Why We Occupy

November 2

Maria II

Occupy Wall Street en Español is a group of Spanish people. We all come from different countries, and we are participating in this protest against those companies that are “occupying” our countries. They’re taking our lands, creating monopolies in our countries, and that’s basically our protest. Also, we’re against the immigration policy, and against the economy that’s buying our politicians.

Also, the media. It’s controlled by the governments, and also by these companies. People are not well-informed. If we don’t have the right information, we can’t choose who’s going to govern our countries. That’s basically the problem that we are facing now.

What corporate interests, specifically?

We have a few corporations that we’re against specifically. Right now in Peru, Exxon, the gas company, is a huge problem. We’re going to eventually bring pictures of what’s going on in those countries. The economy is going down not just here in the United States. It’s everywhere, especially in those countries that are not governed well.

How did you get involved in coming down and occupying?

Me personally? I watched it on T.V. I live in Brooklyn. I’ve been living here in the United States for six years. I watched it on T.V., like, the third week they were occupying, and I just got interested and came here. I took a few pictures and sent them over to my friends in Mexico, so they could know exactly what’s going on, and so they will have the real picture of it. I explained to them what was the reason for us to be here, for them not just to see what the media was letting them know.

I just feel for them. I feel like I need to be here both to support the cause, and to represent, in a way, my country and the problems that are facing them right now.

We were talking earlier about the sleeping arrangements for your working group. What did you guys come up with for that?

We’re going to start a schedule so we can switch the days—who’s going to be sleeping over which space, you know? We’re going to be here Monday through Sunday, and we have a huge group.

How many?

Right now we’re over a hundred.

Oh, wow! How often do you guys meet?

The meeting is every Sunday at seven o’clock.

What’s with all the cops out here today?

I think it’s because during the day, there’s more people here, so they just want to come down and see if there’s any conflicts. They’re just trying to protect the people. It’s okay. We’re cool with that. As long as we respect them and they respect us, everything’s okay.

Tell me about the experience of occupying. How has that been?

It’s been great. People here are very, very solidary. We help each other. We’re very organized. We recognize people. We protect ourselves; we have a security group, and it’s watching also the Medical tent there.

And yes, I like it. I really like it because we all share the same cause. We’re together in this. ❖