There is the oh-so-noble and admirable cause behind the Occupy Wall Street movement to establish a better distribution of economic power in America. Then there are the horror stories: protesters smashing in shop windows and setting barricades ablaze in Oakland, attacking police officers with razor blades, unprovoked in San Francisco, and pushing elderly women down stairs in Washington, D.C.
These incidents serve to give the Occupy movement a lawless, anti-authority image, which diverts attention from the movement’s true target as well as taint the public perception of the protesters, the majority of whom are peaceful and law-abiding. Until protesters define their purpose in a clear set of goals and accept leaders to represent them, chaos will continue to define their movement and they will be unable to establish the economic equality they are striving for.
So far, Occupy members have obstinately refused to put down onto paper exactly what they intend to accomplish. Of course, Americans get the gist of their message—that corporations have too much power and that the common people need more money. But until the movement has a concrete destination, they will remain as they are, a stagnant muddle of unhappy citizens standing in front of office buildings.
As a budding movement with the potential to be enormously influential, much of the American middle class looks to the movement for guidance. Therefore, if the movement sets down the goal that corporations should be taxed more, the 99 percent could truly take action. The ordinary citizen could be moved to contact his congressman, which could trigger a bill, and so on.
The reason behind the movement’s lack of goals can be attributed to its absence of leaders. Occupy members seem to be allergic to leaders because the protesters believe all leaders have the same goals for self-benefit that allegedly corrupt corporate officials possess.
This fear should not be an excuse. Having a leader does not mean stooping to corruption; having a leader who proves more efficient, effective and trustworthy than the likes of largely disliked corporate officials such as Leo Apotheker, former CEO of Hewlett-Packard, means elevating the movement above the level of the mighty One Percent.
The Occupy movement’s lack of goals and leaders attract miscreants who misrepresent the movement’s true cause. These people think of these protests as an excuse to act violently, and their actions, which often result in bloodshed and violence are wholly unjustified. Unfortunately, just a handful of these criminals in an Occupy demonstration can turn a peaceful protest into a bloody riot, and riots will only serve to tarnish the movement reputation.
Occupy San Diego highlights the dangers of anarchy in the movement. According to CBS Los Angeles, two street vendors were forced to shut down their businesses after protesters smeared blood and urine on their carts. The reason the vendors were attacked reveals the depravity of select protesters: The vendors initially offered free food and drink for protesters during non-business hours, but once they started to charge for their goods again, protesters became angry and began vandalizing their carts.
These vendors were trying to show support for the Occupy movement, and they were likely part of the 99 percent the movement claims to represent. The vandalism reveals the dangers of anger without purpose, which will only continue to hinder the movement if protests remain as chaotic as they are now. Occupy members should not be wasting their efforts targeting each other. With a clear goal defined, members will be able to direct their energy toward a better, unified cause against the corporate elite instead of attacking one another.
The Occupy movement should be strengthening the community, not destroying it. With a clearer purpose and real leaders, protests would attract fewer miscreants who show up for the purpose of being able to break the law with a smaller chance of being arrested.
Media coverage on police activity during the protests has been largely unsavory: According to the New York Observer, police have allegedly misused pepper spray on protesters and used excessive force when arresting people. The antagonism policemen display toward protesters can likely be attributed to the small number of vandals and criminals in the Occupy movement.
But the only way to convert the population of protesters into a better crowd is to find a leader who can keep local protests organized. Until these riots calm down and the violence stops, local governments are completely justified in attempting to shut down their respective Occupy protests.