

The movement resonated with people from across the country, and while the protest started on Wall Street in NYC, there are occupations going on in at least 70 major cities and 600 communities. Surprisingly, it isn't just Americans who have joined the movement. As of October 15th, there are occupations in 900 cities across the globe.

In our nation's capital, the protest was being held in Freedom Plaza, which is close to the National Mall and the White House. Freedom Plaza is a small plaza built on the corner of 14th Street and Pennsylvania Ave. The plaza is like a park but it is built almost entirely out of marble. It used to be called Western Plaza, but was renamed in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. It's said that he worked on his famous "I Have a Dream" speech in a nearby hotel.

The Occupy Washington protesters have erected tents throughout the plaza as a clear sign that they plan to stay until change comes - and they are prepared to wait. Interestingly, Freedom Plaza was also home to another shanty town village called "Resurrection City", which was part of King's Poor People's Campaign.

As I walked around the tent village and spoke with the people who were camped out, I was surprised to see that they weren't actually one unified group or party. Some of them were anti-war protesters who were asking for an end to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, some were there to express their anger at the huge divide that separates the top 1 percent from the remaining 99, they were angry at how much power rests in the hands of the super wealthy and upset about the lack of jobs. Many of the people were affiliated with the Stop the Machine organization while others identified more with the 99 percent movement. Although no one came out and said it, it was obvious that there were also a few members of the activist group Anonymous there as well.

These are the shoes of a child killed in Afganistan

Even though the protesters, on an individual level, were all there for different reasons and wanted different things, what tied them all together was solidarity. They all wanted to express their anger and make the call for change. Even though they had differing opinions on what that change was, they were all able to come together as part of the 99 percent of Americans who don't have power.

When I asked them what they wanted to see happen, they explained that they have 15 points of contention and each day, they devote a few hours to work together to come up with a document that clearly states what changes ought to happen, along with how they want to get there. In the section of the plaza that was set up for the committee meeting, someone had hung a large tapestry from a frame that had the beginning of the Declaration of Independence on it. Like our founding fathers, these people with such diverse points of view sit down and try to come up with a solution that sounds fair to everyone concerned.

Whether you agree with their reasons or not, you can't help but acknowledge that they are an example of the true spirit of democracy.

Here is a brief summary of some of the 15 points they are protesting: If you would like to see the complete list, you can visit Occupydc.org or October2011.org.

• Corporations are not people and shouldn't have the same Constitutional rights as people, which they are currently legally entitled to. Corporations shouldn't have influence of the political process. The Government should protect people and the environment from the damage by corporations.

• End all wars and occupations, end private for-profit military contractors. Stop exporting weapons and reduce the national security state. Leaders should be held accountable for war crimes, crimes against humanity and crimes against peace.

• All people should have the right to a high quality, publicly-funded education from pre-school through vocational school or university.

• Stop policies that promote a wealth divide by reforming tax laws so that the 99 percent don't pay a higher percentage in taxes than the 1 percent.

• Stop corporate welfare for big business.

• Protect worker's rights including collective bargaining, create jobs and raise wages.

• Get money out of politics.

I was fascinated just talking to the people who had been sleeping there in Freedom Plaza for a long time. There were young people, old people, hippies, business executives, homeless and unemployed, Vietnam veterans among the group. Although I am not sure what their occupation will accomplish, I am glad that they are out there exercising their right to peacefully assemble and protest. They are an example of the beauty of democracy in action and somehow, there in D.C with its wealth of American history, I couldn't help but think that our founding fathers would have been proud.

Have you seen an Occupy ________ , protest in your community? Do you agree or disagree with what they are doing? I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments.

By Melissa Kennedy- Melissa is a 9 year blog veteran and a freelance writer for FinancialJobBank and Nexxt. Along with helping others find the job of their dreams, she enjoys computer geekery, raising a teenager, supporting her local library, writing about herself in the third person and working on her next novel.