The MLK Day March on the governor's mansion was a great example of Occupy and non-Occupy groups coming together for a common cause.
If you’ve been wanting to get involved in the Occupy movement in Ann Arbor, why not join our Direct Action Committee meeting Tuesday? (Details at the end of this post) There has probably been no better time to get involved, and a little history will help you understand why. The very first public assembly of people in the Ann Arbor area wanting to participate the Occupy movement drew almost 300 people, and garnered considerable press. The “original” Occupy Ann Arbor group that evolved out of that first gathering has since evolved quite a bit, with key individuals from the group shifting their focus to creating other groups like Occupy UM, Occupy For All, and Imagine Warming Centers. This left the group that might call itself “Occupy Ann Arbor” in an interesting position, in which – in spite of having over 3,000 possible connections via a fairly well-trafficked Facebook page – the group itself consists of perhaps a couple hundred people, only a few dozen of which have consistently continued to meet on a regular basis, mostly in the form of committees. In any movement of this type, you will probably always find a few basic types of people at the beginning: those who jump on any protest bandwagon and disappear early on, career part-time activists who like intellectual debate and leave the group in frustration when they can’t push their personal agenda, and people who are genuine in their concern, patient, and understand that really getting things done takes time and hard work. We think it’s safe to say that at this juncture that there’s a handful of the last sort of person who has stuck around, and that we’re beginning to re-build a very functional “Occupy Ann Arbor”. If you’ve been waiting to get involved, there’s probably no better time than now, when your voice and commitment can have considerable impact on building the foundation of an evolving group. We’ve just begun to streamline the confusing array of websites and Facebook pages, and to facilitate and simplify the communication of those taking part in re-organizing Occupy Ann Arbor, we have created a set of online forums. As an unregistered user, you can get a little insight about what’s going on locally, and by actually attending meetings or assemblies, you can gain deeper access to the forums to get more in the loop. Join us for Tuesday’s meeting, or drop us a line to learn more.
Occupy Ann Arbor Direct Action Committee Meeting
All are welcome, and the group is doing a lot of re-organizing, so this is a great time to get involved and have your voice heard!
6pm Tuesday January 17
Amer’s Deli, 312 South State St.
Map HERE
