User:AriaLittlhous/Joseph R
DRAFT: A Message From Occupy Boston Present: Statement of PurposeWe the people who have occupied Dewey Square, under the name Occupy Boston, have done so in order to maintain a place, where all voices are welcome for the open discussion of ideas, grievances, and potential solutions to the problems apparent in our society. We are and will be holding general assemblies where proposals may be brought to the group as a whole, to be consented to. We have and will continue to occupy this space for the purpose of DEMOCRACY.
Past: Statement of OccupationToday the United States is confronted by a toxic mix of financial, social, and environmental catastrophes that demand a thorough and immediate solution. The common root of these disasters is the domination of our social, economic, and political lives by the interests of a financially prosperous minority. The actions of this 1% threaten our lives, the lives of all the Earth’s creatures, our livelihoods, our liberty, our shared humanity, and our common future.
In response, we, the General Assembly of Occupy Boston have abandoned usual democratic channels and chosen instead direct democracy. The corrupt order amidst which we live demands a profound collective response. Occupy Boston is that response. Because, the problems of economic inequality, unemployment, and crushing debt, are all symptomatic of the larger corrupting influence money has had on our political and social lives, Because, this influence has impeded progress toward a more just and sustainable society, has perpetuated crisis at home, war abroad and perverts democratic action, Because, the pursuit of the elites has had an even more devastating effect on the more vulnerable and less empowered members of our community as well as on the ecosystems upon which our species depends, Because, this financial minority also own or control, directly or indirectly, the media and legal apparatus: we have retaken the commons and resurrected direct democracy.
Be it resolved that we, the General Assembly of Occupy Boston, acting in solidarity with occupations across America and with peoples' movements worldwide, do hereby declare our opposition to all systems of power that function to maintain oppressive and undemocratic systems. We declare that a better world is possible, and that it is our right and responsibility to begin creating it.
Future: Mission Statement
Our mission is to give birth to a just and compassionate body politic that will tread lightly upon the Earth. Our mission will be accomplished when these goals are met:
1. The US has a sustainable peace time economy. 2. The voices of the 99% are heard and acted upon. 3. All the Earth’s ecosystems are healthy. 4. In allocating resources, the US government priorities the needs of the environment and the 99% who are not wealthy.
Joseph R's Proposal
DRAFT A First Declaration of the Occupation of Boston
As we gather in Dewey Square, in the shadows of Boston’s Financial District, we confront a world mired in crisis—a toxic mix of financial, social, and environmental disasters. While each of these disasters has its own ingredients, we believe they also all share a common root cause: the domination of our social, economic, and political lives by a system that serves the profit needs of a wealthy elite, at the expense of the vast majority of the population here and around the world. In the face of this system that threatens our lives, our livelihoods, our liberty, our humanity, and our common future, We, the General Assembly of Occupy Boston, believe that "business as usual" is no longer an option. As Occupy Boston, we are united in the belief that the corrupt status quo under which we live demands a profound, collective response, a popular and participatory response of the 99%.
Whereas the problems of economic inequality, unemployment, and crushing debt, as well as corporate greed and unaccountability, are all symptomatic of the larger corrupting influence money has on our political and social lives;
Whereas this influence has consistently been used to impede progress toward a more free, a more just, and a more sustainable society, and has often perpetuated crisis and war at home and abroad in furtherance of its own undemocratic agenda;
Whereas the pursuit of this agenda has had profoundly detrimental effects on all members of the 99%–and particularly on women, communities of color, immigrants, youth, LGBT people, the incarcerated, and all persons who are marginalized within this society– as well as on the environmental systems upon which our species depends, and
Whereas those pursuing this agenda also own or control, directly or indirectly, the media and legal apparatus which we require to stay informed of, and to attempt to rectify, their many abuses,
And, whereas our peacefully gathered democratic assemblies represent a rare uncorrupted arena in which to educate ourselves, to renew our faith in one another, and to plan our resistance,
Be it resolved that we, the General Assembly of Occupy Boston, acting in solidarity with occupations and peoples' movements across the United States and worldwide, do hereby declare our opposition to all systems of power that function to maintain these oppressive and undemocratic arrangements, just as we declare our affirmation in the belief that a better world is possible, and that it is our right and responsibility to begin creating it.
Let it be known that our occupation welcomes the participation and encourages the independent resistance of other members of the 99%.