Occupying Wall Street: The Inside Story of an Action that Changed America

by Various, A.J. Bauer, Christine Baumgarthuber

"An essential and galvanizing on-the-ground account of how oxygen suddenly and miraculously flooded back into the American brain."—Jonathan Lethem "[ Occupying Wall Street ] runs through OWS' beginnings and provides a fascinating look at how Zucotti Park functioned, the disagreements and difficulties in running the community, and contains first-hand accounts of some of its most dramatic moments. Part souvenir, part how-to guide, this is a remarkable and unique book."—The Huffington Post For two months this fall, Zuccotti Park was the site of an extraordinary political action. Home to the hundreds of anti-capitalist protestors, the park became a communion of sharing and consensus in the heart of a citadel defined by greed and oligarchy. In the early hours of Tuesday, November 15, the occupiers' camp was destroyed when police swept suddenly into the square. But if the occupation at Zuccotti was destroyed that night, the movement it spawned across America has only just begun. Occupying Wall Street draws on extensive interviews with those who took part in the action to bring an inside-the-square history to life. In a vivid narrative, the key events of the occupation are described, and woven throughout are stories of daily life in the square focusing on how the kitchen, library, media center, clean-up, hospital, and General Assembly functioned, all in the words of the people who were there. Writers for the 99% is a group of writers and researchers active in supporting Occupy Wall Street who came together to create this book.

Genres: Nonfiction, Politics, Social Justice, History, New York, Sociology

232 pages, Paperback

First published January 30, 2012

About the author

Various is the correct author for any book with multiple unknown authors, and is acceptable for books with multiple known authors, especially if not all are known or the list is very long (over 50).

If an editor is known, however, Various is not necessary. List the name of the editor as the primary author (with role "editor"). Contributing authors' names follow it.

Note: WorldCat is an excellent resource for finding author information and contents of anthologies.

Reviews

[Benjamin · Rating 4 out of 5]

My obsession with Occupy continues

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

One reason people don't understand Occupy is because it can't be explained in simple terms. This book attempts to describe the complex movement and sheds light on the true aim of Occupy. Those looking to make sense of this movement should absolutely give it a read.

[Gemini · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is great. It brings you to the actual ins & outs of being an occupier. I was mesmerized by all that happened. It really sucks you on like if you're actually there experiencing these things with them. There are so many factors that occupiers had to endure besides the police & the elements in order to survive & feel what they were doing was making a difference. Their model of not having anyone be in charge at any of the locations is unusual but also completely democratic. I would go by the Boston occupiers in Dewey Square every day on my way to work. I get to see the whole movement grow & actually attend lectures & take part in different demonstrations as well. It's very moving to see how they made they best of what the situation was & pushed through some of the barriers they faced.

[Steven H · Rating 5 out of 5]

THE STORY OF THE EARLY DAYS OF THE "OCCUPY" MOVEMENT

The Introduction to this 2011 book states, "This book is an account of the first months of the Occupy Wall Street movement (OWS). It is the result of a collaborative process that began a month after OWS had its first official action on September 17, 2011... dozens of interviews were conducted with a diverse range of people in and around the occupation. It is on this basis that we call this the 'inside story' of the action."

On October 1, 2011, the book records that "as marchers swarmed the roadway, chanting, 'We are the 99 percent!' 'Banks got bailed out! We got sold out!' and 'Whose bridge? Our bridge!' the police quickly regrouped and established a barricade using the increasingly ubiquitous orange mesh fence." (Pg. 36)

They note, "four days earlier, he had suggested to an interviewer from CNN Money that those who criticized the movement for lacking demands were missing the point---OWS was seeking a conversation about the current state of the country, not presenting a finite list of goals. 'Making a list of three or four demands,' he asserted, 'would have ended the conversation before it began.'" (Pg. 81)

Once, when police were evicting some protesters, some of them "called on the police to join them: 'They're stealing your pensions too!' some shouted. But within a matter of minutes police had reclaimed Broadway." (Pg. 182-183)

This is an excellent book, that really gives a "feel" for what participation in the original phases of the OWS movement was like.

[Hubert · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent overview of a critical time in U.S. history, the Occupy Wall Street movement of Fall 2011. Co-written by northwards of 40 authors, the book documents the various strands of work that was done at OWS, from inception to eventual eviction by the police (interestingly, who were not aware that they were acting upon an eviction until they realized where they were going). The book covers how artists made art that would elucidate the aims of OWS, how POCcupy (persons of color) needed to be included in the working groups that made up OWS, how unions and students merged their concerns into the broader movement, how the work of OWS proceeded (in particular the well-known hand-signals and human microphone strategies for communication), how the library was run (the books sadly of which were trashed by municipal workers and police during the Nov. 15 eviction), and how interpersonal dynamics and struggles were mediated by other campers.

