On September 17, a group of no more than a couple thousand people descended upon the Financial District with one goal: Occupy Wall Street.
A month later, the movement has grown by the thousands with off-shoot protests across the globe, thrusting it to the forefront of the international stage.
A press release sent by Patrick Bruner, a spokesman for Occupy Wall Street, said, “In the last month, the message of “We are the 99%” has won the hearts and minds of over half of Americans (according to a recent Time survey) and is gaining ground globally, with 1500 protests in 82 countries this past Saturday (October 15).”
On Saturday, about 6,000 protesters took to Times Square, resulting in 70 arrests.
The release went on to detail the progress protesters feel they’ve made from the time the movement began, including going global, flourishing with diversity, gaining support in the heartland and changing the conversation.
“The people-powered force of shared anger at a broken system that profits the top 1% at the expense of the rest of us has shifted our national dialogue,” said the release. “The Occupy Wall Street protest has become a cultural phenomenon, mentioned everywhere from jokes on Saturday Night Live to the solemn dedication the national memorial to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. by President Obama Sunday.”
The release ended with these words: “What a month, and we are only getting started!”
