Local Civil Disobedience In Support of Occupy Movement

While many have heard about Occupy Wall Street or its local sister chapter, Occupy Miami, nobody seems to truly know what exactly these new-age hippies are protesting against. That’s because there isn’t one problem or one solution, and these protesters range from in-debt college students to educated middle-aged parents.

A certain cloud of skepticism lingers on the outskirts of a protest where predominantly young faces are seen from the streets. This is understandable when not so long ago young adults raided and looted London shops expressing civil disobedience. But if these preconceived notions could for a second be put aside, and in their place a minute of listening and compassionate thought be instated, these seemingly muddled demands would be more than just a stream of consciousness.

Of course, as in any peaceful protest, an aura of confined anger envelops its constituents. Corporate greed and the Federal Reserve’s lack of proper control are the central messages seen on poster boards. Yet, the problems plaguing these unsatisfied citizens range from unemployment rates to governor Rick Scott’s perpetual cuts to public education.

But why protest in Miami? Sophomore Dennis Hernandez spoke as a voice for the leaderless movement: “Miami is showing support for the Occupy movement in Wall Street. The more cities that participate, the clearer the message and the harder it is for politicians to ignore our message.”

The message is clearly the consensual unhappiness of a society whose lines between social classes are being strongly defined by the continued devaluing of the currency and printing of fiat money to aid failing private corporations.

Presidential candidate Herman Cain called occupiers “anti-American.” Is there really anything anti-American about a peaceful demonstration of sheer desperation by the descendants of revolutionaries?

Henry David Thoreau, an American author and philosopher, once wrote, “Disobedience is the true foundation of liberty. The obedient must be slaves.” To camp out in the pouring rain for days on end in hopes of allowing the voices of millions to be heard through small sacrifices is nothing short of courageous.