The LookoutOccupy Wall Street may speak to the jobless–but do they have time to participate?
Occupy Wall Street actions continue in cities across the United States--in New York, protesters last week invited parents to bring their children to a sleepover in Zuccotti Park, while in Washington, D.C. demonstrators released balloons in Union Station to disrupt a gala dinner. The largely liberal uprising has even garnered the attention of the tea party--which is at pains to distance itself from the movement, however close some of their demands may appear to be.
But is Occupy Wall Street speaking to those in the "99 percent" experiencing the crisis of long-term unemployment in the United States? (Fourteen million Americans are now officially unemployed, with the unofficial tally nearly twice that; 45 percent of the jobless have been out of work for more than six months; meanwhile, corporate profits at an all-time high.)
We reached out to some of the Yahoo! readers who wrote to us this summer about their experiences with long-term unemployment and asked what they thought of the Occupy Wall Street protests. Everyone we reached was well aware of the movement, and most found its goals agreeable, if perhaps a bit undefined. However, overwhelmingly, those sympathetic to the movement weren't participating. Why? They reported that they didn't have either the time or the resources.
Some Yahoo! readers saw Occupy Wall Street coming. "I have been telling people for the last 2 years that protests will begin soon because there are too many people unemployed" wrote Paula S. of Acworth, Georgia. Paula is in her sixties and lost her job in 2008. "[I] believe it was necessary and ultimately inevitable for Occupy Wall Street to occur, under this moniker or another," concurred Dan H. of New Jersey, who lost his job in 2009.
The message of Occupy Wall Street seemed clear to most of those who responded: ongoing (and worsening) income inequality and a lack of government policy solutions. "The message may not be inherently clear and decisive but it is pretty obvious we're just plain tired of the state of affairs," wrote Mehgan C. who lost her job at a call center in 2010 and has since only been able to find part-time work.
"You'd get quite a diverse bunch of statements. But they will boil down to the issue of the extreme divide of wealthy and poor," wrote Norina N., who lost her job in 2008 and has since retrained as a teacher.
"My understanding is that, while there are a multitude of issues the protesters are concerned about, the driving force behind OWS is that the 99% of hardworking, average Americans are tired of the U.S. government ignoring us and making policy that works against us, and benefits that 1%, the wealthy," wrote Catherine W., who lost her newspaper job in 2008.
"I see the message as a 'shout out' that the system is busted . . .people are hardwired to accept that there will be those on top, but when we as a group are doing everything necessary to keep those on top well taken care of (bailouts), it is not right that they should feel no pain while we all suffer and continue to get worse, with no end in sight. I am reminded of that famous quote said to have been made in similar circumstances 'Let them eat cake!' " wrote Douglas G., who revised his job titles downward in order to get another job.
But even if Occupy Wall Street's message spoke to our readers, many lack the time to participate.
"I have not participated since I have no income and no assets with which to bail myself out of jail if I get arrested," wrote Kathryn D., who lost her job in 2009.
"I can't camp and occupy as I've a farm to maintain, but I lend what support I can," Norina N. wrote.
Jason G. said concern over the lack of focus of the protests had given him pause about participating, but "mainly now that I am working I am trying to regain the momentum in my life that was lost during the economic fall." Jason was unemployed from 2008 to 2010.
Kurt G., who is also re-employed, found himself in a similar situation. "I'm a 50-something with a full-time job, so I don't have many resources of time to put into the protests." He hopes to if the protests continue into the next year. "The power of this movement is that it appeals to well-educated and fully-employed people like me and some of my socially-conscious friends. It's not just for anarchists like the anti-WTO riots in Seattle where I live."
Rosa R. of California said while she shared Occupy Wall Street's concerns she had not yet participated, but would "vote according to their endorsement."
"These are not the "all dressed up and nothing to do protesters," wrote Dan H. of Arizona, who started his own business after losing his job."I hope this movement comes to Phoenix."
Still, some of our respondents felt firmly that the protests neither spoke to them nor said anything good about the direction of the country. "It's rather hard to have not heard about the Occupy Wall Street movement," wrote Susan W., who lost her job when the small business she was working for closed. "I don't, however, commiserate with their cause."
Stephanie B. of Memphis, TN was even more forceful in denouncing the protests . "I would absolutely not participate in any of the Occupy groups and would just die if I saw one of my children with them."
Susan W. questioned the need for more government involvement and said she finds it hard to attack the 1 percent, since "I am still striving to become one of them."
"The Occupy Wall Street people might do better to spend less time protesting, and more time working toward becoming more financially sound," Susan concluded. "I don't see any of them out there building a new business and hiring the unemployed."
Unemployed Yahoo! readers also recognize that the protests can't offer them any immediate relief. "I understand the sentiment of the protesters," wrote Thomas Wilson of Tallahassee, FL. "But if I were there, I'd set up a charcoal and sell hot dogs and sodas ... that is, until NYC Police or the Permits Dept would shut me down."
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