CONTACT: Khadijah White  (215) 272-0814

For Immediate Release:

WE STAND TOGETHER

For over a month, members of Occupy Philadelphia have come together daily at Dilworth Plaza to strive for class, race, gender and over-arching social equality. Despite the snow, rain, and cold, and through sacrifices of time, money, sleep, and the conveniences of our homes, we have worked tirelessly. Like thousands of other Occupiers in US cities, we aim to end corporate monopolies and hold our government accountable for protecting, supporting and defending the economic, social, and human rights of the 99%.

We also know that the press doesn’t often get the story right – so we want to set things straight. 

Through our commitment to direct democracy, we have provided the public with thousands of free meals, given shelter to the homeless, led protests against harmful businesses, provided free education and community trainings, defended our neighbors from terroristic police attacks upon innocent citizens, and made powerful strides towards strengthening the Philadelphia community and American society at large. We are proud of what we’ve accomplished in a shot time and we are proud to call ourselves Philadelphians.

Recently, a splinter group of former Occupy Philadelphia supporters decided that they would no longer abide by the group’s democratic decision and moved out on their own. While we were sad to see them go, we understand and respect their choice. We also understand that this change confused some people.

Unfortunately, Mayor Nutter’s office capitalized on this confusion by meeting with this fringe group without the sanction of the Occupy Philadelphia General Assembly process.  Though we have always maintained an open door policy to meetings with the Mayor, it seems his reelection has led him to close down these important lines of communication. We’re disappointed in him, to say the least. We’re even more disappointed with the press for following his lead and repeating false accusations about our movement for social justice.

We repudiate efforts to divide us. We strongly rebuke those who choose the easier path of being sore losers instead of participating in the much more rewarding challenge of community building and direct democracy. But we, too, respect that choice and continue on. We stand unified because we have to – in the midst of this widespread economic and societal crisis, there’s just too much work to do.

Challenging unjust laws is at the center of American democracy – from the Underground Railroad to student sit-ins at lunch counters, Americans have always worked to make our country better for future generations. We are no different – we know that being on the right side of history sometimes puts us on the wrong side of the law. We will keep fighting, struggling, and sacrificing because we believe in this movement. We are the 99%.

Signed by Members of the Following Occupy Philadelphia Working Groups:

People of Color Committee

Women Occupants of Occupy Philadelphia

The Granny Brigade

Quakers

Safety Working Group

Education Working Group

Library Working Group

Media Working Group

Direct Action Working Group

Radical Caucus

Anti - Youth Segregation Law Committee