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Declaration of the Occupation of New York

Abridged, from here.

As one people, united, we acknowledge the reality: that the future of the human race requires the cooperation of its members; that our system must protect our rights, and upon corruption of that system, it is up to the individuals to protect their own rights, and those of their neighbors; that a democratic government derives its just power from the people, but corporations do not seek consent to extract wealth from the people and the Earth; and that no true democracy is attainable when the process is determined by economic power. We come to you at a time when corporations, which place profit over people, self-interest over justice, and oppression over equality, run our governments. We have peaceably assembled here, as is our right, to let these facts be known.

  • They have taken bailouts from taxpayers with impunity, and continue to give Executives exorbitant bonuses.
  • They have poisoned the food supply through negligence, and undermined the farming system through monopolization.
  • They have continuously sought to strip employees of the right to negotiate for better pay and safer working conditions.
  • They have held students hostage with tens of thousands of dollars of debt on education,
    which is itself a human right.
  • They have consistently outsourced labor and used that outsourcing as leverage to cut
    workers’ healthcare and pay.
  • They have influenced the courts to achieve the same rights as people, with none of the
    culpability or responsibility.
  • They have sold our privacy as a commodity.
  • They have used the military and police force to prevent freedom of the press.
  • They determine economic policy, despite the catastrophic failures their policies have produced and continue to produce.
  • They have donated large sums of money to politicians, who are responsible for regulating
    them.
  • They continue to block alternate forms of energy to keep us dependent on oil.
  • They continue to block generic forms of medicine that could save people’s lives or
    provide relief in order to protect investments that have already turned a substantial profit.
  • They have purposely covered up oil spills, accidents, faulty bookkeeping, and inactive
    ingredients in pursuit of profit.
  • They purposefully keep people misinformed and fearful through their control of the
    media.
  • They have perpetuated colonialism at home and abroad.
  • They have participated in the torture and murder of innocent civilians overseas.

To the people of the world,

We, the New York City General Assembly occupying Wall Street in Liberty Square, urge you to assert your power.

Exercise your right to peaceably assemble; occupy public space; create a process to address the problems we face, and generate solutions accessible to everyone.

02:00 pm, BY outofthegreasygutter