After yesterday’s rain and violent arrests, I’m afraid of what to expect as I approach Liberty Plaza for the fifth day of Occupy Wall Street. Mainstream media report that numbers have dwindled; our own media’s livestream was shut down yesterday while people were arrested for trying to cover the equipment with tarps. I am bracing myself for a sad, soggy, mess.
I arrive and it’s beautiful. Everything is cleaner, more organized and more vibrant than I left it. Spirits are high in the General Assembly (GA) and even nature is cooperating, lending us a little sunlight.
Since Justin was arrested yesterday for using a megaphone the GA has adopted a system of self-amplification referred to as the “people’s microphone.” A new speaker begins by testing the volume – “MIKE CHECK!” and everyone within hearing distance echoes in unison: “MIKE CHECK!”
People are becoming accustomed to speaking in brief, clear, beats and hearing their words reflected back to them by their peers – a democratic improvement on the megaphone. As one cardboard sign says, REVOLUTION IS EVOLUTION.