Forum Post: Open Letter to All/Founders Families re Election Boycott and Gender Parity
Posted 12 years ago on Sept. 13, 2012, 5:29 a.m. EST by occupiersboycottelection
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We are continuing the Open Letter: If we are breaking any posting rules, on behalf of half the human race, and indeed all of it, we are REvolutionary enough to break them!
This is a continuation from previous posts http://www.occupywallst.org/forum/open-letter-to-all-occupy-incl-foundersfamilies-re/ http://www.occupywallst.org/forum/open-letter-incl-founders-re-endorsing-election-bo/ http://www.occupywallst.org/forum/open-letter-to-all-and-founders-families-re-electi/ http://www.occupywallst.org/forum/more-on-open-letter-on-occupy-endorsement-of-elect/
also available in entirety with graphics at http://5050whatoccupyowestowomen.wordpress.com/2012/09/12/open-letter-to-occupy-women-and-men-on-election-boycott-and-gender-parity-declarations/
This was written for the period between 911, the number to call in an emergency - the anniversary of what happens when one patriarchal gender hierarchical culture attacks another patriarchal gender hierarchical culture, - and 917, the anniversary of Occupy Wall Street. Since it aims to protect the 99% from the 1%, it is high and overdue time that Occupy Wall Street paid attention to the fact that countries that are ranked highest on gender representation and grasp the importance of the 51%, have the least income inequality, the most peaceful foreign policy, and the best protection of the environment.
Again, the recent similar letters sent to both OccupySouth and OccupyWallSt.org about Charlotte and the DNC received no action or response, even though we asked that they be shared with everyone at Occupy, and obviously needed that priority of attention. (we will soon post excerpts at https://5050whatoccupyowestowomen.wordpress.com
We offer these ideas with great respect for the Occupy Movement and its ongoing potential. If Occupy, which claims it is a Revolution, doesn't find ways to call for Boycotts of the Pseudoelection (the website forum received posts about boycotts months ago on February 10 and again on August 26) as other Real Revolutions have done, and make important changes now to include gender parity and related gender issue to its public agenda now, watching Americans and the world watching America will realize that Occupy learned absolutely nothing from the revolution in Egypt, other revolutions, and are not paying attention to Occupy women and all women, literally, over half the human race. We have small scale progressive media, and contact with journalists interested in this issue.
This is not a gender blaming effort, We see the problem as an interactive one, including both too many Occupy women as well as men who, imbedded in the US Elephant in the Living Room syndrome, have not been able to see it, and (instead like the blind man and the elephant, have protested every symptom of patriarchal hierarchy without addressing the root cause). Indeed, whether female/submissive/enabling/co-optation, or male dominator behavior or just lacking in now required awareness (largely because a controlled media has been censoring global stories on this for 20 years),
the pattern exists that the actions of Occupy have been missing the male/female gender hierarchy for a year, and have been, like their elder Dempublicans themselves, mindlessly patriarchal instead of egalitarian on gender. And by the way, this Elephant is not a depiction of the Republican elephant only , but the Dempublican one, that has taken over the Democratic Party leadership, as well. It is the Elephant of One Party that is directly caused by mostly one gender domination, all too often enabled and submitted to as "normal" by too many the other gender, to the detriment of all.
Most people fall into these patterns by accident because of the imbeddedness of patriarchy, but with a little conscious effort and simple resources such as one of the Declarations abovehttp://5050whatoccupyowestowomen.wordpress.com/2012/09/12/declaration-of-transformation-of-occupy-general-assemblies-to-full-empowerment/, they can be easily overcome, as they have been in other countries. But the Dempublican Elephants counts on women and men falling into these patterns, and thereby subverting their own freedom, to fit in with the habits of domination. Inadvertently , Occupy has done this, by alienating or marginalizing many women from participation by not attending to the fact that male voices have been heard and heeded more often than female in too many GAs, and not helping Occupiers like peace activist men like Trenton Occupy'sAnthony Edward Salter in teaching his "sit down so she can stand up" and other techniques to avoid domination habits. And women have to particularly watch the subtle tendency to subvert their own and other women's contributions, as if they were lesser than men's.
It is time for a big 911 emergency wake up call to the drifting Occupy Movement in the United States, on recognizing the female gender as equally important as the male, to address the central underlying anthropological cause of the many imbalances in the United States and the world it is attempting to mold into total domination.
Most Occupiers are young, They are not as entrenched in patriarchal habits as are their Dempublican elders, especially the 1%, But if they imitate them without awareness, they only feed the very domination process that Occupy was founded to change. We ask that as in Egypt, the call go forth from Occupy Wall Street to boycott the pseudoelection for a whole host of obvious reasons, and especially to give all Americans of all parties and generations time to face their gender hierarchy, and bring forth a new Constitution like that of many countries, that incorporate gender and minority representation in their provisions, and the commitment to publically funded elections. If this positive response to this Open Letter posted to the Occupy NYC and OccupySouth and all Occupy related websites, Occupy will live up to its claim to be a Real Revolution that saves the Planet. We think this should be obvious to true Revolutionaries, who say they are modeled on Tahrir, which again achieved a 49% boycott, and did address gender issues and a new Constitution in their agenda,
To be continued in another post
This Open Letter is also available in entirety at: http://5050whatoccupyowestowomen.wordpress.com/2012/09/12/open-letter-to-occupy-women-and-men-on-election-boycott-and-gender-parity-declarations/
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