meganmonkey

I have spent 4 days in Zuccotti Park since I last wrote about my Chicago experience. Much has changed in Chicago since I left so I won’t focus on it since I am not aware of its current and ever-changing conditions. Instead I will be writing mostly about Occupy Wall Street in New York City, including some impressions I have from reading and watching videos about other sites.

On the level of basic, daily operations of the encampments, organization is quite impressive. From sanitation to medical to ‘comfort’, the New York City encampment in Zuccotti Park is tight. This was one of the cleanest places I saw in Manhattan (including some uptown neighborhoods I walked around in). The sanitation crew ensures that there are plenty of garbage cans, never overflowing, along with receptacles for recycling bottles, cans and paper. There is a crew that wanders the park and picks up refuse including food wrappers and cigarette butts that are discarded thoughtlessly.

Comments in the press, usually from anonymous sources, regarding piles of garbage and human waste are complete lies.

The kitchen serves food to a large number of people each day – some prepared onsite, some donated by area restaurants. The ‘Comfort Station’ provides warm, clean clothes and other gear necessary for park survival. There is a library with thousands of books from social theory to fluffy fiction. Various ‘official’ tables and tents include information, media, press, and ‘empathy’.

A water filtration system transports gray water from the dishwashing station through a series of natural filters to purify it, and the water is then used in the park’s planters for flowers and trees. There is a concerted effort to be environmentally conscious. This is not obsessive to the point of being unrealistic; given the conditions of daily living there, there is a good balance.

There are a few areas that need improvement. As newbies to the park, my partner and I were hoping for a little more direction about if and where we could safely store our belongings, and where and when to set up camp for the night (in our case, this simply meant laying out our sleeping bags). Throughout the afternoon and evening of our arrival, we met some helpful individuals who invited us to sleep near them – assuming we could find space on the ground when the time came. We found some cardboard to separate our bodies from the concrete and after General Assembly was over it became clear we needed to stake our claim promptly. We were able to ask people to watch our bags while we ran off to get some food or use the bathroom, but most often we did those tasks one at a time so we could sit with our belongings.

We heard rumors early on that theft was a problem so despite the fact that we had very little of material value with us we were reluctant to leave our things unattended. Later those rumors were debunked by others who said theft was not a problem unless you are dumb enough to leave a computer or camera or something sitting out. I’m still not sure which is true. But during our second day, we tucked our backpack and sleeping bags in a heap of other people’s stuff and it was untouched when we returned later.

The second night we were there, we attempted to claim our spot from the night before, but it had essentially been colonized by a new group called ‘Safer Spaces’. This group intended to provide a ‘neighborhood’ within the park for females who felt unsafe in other areas. While I respect the nature of the group and the need for such an area, it seemed somewhat ironic that we were pushed out of our ‘safe space’ to make room for them. Negotiations weren’t helpful and we conceded defeat and moved on, although one of our neighbors from the previous night put up quite a fight about it. He eventually found space nearby.

The overnight population of the park seems to ebb and flow based on weather, weekends, and other variables. It is often overcrowded. It would be very helpful if a working group like Comfort or Housing created some sort of intake process to determine the needs of new overnight guests and make sure they have somewhere to lay their heads and stash their belongings during the day. There should also be a way for those spending multiple nights on site to ‘hold their space’ for the next night. In some cases there are established tarp-forts and tents, but many areas of the park need to remain clear during the day for other activities and the movement of visitors so people are required to scramble for space after the General Assembly ends and the crowds dissipate.

Leaving these decisions to individuals creates unnecessary tension and unfair decision-making. For those who are there for the long haul, it is possible to create a ‘neighborhood’ of people who look out for each other’s belongings and hold claim to their space throughout the day. For new folks and short-term visitors, this is nearly impossible. There should be some ground rules in place in order to make this process a little easier.

The park simply isn’t very large. There are a lot of people participating in the occupation and the presence and comfort of each person is essential to its strength and continuity. There have been discussions about claim ing space in other parks for more people to sleep, but there are many issues that this would present, including dividing the group (likely on a deeper level than geography), and dealing with rules for public parks that do not apply to Zuccotti due to its atypical, public-private designation.

As fall turns into winter (which is happening quite early this year, it seems) and fewer people camp there, the housing and space issue will become less of a problem. Assuming the movement survives the winter, I hope the population size becomes an issue in the spring as people return en masse, and that these problems have been discussed in the meantime and the process improved.