Unlike other
demonstrations in the United States the Occupy Wall Street movement has
survived and will continue to do so, an American activist tells Press TV.
Their struggles are continuing and they’re intensifying because as
long as the 1 percent has the power and tries to force the suffering
from the war upon everyone else as their system crashes and burns. As
long as that goes on people have to fight and they have to struggle
until eventually we can take the power away from them some day, which is
what we’re all fighting for.
To further discuss the issue, Press TV has interviewed Caleb Maupin with the International Action Center in New York. What follows is an approximate transcription of the interview.
Press TV: Many thanks for joining us here on Press TV Mr. Maupin. Security is being beefed up ahead of May Day protest which is going to be an international day of action specifically all eyes will be on the US as Occupy Wall Street protesters are scheduled to take to the streets all across the country. What do you think is going to go down come May Day?
Maupin: I think May Day is going to be a day in which we are going to see massive demonstrations not just here in New York but all over the country.
People taking all kinds of causes, whether it’s the demand that the wars end, whether it’s the demand that immigrant workers have their civil rights and not be demonized and threatened by vigilant violence and by repressive laws, whether it’s the cause of labor unions who are being repressed here in the US with repressive laws, like the Taft-Hartley law [a US federal law that monitors the activities and power of labor unions], whatever cause it is, the people struggle against the one percent, those who own the banks and the factories and have all the wealth and continue to wage wars and they repress people for their profits.
All over the US, Europe, all around the world we’re going to see people demonstrating against this and demanding that justice is done. So I’m very hopeful about it and if the demonstrations, you know, a couple of days ago around the student tuition and debt and if the demonstrations we’ve been seeing against the wars are definitely any sign of things to come this is going to be, May Day is going to be very very historic.
Press TV: The winter is over, spring and summer is almost near, the Occupy Wall Street Movement so an invigoration earlier this year after a quiet winter, relatively quiet winter that is but so far as our reporter also said the Occupy Movement has not gotten the media attention from the mainstream media as it had enjoyed when it first started last fall.
Do you think May Day will be sort of a tipping point as far as not just the media but attention of politicians and lawmakers goes in bringing them back to the issues that the 99-percenters are raising and rallying for?
Maupin: Well, I think that since the Occupy Wall Street has begun, it has become much more focused and clear and the fact that it shows international workers day, a working class holiday that originated here in the US to be the day of, you know, their proposed general strike of the 99 percent.
And the day that they’re going to gather in union square and demonstrate and have 99 tickets sold all throughout the city and have actions all over the country. The fact that May Day was chosen shows that politically Occupy Wall Street is growing; it is growing into a movement of the entire 99 percent against this 1 percent that owns it all and is fighting for justice.
Occupy Wall Street is growing; I disagree that it was a quite winter: I think a lot of amazing things happened over the winter, whether it was people going into the Grand Central Station here in New York and disrupting over the repressive National Defense Authorization Act, whether it was a demonstration against Islamophobic laws; whether it was the Occupy the corporations’ rallies, you know, things have been going.
For a long time in the US there have been demonstrations and they happened for one day and then everyone goes home but Occupy Wall Street changed that, Occupy Wall Street was a demonstration that didn’t end. It kept going, it kept going and it’s still going on and it’s no where near ending. The struggle for justice is continuing and Occupy Wall Street is changing everything in the US.
Press TV: Indeed, since all eyes have been on May Day, what comes after that?
Maupin: Well, I know in June, a demonstration, mass demonstration against political repression is planned here in New York. New Yorkers will be rallying round the fact that Ray Kelly should be fired.
He is the head of the police department and he is the defender of all of the brutality, all of the ugly crimes that the NYPD is engaging in as well as an extreme anti-Muslim, an extreme racist and people in New York are going to be out in the streets all over June demanding that he be fired and demonstrating against the repressive policies like ‘stop and frisk’ and all the other police brutality going on in the city.
You know, the labor movement is continuing, the transit workers are struggling to get a contract. Even the people that make it so, people can come into Manhattan every day with the train but they’re struggling to get a contract and get decent wages for their families, so you know their struggle is going on around that.
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