CSUEU Statement on the Occupy Wall Street Movement

Wall Street banks and corporations caused this financial crisis by playing games with our deposits and mortgages, causing the evaporation of trillions in equity and dramatic drops in tax revenues for public services. Meanwhile, they have been paying less and less in taxes while outsourcing more and more jobs overseas. They use our public infrastructure to transport goods and employ individuals educated in our public systems, all the while demanding less and less regulation of their industries. They pour money into our elections, whether it is for candidates or propositions, and are now able to donate unlimited amounts of money to these campaigns. They have demanded access to our pensions and social security. They have demanded the outsourcing of public systems to private corporations. They want to dismantle labor as the voice of workers across the nation.

We stand in solidarity with the occupiers because they understand the unbelievable control Wall Street banks and corporations have over our government and our lives. They understand the simple fact that one percent of the U.S. population controls over half the wealth in this country, the largest disparity in wealth distribution since the late 1920s. They are employing tactics of civil disobedience previously employed by labor to win the 40-hour week, weekends, holidays, paid sick time, paid vacation time, pensions and health and safety standards. They understand that our elected officials are not our voices, but rather that our voices need to be heard in the streets.

We stand in solidarity with the occupiers because they, like us, are the part of the population that is systematically denied a voice in our country, a voice lost in a mainstream media that emphasizes sound bites and simplistic arguments over the very complex solutions required to address this wealth disparity, the corruption in our political system, and the state of our environment.

We stand in solidarity because WE ARE THE 99%.

Here are ways you can get involved:

• OccupyWallStreet - http://occupywallst.org/ - For more information on the movement and daily updates on actions taken by the 99%. Donations of food and supplies are welcome.
• Occupy Together – http://www.occupytogether.org – For more information on the movement across the world. Find a local occupation and get involved!

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