The protesters have agreed upon 16 guidelines, which include respecting one another, not inhibiting another person’s right to speak, and keeping the space clean. Guideline number 10 reads, “Don’t assume gender. When possible, go with gender-neutral pronouns.”
To keep the noise level down, protesters use hand signals instead of vocal commands to demonstrate opinion. “Twinkle fingers,” performed by wiggling fingers at ear level, shows approval. “Fact check,” which imitates the rapid-fire of two revolvers, requests a confirmation of logistics. The “block”, which brings the forearms into an X shape, “is very powerful, very rare. It shows your opposition to a proposal is very strong, and that you think the proposal goes against the guidelines so strongly that you would be prepared to leave the movement over it,” a protester explained to the crowd.
Within 11 minutes, the crowd had grown to 80. They stood, sat, and lay on the grass to hear the committee reports. The reports revealed that protesters are reluctant to “help out” with leadership, and often try to personally benefit from services others provide.
Elle, representing the medical community, requested more people to help with the medical tent. She made it clear that the tent cannot fill personal prescriptions, adding, “currently, that’s just the way it is.”
David, from the finance committee, put out a request for help in the committees for sanitation, food, media tech, and sleepers. Committees are eligible for funding, but individuals are not, he reminded the crowd.
Tizzy represented the comfort committee, and told the crowd that Occupy D.C. is partnering with Patagonia and REI, who will be providing sleeping bags. “They are helping us winterize our campground,” she said, and added, “tell people we really need stuff for winter.” (Update: Both companies deny that they are helping the occupiers.)
Tom, with the sanitation committee, reminded protesters to clean up after themselves. “Things are really bad,” he said, and warned that the protest could be evacuated because of the lack of sanitation.
After the committee announcements, the protesters brainstormed ideas for a prospective "de-escalation committee" -- whose purpose would be to maintain the movement's non-violence. Feel free to talk at this protest, but don’t go off-topic. A woman announced at this moment that she was a new-comer, and began expressing her views on Occupy D.C. when another woman cut her off: “This is not time for comments! We are brainstorming de-escalation.”
Protesters agreed that the de-escalation committee would seek non-violent methods to protest. They requested that the committee be diverse and specifically discouraged too much participation by white heterosexual males.
During the final session reserved for comments, discussions became somewhat heated when a man stood and said through the “human mic,” “We are all God’s children. We should not label each other.” Another man responded, “Issues of inequality should be at the center of discussions."
A woman added, “Don’t mention God. It makes me feel like I have to hide my agnostic beliefs.”
-read on at link-
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