Occupy Boston, Day 1

October 1, 2011 by D. Markus Witt | Leave a comment

Occupy Boston Has Begun!

We are the 99%, YOU are the 99% Join the cause!

The Beginning is near!

I have been fortunate to be a part of Occupy Boston since Tuesday Sept, 27th, at the 1st General Assembly. At the time I was impressed at both the numbers as well as the functioning democratic process. Well, last night was the kickoff party on Dewey Sq. in Boston, MA, the Beginning of why all this effort has been put in by so many dedicated individuals. There was an estimated 1000 people at this event, that is 600 more than at the 1st GA! What a great testament to everyone’s hard work.

Occupy Boston Day 1 GA -2

The most impressive part of this Occupy Boston protest, is not the amazing media savvy, though that is quite impressive. It is the Democratic process. With All aspects of the protest voted on, this Democracy one of the most important pieces of this protest. Democracy is slow, it is inefficient and, at times, it can be downright frustrating, but is one of the few way to respect each individual point of view affected by these decisions. All it takes is a good facilitator to manage the process, not a leader, not any authority, This is the way our country should be running, and this is the future of our government, germinating right here, right now!!

Occupy Boston Day 1 GA

Occupy Boston Day 1 GA learning 'in agreement'

Occupy Boston_day1_Got numbers?

The first day of the occupation brought much energy! The ‘Arts and Culture’ working group put that energy to creative use, and provided a nice tapestry of sound to backdrop the protest!

Occupy Boston Protest songs

Occupy Boston drum circle 1

Occupy Boston drum circle 2

Props to the Food Working Group for grubbing everyone up!! Whoot!

Occupy Boston Food Donations

and to my fellow Media team members for their dedication and hard work leading up to and continuing to get the word out about this event.

Occupy Boston day1 media team

mid evening there were a few events that culminated in some interesting interactions with the Boston Police Dept. the first was a protester that passed out and was in need of medical assistance, for whatever reason, this brought 6 police cars to Dewey Sq. the second, may be the real reason the BPD showed up, and that was a 400 protester march around the financial discrict. This march ended on the doorstep of the Boston Federal Reserve, where impassioned protesters and the strong police presence mingled for a bit. There were no incidents, and so this should garner respect for both sides!

Occupy Boston Protests, Police, and the Fed

Occupy Boston BPD K9

the rain eventually came and not long after the Fed protest, the cameras got packed away and we all hunkered down for the night. All in all Day 1 went well, and there are indefinite days to go, hang in there! Solidarity!!!

Occupy Boston Has Begun!

I am the 99%, YOU are the 99% We are the 99%,

Come represent the misrepresented with us at Dewey Sq. Boston, MA!

Posted in Activism, D. Markus Witt Photography News

Occupy Boston, 1st General Assembly

September 28, 2011 by D. Markus Witt | Leave a comment

Mixing Street Photography with Activism

I’ve never protested anything. Not ‘boots on the ground’ anyway. This is probably because during my ‘college years’, which are usually when one first delves into such social upheavals, I was in the military- where dissension is forbidden.

Well, that was many many years ago now, and as I find myself struggling more and more to survive simply as a citizen of our nation as well as a disabled veteran, learning to reconcile traumatic brain injury woes with my reality, without any real assistance from anyone; I am fed up!

AND I intend to do something about it!

'Why Are We Here?'

As a Street Photographer, I force myself to slow down and really take a look around, and what I see disturbs me. I am NOT ALONE in my struggle, even if my circumstances are unique, I struggle within the same context as everyone else, a system that both fails and exploits us every day. I can no longer stay silent, I must now take action.

'Protest Flyer'

Occupy Boston is a grassroots protest in solidarity with the 99 Percenters currently in their 2nd week of protests on Wallstreet; it is Boston’s 99%!

This movement is based on the separation of Business and Government through the regulation of lobbying laws, the rebalancing of our tax system, and combating economic injustice.

These are not the official manifests, but it is a general feeling, the actual mission statement is being discussed at this time.

Last evening, Tuesday, September 27th, was the first General Assembly meeting. It is impressive to see 400 completely separate individuals come together and organize in just a few hours.

Teams were created to tackle different aspects of the protest from legal, to tactical, to outreach and Media. This really coming together!

There is a second GA tonight, Wednesday, September, 28th @ 6:00 at the gazebo on Boston Common. I HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE!

'We, in Solidarity 2'

It was an interesting meeting with plenty of discussion and impassioned debate.

'Impassioned Rhetoric'

'Dissension & Debate'

'We, in Solidarity 1'

Fortunately, the police showed no force at this organizing meeting- so far, so good. This is something that NYC is really struggling with and we hope to maintain an amicable relationship with BPD! They are the 99% too!!