The Occupy LA site at Los Angeles City Hall was visited twice yesterday by Dr. Cornell West and PBS star Tavis Smiley. Friday was the seventh day of the occupation that sprung from the Occupy Wall Street actions in New York City.
http://www.cornelwest.com West and Smiley inspired the rally and buoyed their hopes by articulating what they were seeing on their American Poverty Tour as well as their stops at other "Occupy " sites. West stressed that the people gathered at Los Angeles City Hall were of a highly diverse group which is contrary to the picture being painted by the main and right wing press which is portraying the movement as fringe , confused and young. As this reporter looked around the crowd and the encampment, West's view was confirmed. There was consensus, diversity, sharing and intelligence. Hierarchy was not in evidence despite the aura of celebrity that West and Smiley brought with them.
West reiterated his now famous quote from the Occupy Wall street visits that answered the question of what the goals of this movement are....
"It’s impossible to translate the issue of the greed of Wall Street into one demand, or two demands. We’re talking about a democratic awakening...you’re talking about raising political consciousness so it spills over all parts of the country, so people can begin to see what’s going on through a set of different lens, and then you begin to highlight what the more detailed demands would be. Because in the end we’re really talking about what Martin King would call a revolution: A transfer of power from oligarchs to everyday people of all colors. And that is a step by step process "
Tavis Smiley once having walked the floors of city hall under the employment of Mayor Tom Bradley seemed commanding in his stance on the now somewhat tattered city hall lawn.
The pair visited twice on Friday to cheer on the protesters. They were also on the Suzi Weissman show "Beneath The Surface". Kpfk archives
http://archive.kpfk.org/parchive/ Friday, October 7, 2011 5:00 pm
The occupation continues........................
We are the 99 percent
http://www.cornelwest.com/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cornel_West 