Last week we saw the arrival of May 1st, also known as May Day. Around the world, May Day is celebrated as a holiday in the name of the labor movement. Celebrations are held all around the world, from Asia to the Americas. While not all workers take part in the festivities, since the holiday is heavily involved with labor unions, they still respect it.
Here in the US, May Day is not a national holiday. Instead, we have Loyalty Day, a celebration of American values, and Law Day, which recognizes the importance of law as the basis for our society.
Although May Day is not an official holiday, it is still celebrated across the country, unofficially, by workers. But this year we saw an outburst of protests across the country, from New York to Seattle. This May Day we saw a resurgence of the Occupy Wall Street Movement – the biggest buzz word before the winter sent them into hibernation. It was supposed to be the dawn of a new day – an American Spring perhaps.
Overall, it was disappointing.
First of all, the media coverage was scant. After a long fall and a quiet winter, Occupy is no longer the centerpiece at the media’s dinner. It’s a question whether it’s still on the table at all. They have left a legacy, though, likely to be used by the media for years: “We are the 99 percent.” A simple slogan that has come to represent the increasing wealth divide in America, which Occupy has sworn to stop.
Sadly, the phrase is most likely the only thing Occupy will leave behind. Compared to the fall, the protests were disappointing. They were smaller, for one. Coming out of the winter, it is understandable that the protesters need to pick up steam, but I expected more from an international “Day of Action”.
Another problem is how they protested. It was mostly peaceful, with marches and sit-downs held, but in some place, most prominently Seattle, the protests turned to riots. Police were attacked and brand-name banks and businesses had their windows smashed and buildings vandalized.
Occupy Wall Street started out with good intentions – to help the poor, decrease the wealth gap, and take money out of politics. But as they screamed for change, they did nothing to make it happen. There were sit-downs and break-ins, but they turned out to be only temper tantrums. Occupy asserted that they had no leadership. They were a new form of protest, one without hierarchy. But this was their downfall.
A leaderless collective can do nothing in a country run by ideologues and career politicians. Occupy cannot expect a revolution by yelling through a human microphone. They made a fatal mistake when they decided that hierarchy would lead only to corruption. Instead they should have realized that it would have led to charismatic leaders and solid ideas – the catalysts of progress. They should have looked at their conservative counterpart, the Tea Party, to see what a strong hierarchy can do. The Tea Party has made change, they have people in government. Occupy does not.
At this point, Occupy never will.
There is a lesson to be learned from the Occupy Movement and their May Day protests. Maybe it’s the benefits of structure. Maybe it’s the impossibility of leaderless change. Looking at Seattle’s violent riots, it could be “The path to Hell is paved in good intentions.” I’m not sure. But I do know Occupy has not destroyed the wealth gap or taken money out of politics. I do know they have changed nothing but the political discourse.
I do know that the Occupy Wall Street Movement is dying.