I was really glad to have read this testimonial, even if it was not entirely representative of the entirety of the multitudes of views on display. It's an interesting book because it was published so soon after the eviction; the respondent writers for the most part are relaying an oral history without the benefit of distanced time, or long-term reflection. As such it's an important book, but it'd be interesting to read from them and others after time has passed to see what they thought of or feel about the movement.

The text reads quite fresh and current, even if the events happened almost 15 years ago.

[Eugene · Rating 1 out of 5]

boring conf

[Kendra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Writers for the 99% is a collective organized during the Occupy Wall Street action to write an insider account of the movement. All the contributors are either participants or supporters of Occupy Wall Street. They have given us a text that is far from perfect, yet is essential in its tracing of the story of the movement that inspired a new rhetoric in America.

Occupying Wall Street is organized into themed chapters (closer to essays) which provide glimpses at the trajectory, the daily life or the various people and groups of Occupy Wall Street. I liked the division of the chapters into distinct topics, because each one offered a perspective adding a new layer of understanding. “The Art of the Square” explores how music, poetry and other art forms were both inspired by Occupy Wall Street, but also part of the action. “The Media, Occupied” is an analysis of how mainstream media reacted to and reported on Occupy Wall Street throughout the two months in Zuccotti Park. (From media blackout/ignorance in the first weeks, to holding ten per cent of the American media space in mid-October 2011, to media blackout again when the eviction took place in November 2011). “Living in the Square” took the reader on a walkabout through the square, examining the spaces established (kitchen, library, info booth, etc.) and the distinct feel of the zones, particularly the ideological divisions between the eastern and western ends of the park. As a whole, the chapters give a nuanced picture of the movement, its goals, its enthusiasms.

Every page of the book is filled with direct quotations from occupiers who lived these events. For me, this was the essential strength of this book, as it recorded the words of those in situ, rather than after the fact, when memories fail and distort. During the occupying of Brooklyn Bridge—when mass arrests took occupiers by the busload to jail—a police officer said, “I want you guys to know…I totally know where you’re coming from. My family was fucked over by foreclosures and predatory loans and the banking industry being twisted…but I can’t be with you guys because of this badge.” What a great moment, when a member of the police force, with whom Occupy Wall Street was constantly struggling to maintain ground in Zuccotti Park, admits the same ideological goals as the occupiers.

The one weakness I found with this book was that the multitude of authors brought textual inconsistency from chapter to chapter, so that some chapters crossed over each other too much and others not enough. However, as acknowledged in the Introduction, the book was written starting in October 2011, and was published in February 2012. That is an incredibly short time to produce a book. I felt that the needs of a closer edit where superseded by the need to publish this highly relevant book expeditiously. (Also, I loathed how em dashes and en dashes were used interchangeably throughout, even mixed in the same sentence, and sometimes en dashes where even closed up to the surrounding words. That just bugged me. But again, time constraints, I understand.)

But small considerations aside, if you are at all interested in understanding Occupy Wall Street, I feel this an essential text, bringing of the moment current history to light from the voices of participants themselves.

[Dan Sharber · Rating 5 out of 5]

i have to admit i had kind of low expectations of this book. not because i didn't think it would be good necessarily but rather that i did not think it would have anything new to offer me - someone who followed the movement very very closely throughout. but i was wrong! first off, this book is very well written. it is organized well and flows like a good narrative. this pleasantly surprised me. further the in depth day-to-day workings of zuccotti i found particularly fascinating. this book though is not a political interrogation of the movement. while this may seem a shortcoming i think it was appropriate. this is a guidebook to what has become an earth-shaking movement in the us. it is a great read for someone who followed it all (and perhaps wistful nostalgia is premature but...) as well as for anyone who wonders what it was like down there. this is a love letter to the movement. an account by the participants of the world created within the world we know. an account that shows not just what was created but also what was lost to the dumpsters during the eviction. it is also an account of what may in the near future be seen as the essential, messy groundwork for something more long-lasting and thoroughgoing. the events and dates may be familiar but the routines and flowering of empowerment both personally and collectively are where the value in this book is. people were engaged and inspired to make whatever change they saw as necessary. while i am not into prefigurative politics, believing that a better world is possible and working to create it are imperatives to social change. read this book and then give it to your co-workers or your parents or anyone who wondered what is was all about or who felt crushed when camps were evicted. these are our stories and it is wholly right they should be shared with the world.

[Jacqueline · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellently well-written coverage of a short period of confusion and chaos: but all for the greater good. Brief, easy-to-read and understand, and appropriately objective at points. Very much enjoyed and recommend.

[Henry · Rating 4 out of 5]

A valuable, textbook-like history of what happened in Lower Manhattan from September to November 2011, and descriptions of life and work in and around Zuccotti.

[Victor Maggio · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ya changed America for the worst

[Andy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I miss Occupy