On Sunday, at a “Stop the Machine” protest outside the Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., prominent author and Princeton professor Cornel West was one of 19 people arrested.
The protest was one of the 1,420 similar “Meet-ups” around the world and was in solidarity with the Occupy Wall Street protests, taking a stance against corporate greed.
As the new international movement Occupy Together gains traction, the fact that thought leaders such as West are lending their voices to the movement is telling about the future of the protests’ political leadership – if it chooses to adopt any at all. OWS, whether it continues to protest against the system or attempts to reform it from within, will inevitably include influential figures such as West.
Despite the liberal leanings of Occupy Wall Street, it is increasingly clear that the movement will not be absorbed by the Democratic Party. It will instead have to form its own leadership.
OWS has been a vocal critic of the Democratic Party and President Barack Obama. West, for example claimed that Obama is “a black mascot of Wall Street oligarchs and a black puppet of corporate plutocrats.”
Because OWS’ criticism has been aimed at the political and economic system, including politicians, the movement will likely seek leadership outside of the current political establishment.
Until now, OWS has largely been leaderless and without a coherent message. Many, including West, have argued that the movement does not need a single message since it is meant to signify the general dissatisfaction and discontent with corporate greed, poverty, and the economic condition of the nation. The over-arching and unfocused movement has chosen to let all protesters have an equal voice, refraining from electing a particular leader.
However, in order to provide a legitimate alternative to the existing political structure, the movement has begun an initiative to elect leaders from its own movement to “all levels of government and get rid of greed and corruption on Wall Street, in our corporations, and in our government, ” according to its “Occupy Party” website.
That the movement has adopted a two-pronged approach – both protesting in an attempt to ask government to change and at the same time searching for possible leaders to change the system – raises questions about what the movement is exactly trying to accomplish. OWS should either focus on changing the system or providing a legitimate alternative in the upcoming elections.
While the movement contemplates whether to select leaders who will voice their concerns in government, it is clear that they must focus their resources and energy on either protesting against government or electing leaders to government.
Whatever direction and form the leadership of the movement takes, one thing is certain: It is sure to include prominent voices such as West’s in its efforts to reform the system. No longer will OWS be a leaderless protest.
Photo Credit: happygreentea
The Discussion
This is a shallow article and the "Occupy Party" appears totally bogus.
Are there still people who believe electoral politics are the answer after Obama's betrayal? This is the wrong direction for OWS. Besides, I do not see any indication that the Occupy Party is directly tied to the people on the ground at OWS. Do you know anything about them?
Great article. Informative and devoid of emotional arguments. I agree that OWS needs to focus if they want to gain more traction and last until the elections end.
Great article. Informative and devoid of emotional arguments. I agree that OWS needs to focus if they want to gain more traction and last until the elections end.
Great article. Informative and devoid of emotional arguments. I agree that OWS needs to focus if they want to gain more traction and last until the elections end.
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I'm not sure this movement needs one leader. And if it does, they need to be someone who unites people.
West once said:
[Obama] "has a certain fear of free black men” because, “As a young brother who grows up in a white context, brilliant African father, he’s always had to fear being a white man with black skin. All he has known culturally is white. .?.?. When he meets an independent black brother, it is frightening.”
A truly inspiring leader for OWS.
Aside from the racial stuff in that statement, it's notable for its lack of any connection to reality. White context? Obama grew up in Hawaii and Indonesia. He worked as a community organizer in Southside Chicago. He wrote one of the seminal books on race...
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I think that the logical progression for this is to form a hard-left Tea Party (while very firmly dissociating OWS from Tea Party style politics). That's far from ideal, but probably the only way forward, and probably the only way of getting a foot in the door.
I hope OWS can come up with leaders able to generate the same kind of appeal and funding necessary to change the political system for the better without becoming rigid, hierarchical, and in debt to lobbies, though.
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Hi Masuma - thanks for this interesting report. It is not frequently covered that OWS does not support the current Administration. Nearly all news reports I've read seem to say they do favor it. I hope they remain independent to achieve their goals.
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