Introduction: Carla

Hi Everyone!

My name is Carla Castro. I am currently a Senior at University of Maryland, College Park. I am a Criminal Justice and Criminology major with a minor in Philosophy. I am extremely involved on and off College park campus. I have been involve with several organizations on campus such as The Latino Student Union, Coalition of Latino Student Organizations, Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers, Student Government Association, America Reads America Counts, La Familia Peer Mentoring Program and Resident Life as a Resident Assistance.

Off campus, I am extremely involved with a non-profit organization in D.C. that focus on children at risk locations such as Adams Morgan area in D.C. Since working in D.C, I have been able to see the daily struggle low income families endure everyday. I do not normally follow politics but because of my experiences in D.C I feel that I can no longer sit back and do nothing. The economic system is broken and there is extensive financial and societal inequality. This is why I support the Occupy D.C movement and feel that we, the 99% should have a say on what is going in our nations economy.

Introduction: Victoria

Hi Readers-

My name is Victoria and I am currently a Senior Government and Politics major at the University of Maryland. I have been independently living in the District of Columbia for five years. Because of this I have witnessed many political and social movements firsthand. My major has also caused me to have an acute awareness of politics in the United States and abroad.

My group and I chose to created a blog discussing the current Occupy protest that are occurring around the nation, specifically concentrating on the one closest to our school- Occupy DC. This is particularly important to me because this is all occurring right within my own city. As a DC resident there are numerous people from my community involved in the movement, causing me to have a personal invested interest.

While at first I did not know much about the Occupy protests (other than what the main media outlets were telling me) I have spent a great amount of time speaking one-on-one with participants and researching other alternatives news outlets. After this I have begun to lean more towards sympathizing and agreeing with the protesters of the Occupy movement. While I may occasionally disagree with some of their methods and propaganda, I generally feel that there is currently major discontent with the government and those that enable it.

For the coming weeks I will be posting my own experiences, opinions, and other related pieces about the Occupy movements, specifically focusing upon the Occupy DC movement. I look forward to hearing your input and opinions!

Introduction: Liza

Hey everyone, my name is Liza Jones. I am a junior at the University of Maryland College Park studying Government and Politics. I am from Boyds, Maryland in Montgomery County. My interests include all sports, mainly hockey and the Washington Capitals. I also enjoy staying physically fit, playing with my dogs Buster and Lexie, and high fashion.

I am generally neutral on many subjects; I take in to account both sides of an argument and relate the pros and cons for either. That will probably be the same situation for many of my posts in this blog. I am certainly not an expert on Occupy DC/Wall Street/etc. however, i'm very excited to learn more about it and possibly help some followers who know less than I do. I believe this project is not about choosing a side to defend, but the knowledge that you gain and the understanding of the movement at hand. The other authors and I are going to have some differences in our views, which I believe will make for a more interesting blog. Pertaining specifically to the Occupy DC/Wall Street movement, I believe people make their own fate and work hard for the benefits they receive. The 1% is fortunate, lucky, and hard workers that have earned their fate. I am not suggesting that the 99% percent has not, but there is an inevitable divided line in society and this is one of them.
I look forward to the coming weeks and expressing my criticisms, expressions, and views on Occupy DC.

Introduction: Jordie

Jordie: For the Occupy Wall Street

My name is Jordie Lopez. I am a senior Communications major at the University of Maryland, College Park. I am currently taking COMM230, which is an argumentation and debate class. In this class we were given the task of creating a blog on a current issue that we felt was of interest and affected us. I was very excited when we decided on the topic of Occupy Wall Street. Our group specifically chose to focus on the movement happening in Washington D.C. because it is closer to this area and is more accessible for personal interviews and photos. I was previously aware of this movement, but was unaware of what they really stand for. After doing some further research, I have decided that I agree with the movement and there should be a reform. I do agree that there is a lot of social and economic inequality. I also am aware of the increasing unemployment rate. I don’t think its fair that large corporations are practically able to control the economy and distribute the wealth as they please. A large amount of this money is only going to a select few people, so almost no one is benefiting from this.

There needs to be a large amount of changes with the power of these corporations or there is going to be an increasing gap between the rich and the poor.

Introductions: Megan

Hi, my name is Megan. I’m a sophomore at the University of Maryland, College Park, and I am currently double majoring in English and Secondary English Education. Having lived in the Washington, D.C. area all my life, I am familiar with the city and very interested in what goes on there. I also like following politics, or following enough to know what is generally going on with this country and the world. While the idea of “occupying” various cities in the United States, which started on Wall Street in New York City, is controversial, I believe that the general message that has spread to cities such as D.C. is an important one for us to realize: that, for too long, we have idly and ignorantly let corporations and the “1%” make the decisions, some of which have adversely affected our lives, or, at least, prevented us from progressing. The fact that there is an Occupy D.C., in the nation’s capital, where these decisions are made, is especially noteworthy.

When I went to a concert in D.C. recently, I passed by McPherson Square, the location of the Occupy D.C. camp. I believe seeing it in person further intensified my interest in what was going on there and who exactly is involved. I hope that through the posts of the other authors and myself, you can also learn more about the Occupy D.C. movement and why it is important.