Forum Post: Boycotts have real power!
Posted 12 years ago on Nov. 3, 2011, 11:42 a.m. EST by Orion
(5)
from Boston, MA
This content is user submitted and not an official statement
In my previous post (http://occupywallst.org/forum/mobilizing-the-latent-support-of-millions-of-ameri/), I forgot to mention what I see as the most promising effort arising from OWS to date:
Move your Money.
Historically, boycotts have real coercive power and catch the attention of elites. Boycotting the worst banks, moving money to local banks, will have ripple effects.
For a boycott to work, it has to reach a critical mass -- and that means that we have to get beyond the tens of thousands of people who have taken action, and mobilize hundreds of thousands, even millions to move their money.
How? How do we emerge beyond a small buy growing group of activists, to reach the mainstream of discontented Americans furious at Wall Street Lobbyists and Bankers Bonuses -- and help them know that they can have their voices heard by MOVING YOUR MONEY.
If all the Occupy movements across the country adopted a single date, and spoke on this message, it would have a tremendous impact. How to get such coherence? I make some suggestions in my first post: http://occupywallst.org/forum/mobilizing-the-latent-support-of-millions-of-ameri/
Totally agreed! We the customer do have a lot of power, and if we tap into that power through collective actions like moving our money, it can send an incredibly powerful message. Not to mention that moving our money to local banks is a great way to support local business and community.
This link helps us identify the banks which need to be targeted: http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2011/10/25/why-occupy-wall-street-hates-the-big-banks.html