Occupy Falmouth

I spent a few days photographing and talking to the Occupy Together protesters in my town of Falmouth, Massachusetts.  I found them to be well informed and articulate in expressing their concerns about contemporary America.

The Falmouth protesters are not camping out on town property like the protesters in New York or Boston.  They assemble every afternoon at 5:00 PM and hold up their signs until it's dark, then they go home.  The events are peaceful and there appears to be strong support from people driving or walking past the protests.  There have not been any clashes with law enforcement and no acts of violence or vandalism.

These protests are not riots.  They are a wonderful example of citizens engaging in free speech on the public square, which I believe was the original intent of James Madison and the other authors of the Constitution. Our modern interpretation of free speech has morphed into bribing political leaders with millions of dollars in campaign donations.   Any citizen has the power to speak up on the public square about the issues that confront society, but few citizens can afford to bribe their representatives with huge cash donations. Free speech in modern America is not free.

Perhaps our conversations about what the constitution does and does not say should begin with defining free speech.  How much better would our country be if corporate executives and Wall Street bankers were limited to standing on the public square holding up signs supporting their right to screw the rest of us instead of paying politicians to do it for them?

Monte

Healthcare not Warfare

[audio:https://www.monteladner.com/wp-content/audio/michael.mp3]

Michael identified himself to me as a veteran of the U.S. Army from the Vietnam era.  Click the button beneath his picture to hear him explain why he is protesting with the Occupy Together movement in my town of Falmouth, Massachusetts (the sound clip is only a few seconds long).  Michael, like many Americans, believes we should be spending less money invading other countries and use the money instead to take care of our own citizens.

I think he makes a good point.

Monte

Mob?

[audio:https://www.monteladner.com/wp-content/audio/brooke.mp3]

Congressman Eric Cantor, R-Virginia, and other right-wing extremists have characterized the participants in the Occupy Together movement as "mobs."  This is a picture of Brooke.  I interviewed her at a protest in Falmouth, Massachusetts.  Click the play button beneath her picture to hear her one-minute explanation for why she is standing with the Occupy Together protesters. Does she seem like the sort of person who would join an angry mob?

Americans like Brooke want their government to work for the people - all of the people, not just the really rich people.  How is that radical?

Monte