Regarding The “Occupy Wall Street” Movement

It started when a bunch of college kids, responding to a tweet, descended on Wall Street. They stayed, and the crowd grew. Now there are thousands of them, and they’re not just in New York City anymore. Nor is the movement still limited to undergrads.

In a nation where 1% of the population controls almost half of the wealth, these protesters have chosen to call themselves the 99 Percent. They are the working class, the poor, the disenfranchised. They represent everyone excluded from a political process that has been hijacked by corporations and multimillionaires. The 99 Percent want their government back.

This looks and feels like something different. It feels organic. It reminds me of the 1960s’ antiwar movement. A long-simmering undercurrent of unrest in our country is now bubbling to the surface. Our politicians ignore this movement at their peril. As Bob Dylan said, “The times they are a-changin’.”