Though the Occupy movement started only three months ago, the inspiration for the movement began in the waning days of 2010. On Dec. 17 of that year, a 26-year-old fruit vendor named Mohamed Bouazizi set himself on fire in the Tunisian town of Sidi Bouzid to protest the ongoing harassment and mistreatment by corrupt government officials. His fiery protest - and his death 18 days afterward - later sparked a revolution.
And on Sept. 17, a few hundred US activists gathered at a little-known park in the Financial District of New York City called Zuccotti Park. But instead of becoming a one-off item buried deep in a news roundup, the protesters stayed. As their numbers grew, so did their influence. The movement spread far outside the park - to Oakland, to San Francisco, to Atlanta, to Chicago, and to Washington.
The latest data released by the Census Bureau puts the spotlight on some of these problems: nearly half of all Americans are either living in poverty or classified as low income. More than 97 million are in the latter category, while nearly 50 million are living below the poverty line. This total of 146 million is 4 million more than just two years ago.
And though the media will continue to be sidetracked by the Beltway sideshow, a national conversation about the real issues finally began to take root at the end of 2011. For example, the phrase "income inequality" was used fewer than 91 times in the media the week before the Occupy movement started, but got nearly 500 mentions the second week in November. And this month, Fred Shapiro, the associate librarian at Yale Law School, came out with his sixth annual list of the most notable political quotes of the year. Topping the list for 2011: "We are the 99 percent."
For more: Occupy Arab Spring Washington gridlock: Despite Occupy and Arab Spring, Washington remained in gridlock - South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com
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