A New York Times reporter documented the whole visit
The Occupy Wall Street Bus Trip passed through Western Mass on February 1st & 2nd. We showed them a righteous good time. Wednesday the 1st opened with Lunch at First Churches and a Facilitation Training. That evening we packed The Academy of Music! 600 people turned out for a screening of Occupy Wall Street Documentary Shorts. Check out the list (and links) of the films we screened that night. As you can see to the left, a New York Times reporter spent the two days with us in Northampton. Click here for the full NY Times Article.
Tenting is a new cultural meme for the Occupy Movement, make a tent, draw a tent, put it in a public place you'd like to liberate. TENTING!
Thursday was chock full of wonderful discussions, new friends and actions. Breakfast and conversation at Haymarket Cafe to start the day, Lunch, Tenting and Nonviolent Communication workshops at Dynamite Space and folks talking about Social Ecology and Movement Building Strategies at the Quaker Friends Meeting House. That afternoon we rallied at Pulaski Park and marched through town, taking our voices and bodies to the streets! There were speak outs in front of the Verizon Building, an empty building owned by Eric Suhr, Service Net and Bank of America. The march ended with a flash mob in front of City Hall.
We then filled the halls of the Unitarian Universalist Society for a potluck dinner and the first ever Western Mass General Assembly. Andrew and Lani Facilitated, Sita Magnuson offered her awesome graphic facilitation skills and created this great images notes.
There is now a working group that developed out of that assembly which is working to organize future inter-occupy activities and communications in Western Mass. The first meeting for that is Thursday February 16th, 6:30-9pm at First Churches, Lyman Hall (enter the side door). We’ll post more details for future meetings as this process progresses.
During the Western Mass GA we were alerted to a City Council Meeting that was currently underway next door and some folks choose to leave the GA to interrupt the City Council Meeting to Mic Check and let the council members know that we are here, we are listening, and we are asking for change. Bill Dwight, City Council Chair, offered to meet with Occupy Northampton to begin a dialogue about our concerns. There is a City Forum working group planning for this open forum to discuss city policies and planning. Contact Lisa DiPiano if you would like to get involved: ldepiano@gmail.com
To celebrate and say farewell we Occupied the Dance Floor at Haymarket Cafe. Music was provided by DJs Sojourner and Ahmed Samy Sound and Lights by Rafi Singer.
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