Occupy Chicago Pre-Amble

[Billy]

     That is a very interesting suggestion to write it in a human mic friendly manner. I did not notice what you said about it not reading as well through the human mic. I am wondering if I am just more used to the human mic.

     That makes me think of what speaking and listening in the human mic is doing to our thought patterns and if there will be any lasting remnants of this in the future as poetry and speeches that change the world develop through is movement.

[AndersonJP]

I agree, I realized yesterday that the wording is a bit... intellectual. I suffer from a case of "I take Philosophy Classes" and end up writing a bit too intellectually... not something I am fond of. If anyone has suggestions on a less wordy reading I would appreciate that. Also, I see what you mean about being relentless. Thanks for the input.

[m_x]

We gather in solidarity,

as a global movement,

in order to express

feelinga that rise

from the recognition

of mass injustice

suffered by
nearly all people

of the world.

Regardless of your

political, social, and cultural background

we are united,

by no clear matter

of our will

or choice,

in a common circumstance

of economic and political depravity.

As we develop

and engage this process,

in order to create solutions
and strategies

for a just society,

we stand firm

in our convictions

to remain politically

unaffiliated

and to confront

the establishment with

active non-violence.

 

I think its all in a matter of how its broken up. I think it can work as is.  Just a thought.

[m_x]

We gather in solidarity,

as a global movement,

in order to express

feelinga that rise

from the recognition

of mass injustice

suffered by
nearly all people

of the world.

Regardless of your

political, social, and cultural background

we are united,

by no clear matter

of our will

or choice,

in a common circumstance

of economic and political depravity.

As we develop

and engage this process,

in order to create solutions
and strategies

for a just society,

we stand firm

in our convictions

to remain politically

unaffiliated

and to confront

the establishment with

active non-violence.

 

I think its all in a matter of how its broken up. I think it can work as is.  Just a thought.

[chicago kitty]

What about something a little simpler?

 

We gather here in solidarity, to express our grievances and demand change.  Our leaders no longer represent us.  We must represent ourselves.  Our media no longer informs us. We must inform ourselves, each other, and the public.  We are here to peacefully oppose those who would turn our democracy into an auction.  We are Occupy Chicago. 




It think it sums up the basic ideas involved, but in a briefer, very human mic friendly format.  Any thoughts?

I do think a preamble is a great idea.  Too many people tell me that they don't get what we're about.  If they could come to a GA, and hear a simple statement of purpose (something they could get their heads around), it might help them get behind this thing.

[AndersonJP]

chicago kitty said:

What about something a little simpler?

 

We gather here in solidarity, to express our grievances and demand change.  Our leaders no longer represent us.  We must represent ourselves.  Our media no longer informs us. We must inform ourselves, each other, and the public.  We are here to peacefully oppose those who would turn our democracy into an auction.  We are Occupy Chicago. 




It think it sums up the basic ideas involved, but in a briefer, very human mic friendly format.  Any thoughts?

I do think a preamble is a great idea.  Too many people tell me that they don't get what we're about.  If they could come to a GA, and hear a simple statement of purpose (something they could get their heads around), it might help them get behind this thing.

 

There is currently debate over whether we want to express grievances and demands. I agree with a lot of what you say, but it seems to specific to target media and our "leaders." Also, I think it is really important to clearly state that we are unaffiliated.

[pmm23]

chicago kitty said:

What about something a little simpler?

 

We gather here in solidarity, to express our grievances and demand change.  Our leaders no longer represent us.  We must represent ourselves.  Our media no longer informs us. We must inform ourselves, each other, and the public.  We are here to peacefully oppose those who would turn our democracy into an auction.  We are Occupy Chicago. 

I like this a lot, but to clarify some things...


We gather here in solidarity, to express our grievances and demand change.  Our elected leaders no longer represent us.  We must represent ourselves.  Our corporately owned media no longer informs us. We must inform ourselves, each other, and the public.  We are here to peacefully oppose those who have turned our democracy into a plutocracy.  We are Occupy Chicago.

 

Thoughts?

[windycityken]

First, thank you to all for putting this preamble together.  I was talking with a new person at the GA tonight (I'm fairly new myself) and she said she couldn't figure out what OC was about.  I showed her the proposed preamble, and she understood…after reading it twice.  That's a great thing!

It seems that for the GA to pass a proposal, admittedly in my minimal experience, they need bite-size information.  To that end, I'd suggest first trying to get the GA to pass the ideals that should be expressed in the preamble rather than the preamble itself.

I took the liberty of trying to find your key points and putting them in a bullet list:

- Solidarity
- Expression of Mass Injustice
- Uniting beyond Backgrounds
- Creating Solutions for a Just Society
- Politically Unaffiliated
- Confront with Active Non-Violence

If we can build a list of 5 to 10 short ideals, and have the GA pass them — then it can be wordcrafted into a preamble that meets the GA's ideals.

In Solidarity,

Ken

[Billy]

I don't see anything wrong with passing the concepts first. I do have to say I still think the original preamble is perfectly written of course that is just my opinion but all of the proposed alternative have seemed to limit the ideas expressed rather than expand them.

 

key points: it has to express what we stand for; can't be specific or it implicitly excludes everything it does not mention; can't be too vague or it will not identify what we stand for; also has to be short enough to recite every night.

[windycityken]

Regarding the preamble and the awesome proposal at last night's GA about how Occupy relates to endorsements and other organizations, I offer this language. It is not my own...it is from Apprenticeship Patterns, a book that is licensed under the Creative Commons:

A focus on individuals rather than groups. This is not a movement with leaders and followers. Instead,we are a group of people who want to improve our skills and have discovered that debate,dissent,and disagreement rather than blind deference to self-proclaimed authority are the way to get there. We believe that we are all on the same journey and that the change we seek is in ourselves,not the world.

It's not a perfect fit, but it seems close to me. I unfortunately can't attend the GA tonight...so I'll see the army at HQ later tonight and