Occupy Movement

Dear Editor;

Halifax and London ON have now joined the ranks of cities and towns forcibly removing “Occupy” protestors from their camps. Shame on all such cities and local lawmakers for removing people that are speaking up about economic inequality and the notion of fairness through fair and equitable economic legislative policy that will translate into fair distribution of wealth and services for all people! What a great concept this is; after all it is not without precedent when one takes the coloquial wisdom that governements were meant to govern in the best interests of all people.

The people that speak against the "Occupy" message of fairness will say that this is unfair to those that aspire to financially loftier places in our society and that their path to wealth must not be impeded by having to share their wealth. Critical thinking will demonstrate that the ongoing success of the rich and affluent is only as sustainable as the lives of those that now form the foundation of this wealth; the very workers and young people that will come to work in these same places and they deserve lives that are sustainable and provide the necessary income and protections in the workplace and in society to permit a "quality of life" that for some reason so many on the political right or within the corporate elite feel to be their personal responsibility to deny.

Those that have succumbed to this bashing of the protestors, workers and unions are actually subscribing to what might be the last bastion of where hate is tolerated. Society has rightfully stood up to all kinds of hate and prejudice yet our papers and radio are full of so called pundits and columnists who stand firm in their desire to deny people fairness in their workplaces. These same columnists and pundits even attract advertising dollars. Could the cities in question not at least support the Charter Rights in Canada and Constitutional Rights in America of the "Occupy" people to express the need for fairness in our society?

There will a percentage of the population who would have us believe that the protestors are nothing more than anarchists and that the camps are a coven of undesirable people. The same lawmakers that have forcibly closed the camps and those who believe they have some kind of moral authority to define an undesirable are the same people that label people who have become homeless due to job loss, job loss that was created by the horrific economic policies of right wing governments going back for decades.

The “Occupy” movement is a manifestation of factors and grievances that span a large part of the last forty years (particularly since the election of the three horsemen of economic destruction; Reagan, Mulroney and Thatcher) and these grievances have destroyed millions of middle class unionized jobs and public services such that the very fabric of our society is now at risk. The “Occupy” movement is the first grass roots movement since the 1960's to say corporate, financial and political leaders are wrong in almost everything they are doing and what is the reaction; not unexpected I would say! Reprehensible nonetheless when one considers that the same policy makers at fault are the very ones that suggest that free speech and the right to assemble are two of our most important rights and privileges yet they take these rights away from the “Occupy” movement.

The “Occupy” protest handle is perhaps the biggest deception of all as the people involved in the “Occupy” movement are a vanguard of social change; the change back towards a better world where a social contract between the citizenry, the government and corporations exists to ensure that the needs of all people are met and that no person is marginalized or left behind.





In Solidarity

Dave Trumble

President

Grey-Bruce Labour Council

http://www.greybrucelabour.com/