October 24, 2011

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Stepped-up repression against anti-Wall Street protesters The response of the US government to the spread of anti-Wall Street protests in the US and internationally has been a marked increase in police repression and intimidation. Just last weekend, police attacked protest encampments in Chicago, Philadelphia, Cincinnati, Phoenix, Dallas, Orlando and Tampa, arresting more than 200 people in all. Similar attacks have taken place internationally, including the tearing down of protest encampments and mass arrests in Sydney and Melbourne. Since the protests against social inequality and corporate power began more than five weeks ago in New York City, hundreds have been arrested in cities across the US, including more than 900 in New York alone. In recent days, particularly since the global protests on October 15, police mobilizations to break up occupations have increased. The presence of police at protest sites has also been augmented, and various tactics have been employed to harass youth and workers expressing the anger of masses of people over the destruction of living standards and social conditions. These attacks show that the struggle for social equality and against the domination of the banks and corporations is a political struggle against the state. It requires the industrial and political mobilization of the working class in opposition to the ruling class and all of its official institutions and political parties. The stepped-up repression reflects the real attitude of the Obama administration and the Democratic Party to the demand for social equality being raised by the protests. While expressing sympathy for the demonstrators, in an attempt...

Jodi Dean

Jodi Dean is a political theorist.

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