IMC Hawks Blog

Tag: protests

  • What’s all the fuss about?

             So what’s all the fuss about on Wall Street? Oh wait, you haven’t heard? Not surprising. The major media outlets have all but ignored the events taking place in their own back yard. For almost three weeks, thousands of people have converged on this eight-block-long stretch of asphalt and skyscrapers in lower Manhattan. For what purpose, you ask? That answer remains a bit unclear. Some explanations offered by the media include: the downfall of capitalism, an end to corporate tax incentives, world peace, racial justice, freedom for prisoners, and a slew of others issues boldly displayed on signs and posters covering every inch of usable space.

                                     Image: Occupy Dallas protest

            Only in the last few days have  the demands from the protestors have become somewhat understood, although their presence in the city has cost Mayor Bloomberg two million dollars in police overtime alone. When you consider the damage to local businesses from lack of access, the burden of cleaning up behind thousands of unruly campers, the inevitable strain on the judicial system from the ever-growing number of arrests, and a multitude of other factors the price of these shenanigans is certain to be staggering. So where is the media coverage? Just now are we beginning to see headlines addressing this controversy. With the addition of several powerful workers unions and a handful of celebrities taking up the cause, we are beginning to formulate a picture of the reason for the last three weeks of frustration. A decade of costly foreign war, millions of Americans out of work, skyrocketing foreclosure rates, and the disappearance of stock portfolios and pension plans galore are all contributing factors. Americans are angry and apparently it’s time to show it. But why go through the trouble of protesting if you are not even marketing your purpose?
           No one is blind to the problems we face as a nation, yet the solution seems beyond reach. Take to the streets or take to the polls? No matter what you choose, if no one knows what you are fighting for, you are wasting your time. You could have the best idea or the most sensible solution, but ultimately it’s about marketing your idea clearly that determines if you will make any difference at all.

    -Claire Dillard, LaPuasa, Reinhardt

  • Catch more Libyans with sugar than with gunfire

    Tripoli, Libya. (Abdel Meguid al-Fergany/Associated Press)

    Around the world it seems that there are few who have not heard about the latest wave of protests going on in Africa, the most recent being the widely covered being in Egypt. The latest wave of protests have come to the Libyan front, where citizens have been fueling a need for freedom and asserting their displeasure with the high unemployment problem as well as their support for the Libyan people, not for Gadhafi. The Central Intelligence Agency estimates about one-third of Libyans are currently living in poverty despite being an oil-rich country.

    However, Gadhafi, the current leader of Libya, is not willing to budge. He even went so far as to vow that the only way that he would step down from his position would be to die “a martyr” in his country and according to CNN, he blames the unrest on “rats” who are “agents” of foreign intelligence services and that people found to be cooperating with said services will be executed. Human Rights Watch stated earlier this week that at least 233 people have been killed during the unrest from random open fire by Libyan forces.

    It seems that although Gadhafi has vowed to stand strong in his position, he has still lost support in a large portion of eastern Libya. Even the Interior Minister, Abdul Fattah Younis al Abidi, has resigned, aligning his support with the Libyan people’s revolt. It is becoming clearer daily that the brand that Gadhafi has created for Libya and for himself is one that is being morphed by the people into a whole new concept. The current brand associated with Gadhafi’s politics is that of regime and repression, including an iron fist on outgoing communications within the country.

    We will have to stay tuned to see if Gadhafi steps down, and takes with him his regimented governmental identity and/or what new identity that the Libyans will create for themselves with or without his leadership in the future.

    -Heather Cornman