A facebook post caught my eye on Friday, November 11th, it was an announcement of a rally and press conference held by “middle-class women” in support of Occupy San Diego. This intrigued me because a couple weeks ago I went down to the Civic Center and found it a bit difficult to see how I could fit in.
While hanging out in front of the “information” table, another woman about my age (but lacking the vanity to dye her hair) approached and asked: “Is there going to be a march tonight?” The young, long haired gal shrugged distractedly – she was keeping a worried eye on a conversation going on with the police behind us – and answered that she didn’t know but “you could start one if you want”. The gray haired woman seemed as likely to start her own march as she was to move to the Civic Center.
I understood. I too can’t see myself sleeping on concrete or starting my own march. And I’ve talked to other women who support Occupy San Diego but seem to think that if we can’t be a full-timer, we can’t participate. “Not true” says Mary Ann Briggs, who joined with Kristen Smith, Stephanie Jennings, Charlotte Tenney and other women to organize the rally, “we thought we could find a way to add our voice to the movement even though we can’t do it full time.”
Kristen Smith started the idea after she visited the Civic Center and began to talk to a co-worker and then other women. She found many women, like her, who passionately supported the Occupy Movement and fiercely believed in reform but didn’t know how to participate
Susan Duerksen had been wanting to find a way to help and was thrilled when she heard they were organizing something, even if it was small. They women met last Saturday, about 8 of them, at the Civic Center with a sign that read: “The 99% includes middle class matrons.”
Most of them shared the feeling that the media and critics were mistakenly marginalizing the Occupy Movement, dismissing it as only a minority of disenfranchised youth. The women wanted to send a strong message that voting, taxpaying women of all kinds were in full solidarity with Occupy (see the OB Rag story here).
Middle Class Women march in the rain to show support for Occupy San Diego
From there it snowballed and during a full downpour on the following Saturday, an amazing 100 women strong showed up with 5 wheelbarrows full of supplies for the Occupiers despite the nasty weather. They marched to Horton Plaza and back, getting drenched on the way, and when they arrived back, a bedraggled group cheered them in.
If you want to join your voice with Occupy San Diego and with the women, they are planning on re-assembling this coming Saturday at 3pm for a meeting and whatever else they figure out to do. For more info see the Facebook group and SignUpGenius.
Occupy San Diego can use cooked food (baked potatoes wrapped in aluminum foil double as hand warmers), water and other supplies (especially during the weekdays).
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Power to the Middle Aged Women!
Way to go ladies.
Nice! I put up as my desktop backround. Maybe I’ll start my own march too…one to the inner city to rally all the poor people there…I’m sure they would like to join.
Hi Timon- I live in City Heights and am thinking about Occupying 45th St. I think we need to Occupy blocks and communities too. A lot of kids from Hoover High School walk past my house every day. I wonder if they know about the occupy movement, and what they think about it.
Good thinking, Anna. In the last few weeks I’ve met with a high school class that operates out of San Diego City College and I’ve talked to a couple of classes at SDSU and not one person in any of those classes had as much as peeked in on Occupy.
Check this out… OccupYrCorner One Person • One Corner • One Sign
Patty- that is a great link ;) We know what we need to do….
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