Today in History: Zuccotti Park Eviction
A protest movement against economic equality, political corruption, and corporate influence on government, Occupy Wall Street began on September 17th, 2011 in Zuccotti Park, located in the financial district of Lower Manhattan; it drew thousands of marchers there, and in areas around New York City, across the United States, and other countries. Occupation, civil disobedience, picketing, demonstrations, Internet activism, and the beloved, rapidly growing People's Library were methods of communication, leading to the ubrupt eviction of protestors in this privately owned space on November 15th, 2011. Eviction fueled the fire of frustration and anger, precipating occupation by protestors of all ages, backgrounds, and ethnicities in banks, businesses, schools, campuses, and other places, including social media. "We are the 99%", the powerful slogan for the movement, enforced sentiment and belief in the economic disparities and injustices caused by corporate and political America, while police arrests were being made, oft without just cause, for trespassing, assault, and other serious charges.
The People's Library, a collection of over 5,500 donated books, represented a broad range of subjects: religion, politics, literature, health, and more, for all ages, in different languages, indicative of democratic spirit and freedom of speech and the press. Books described in Library Thing, a social cataloging web application, were seized and destroyed by law enforcement -- leading to court settlements for property damages.
Eleven years past, one still sees how the OWS movement is a "teachable moment" in the classroom, from elementary to graduate education. What did we learn from occupation and response to the movement? Was Zuccotti Park the meaning of democracy? anarchy? anticapitalism? anti socialism? or something else? It inspired thought, action, and even poetry. To quote from Shirani Rajapakse, an internationally published Sri Lankan poet and short story writer:
"The world’s a melting pot of ideas brimming over and spilling
across the globe. A single voice raised in unison, calling,
calling out and the winds carried the words over
miles of ocean and land to houses so distant, like mine.
Ripples of words, thoughts and dreams ran
the world as you watched from your window and I sat at my
desk and tapped on keys trying to make
sense of it all.
-- Zuccotti Park Arises, Shirani Rajapakse
The following articles are drawn from Proquest Historical Newspapers, which informs and inspires classroom teaching and learning.
- Hollander, S. (2011, Oct 15). Protesters Win Some, Lose Some. Wall Street Journal (1923-)
- Kadet, A. (2011, Oct 15). The Occupy Economy. Wall Street Journal (1923-)
- Kimmelman, M. (2011, Oct 16). The Power of Place in Protest. New York Times (1923-)
- Greene, J. (2011, Nov 03). We Should Listen to the 99%. Wall Street Journal (1923-)
- Grossman, A., Fox, A., & Gardiner, S. (2011, Nov 16). Wall Street Protesters Evicted From Camp. Wall Street Journal (1923-)
- Hollander, S., Shifrel, S., & Maloney, J. (2011, Nov 16). City Awaits Next Phase of Occupy Protest: Neighborhood Takes Breath After Eviction. Wall Street Journal (1923-)
- Grossman, A. (2011, Nov 17). Widespread Protests Planned. Wall Street Journal (1923-)
- Hollander, S. (2011, Nov 17). Decamping to an Office on Wall Street. Wall Street Journal (1923-)
- Across the Nation Hundreds Hundreds of Thousands Join Occupy Movement. (2011, Nov 25). People's Weekly World (1990-2013)
- Moynihan, C. (2012, Sep 14). Fingers Pointed Over Seizure of Occupy Wall St. Library. New York Times (1923-)
- Klotz, F. (2012, Sep 15). What's Happened to the Occupiers?: The Occupy Wall Street Movement Sprang Up in New York a Year Ago as Members Gather to Mark Its First Anniversary: Those Involved Reflect on Its Impact and Internal Strife. The Irish Times (1921-)
- Moynihan, C. (2013, Apr 10). Suit Settled With Occupy Wall St. Over Seizure of Library at a Park. New York Times (1923-)
Tips:
- Lambert, Léopold. The Funambulist Pamphlets 5 : Occupy Wall Street. Brooklyn, NY: Punctum Books, 2013. e-book
- Morrone, Melissa. Informed Agitation : Library and Information Skills in Social Justice Movements and Beyond. Ed. Melissa Morrone. Sacramento, California: Library Juice Press, 2014. e-book
- Simpson, Deane, Vibeke Jensen, and Anders Rubing. The City Between Freedom and Security : Contested Public Spaces in the 21st Century. Basel, Switzerland: Birkhauser, 2017. e-book
- Van Gelder, Sarah. This Changes Everything: Occupy Wall Street and the 99% Movement. Oakland: Berrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc, 2011. e-book
Images:
- Day 60 Occupy Wall Street November 15 2011 Shankbone 14, Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
- Special News Slide, Courtesy of the Gottesman Libraries
Need to keep current, look to the past, teach a topic? The Everett Cafe features daily postings of news from around the world, and also promotes awareness of historical events from an educational context. Be sure to check additional Cafe News postings on the library blog.
