Understanding Wall Street

Occupy Wall Street is fast approaching its six week anniversary, but still nobody is listening.

What began as an isolated instance of civil disobedience has spread to more than nine-hundred cities in eighty-one countries. The young college students that made up the first wave of the protest have since been joined by people of all ages and professions, including middle-aged engineers, postal workers nearing retirement and unemployed mothers and fathers. Occupy Wall Street is made up of a multitude of different people, crying “We are the 99%” but still, nobody is listening.

Since the protest began in September, thousands of news articles, opinion pieces, blog entries and Twitter updates have covered Occupy Wall Street as it developed. Respected professors of economics, political scientists and sociologists have made the talking heads circuit, offering analysis and insight. Political pundits have blindly tried to co-opt the movement to serve their respective parties. But still, nobody is listening.

If the protesters are not being dismissed as “disaffected whiners,” it is only because of the toxic misconception that the protesters “don’t know why their protesting.” Make no mistake; despite the fact that the protesters haven’t issued a formal set of demands, Occupy Wall Street is not without its goals. Protesters have been making their displeasure known for almost a month and a half, on Wall Street and online.

But still, nobody is listening.

Much of the confusion surrounding the Occupy Wall Street movement comes from its unconventional style. This is decidedly a new kind of protest, the end result of the latest generation of social media focused towards a specific end. It is a protest less concerned with making demands than it is in making a statement. The end result is irrelevant if it provides no lasting change; Wall Street protesters are more interested in making themselves heard than achieving any tangible goal.

But what exactly is their goal? The majority of news sources keep stating that the protesters “don’t know why their protesting.” Because they lack any centralized form of leadership, many have claimed that the group is directionless. Others have claimed that Wall Street protesters are protesting against corporate influence in government and that is certainly a large part of it.

But more than anything else, the Wall Street protesters are trying to be heard. People who feel that their opinions are respected don’t take to the streets and camp out for months at a time. Wall Street protesters are united by their common disenfranchisement. They are a group of people who feel that the only way to be heard is to shout it from streets of New York.

But still, nobody is listening. We write them off as petulant college kids looking for a handout. We claim that they are directionless and their protest is meaningless. We make their protest a topic of political debate but we do not listen to them.

The next time Occupy Wall Street is mentioned, take the time to listen to them. Disagree with them if you will but do not ignore them.