Groups in Fontana, Redlands and Riverside consider forming larger “Occupy Inland Empire”
Neil Nisperos, Staff Writer
Created: 10/28/2011 11:46:43 PM PDT
Occupy Wall Street-inspired groups that have been meeting for the past several weeks to protest economic inequity in Fontana, Redlands and Riverside are considering meeting as a larger, single “Occupy Inland Empire” group, participants said.
Such a consolidated effort would help generate greater awareness for the cause, group members said.
Potential locations under consideration include areas near major freeway crossings near the border between Riverside and San Bernardino counties, and the cities of Riverside and Ontario.
A decision on moving forward has yet to be made through consensus of all of the group’s participants, organizers said.
“People have a right to assemble peacefully,” Ontario Mayor Paul Leon said. “This is the United States of America. As long as people uphold the law, the city of Ontario will always uphold the law with them.”
Tommy Purvis, 31, helps coordinate Occupy Fontana meetings through Facebook postings. Purvis said the group agreed at their Wednesday meeting near City Hall to join a proposed larger “Occupy Inland Empire” group.
“We talked about putting all of our resources together on one big occupation,” Purvis said. “Everyone wants solidarity between Riverside and San Bernardino County and so we’re working on finding a location conducive to that.”
Renee Van Vechten, a political science professor at the University of Redlands, said the movement shouldn’t be dismissed by detractors.
“As a group, they’re articulating a set of deep-seated concerns, frustrations and fears about where America is and where it’s headed,” Van Vechten said.
“Just like the tea party folks who have been demonstrating in reaction to what they’re unhappy about, I think people are equally upset about other kinds of policies and the banking system. I think the Occupy Wall Street movement is much more concerned with inequality, and that’s not a crazy notion for people in America who are experiencing that directly.”
There are about 30 participants each for Redlands and Fontana, who meet weekly near their city halls.
The Riverside group, which involves about 50 to 60 people, has a group camped out in a downtown pedestrian crossing. There are also groups in Victorville and the Coachella Valley.
The local groups are inspired by the Occupy Wall Street protest, which began last month in New York City to protest corporate greed and bring attention to increasing poverty and wealth disparity in the nation. The movement has swept across the nation with participants camping or “occupying” in their respective cities.
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The occupiers are Obama voters last time. Howd things turn out for ya Obamaites? Get enough hopeand changeor are we in for more Marxist Socialism?As for WALL St slugs who make millions by moving commerce around on paper thereby manipulating the price to gouge us so they can get rich and richer, well thats what lamposts were made for. Back in the olden days those traders would be swinging from ropes, the vile crooks.
It was the era of deregulation that brought on the debacle. The bailout of the banks happened under Bush’s watch, remember??? Bush, not Obama. If it makes you happy to vote against your economic interest in favor of the corporations than you deserve what happens. There is a fool born every day. Glad it is you and not me.
How on earth are there still people out there blaming Bush for the condition the economy is in right now? Of course the economy went south under Bush’s watch and he was responsible for the first bail out but Obama has been in power for nearly three years now and sooner or later he and his fans will have to accept the fact that he is making things worse. Obama’s socialist redistribution policies simply do not work in a capitalist system.
Today the 1% accounts for 40% of GDP spending. Few years ago it was 39%.
The divide is growing and the peeps are restless. Sure the 1% got burned by wall st. too, but buying bunkers, gold and Picaso’s isn’t going to change their big concern, Civil Unrest.
Coming to a neighborhood near you.
Yep, keep yur ammunition dry. I hope the tea party types will be just as willing to take their guns along, loaded and ready this time, when the civil unrest starts, as they were when they were attending Obama’s rallies, and show the corptocracy that using their enforcers the police or national guard, will not be sufficient to help them hold onto all the peoples’ wealth they stole. The dirty, unwashed masses of the Arab spring, as they are so contemptuously thought of in this country, have a lot to teach the well fed and comfortable masses in this country that have grown soft on their privileged couches.
Until citizens take their country back from both democratic and republican corporate interests and make the concept of government of the people, by the people and for the people meaningful, there will only be the death of freedom.
Maybe it is time to refresh the tree of liberty with the blood of these corporate tyrants and their enablers the democratic and republican politicians.
Too harsh fur yous?
Then go fishing and stop blaming Obama for all your discontent.