A potential vision statement proposed from Goals & Strategies WG

I was asked to set up this thread for discussion on this statement coming from the Goals & Strategies WG.

We occupy Boulder as citizens of the earth, recognizing our interdependence with all life and the threat our behavior poses to the biosphere of planet earth. We stand against the rising tide of money in politics and its obscene concentration in the hands of very few at the expense of many. We oppose the absurd notion that corporations have rights identical to those of human persons. We see the destruction of the biosphere, earth, air and water, as what results when the pursuit of profit overwhelms the value of life itself. We commit ourselves to the intrinsic rights of peace, justice and equity and dedicate our actions to the restoration of harmony and sustainability in our world.

I would just point out that this statement read like a mission statement, not a vision statement. A vision statement that declares the future you want to see. It is generally one or two sentences long.

aclu ohio:

ACLU's Vision: We envision Ohio as a free, safe and just society where civil
liberties are secure for all.

Center for Disease Control and Prevention Vision:
People in all communities are empowered to enjoy good health and quality of life. They live in communities that are safe. These communities have physical, social, and policy environments that support the adoption and maintenance of attitudes and behaviors known to promote health and well-being; and they effectively engage health services and community programs to promote prevention across all populations and to prevent or minimize the impact of acute and chronic disease

From the beginning, I expressed reservations about whether the development of a vision statement was appropriate for a people’s movement. These are done for formal organizations. According to the OWS guide to consensus-based collective thinking and decision making,

“an Assembly should not be centred around an ideological discourse; instead it should deal with practical questions: What do we need? How can we get it?”

Is anyone aware of visions statements for the anti-war movement or any other people's movement over than "stop the war"? Introducing the highly theoretical, vague, and often misunderstood concept of “vision statement” to the Goals and Objectives committee opened the door to lengthy, divisive, disenchanting, and ultimately meaningless discussions of ideology, philosophy, and Political Science 101 concepts. I believe that if we ever get around to answering the questions, “What do we need?” and “How can we get it?” there will be much more agreement. There has been considerable dissatisfaction expressed in the G&O WG meetings about the theoretical nature of the discussions and the need to get moving with more action-oriented discussion. Many have come to one meeting and left in disgust never to return due to frustration with the divisiveness created by the “vision quest.” A review of the websites of the major Occupy locations reveals that none have adopted a vision statement.

Moore is as much a "founding father" of this movement as anyone. His opinions and ideas deserve a hearing. Please take a look at where Moore feels this movement needs to direct its attention. Is this something for visions and goals to review as well?

Where Does Occupy Wall Street Go From Here?

By Michael Moore, Open Mike Blog

22 November 11



Occupy Wall Street: Take the Bull by the Horns



his past weekend I participated in a four-hour meeting of Occupy Wall Street activists whose job it is to come up with the vision and goals of the movement. It was attended by 40+ people and the discussion was both inspiring and invigorating. Here is what we ended up proposing as the movement's "vision statement" to the General Assembly of Occupy Wall Street:

We Envision: [1] a truly free, democratic, and just society; [2] where we, the people, come together and solve our problems by consensus; [3] where people are encouraged to take personal and collective responsibility and participate in decision making; [4] where we learn to live in harmony and embrace principles of toleration and respect for diversity and the differing views of others; [5] where we secure the civil and human rights of all from violation by tyrannical forces and unjust governments; [6] where political and economic institutions work to benefit all, not just the privileged few; [7] where we provide full and free education to everyone, not merely to get jobs but to grow and flourish as human beings; [8] where we value human needs over monetary gain, to ensure decent standards of living without which effective democracy is impossible; [9] where we work together to protect the global environment to ensure that future generations will have safe and clean air, water and food supplies, and will be able to enjoy the beauty and bounty of nature that past generations have enjoyed.

The next step will be to develop a specific list of goals and demands. As one of the millions of people who are participating in the Occupy Wall Street movement, I would like to respectfully offer my suggestions of what we can all get behind now to wrestle the control of our country out of the hands of the 1% and place it squarely with the 99% majority.

Here is what I will propose to the General Assembly of Occupy Wall Street:

10 Things We Want
A Proposal for Occupy Wall Street
Submitted by Michael Moore

1. Eradicate the Bush tax cuts for the rich and institute new taxes on the wealthiest Americans and on corporations, including a tax on all trading on Wall Street (where they currently pay 0%).

2. Assess a penalty tax on any corporation that moves American jobs to other countries when that company is already making profits in America. Our jobs are the most important national treasure and they cannot be removed from the country simply because someone wants to make more money.

3. Require that all Americans pay the same Social Security tax on all of their earnings (normally, the middle class pays about 6% of their income to Social Security; someone making $1 million a year pays about 0.6% (or 90% less than the average person). This law would simply make the rich pay what everyone else pays.

4. Reinstate the Glass-Steagall Act, placing serious regulations on how business is conducted by Wall Street and the banks.

5. Investigate the Crash of 2008, and bring to justice those who committed any crimes.

6. Reorder our nation's spending priorities (including the ending of all foreign wars and their cost of over $2 billion a week). This will re-open libraries, reinstate band and art and civics classes in our schools, fix our roads and bridges and infrastructure, wire the entire country for 21st century internet, and support scientific research that improves our lives.

7. Join the rest of the free world and create a single-payer, free and universal health care system that covers all Americans all of the time.

8. Immediately reduce carbon emissions that are destroying the planet and discover ways to live without the oil that will be depleted and gone by the end of this century.

9. Require corporations with more than 10,000 employees to restructure their board of directors so that 50% of its members are elected by the company’s workers. We can never have a real democracy as long as most people have no say in what happens at the place they spend most of their time: their job. (For any U.S. businesspeople freaking out at this idea because you think workers can't run a successful company: Germany has a law like this and it has helped to make Germany the world’s leading manufacturing exporter.)

10. We, the people, must pass three constitutional amendments that will go a long way toward fixing the core problems we now have. These include:

a) A constitutional amendment that fixes our broken electoral system by 1) completely removing campaign contributions from the political process; 2) requiring all elections to be publicly financed; 3) moving election day to the weekend to increase voter turnout; 4) making all Americans registered voters at the moment of their birth; 5) banning computerized voting and requiring that all elections take place on paper ballots.

b) A constitutional amendment declaring that corporations are not people and do not have the constitutional rights of citizens. This amendment should also state that the interests of the general public and society must always come before the interests of corporations.

c) A constitutional amendment that will act as a "second bill of rights" as proposed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt: that every American has a human right to employment, to health care, to a free and full education, to breathe clean air, drink clean water and eat safe food, and to be cared for with dignity and respect in their old age.

Let me know what you think. Occupy Wall Street enjoys the support of millions. It is a movement that cannot be stopped. Become part of it by sharing your thoughts with me or online (at OccupyWallSt.org). Get involved in (or start!) your own local Occupy movement. Make some noise. You don't have to pitch a tent in lower Manhattan to be an Occupier. You are one just by saying you are. This movement has no singular leader or spokesperson; every participant is a leader in their neighborhood, their school, their place of work. Each of you is a spokesperson to those whom you encounter. There are no dues to pay, no permission to seek in order to create an action.

We are but ten weeks old, yet we have already changed the national conversation. This is our moment, the one we've been hoping for, waiting for. If it's going to happen it has to happen now. Don't sit this one out. This is the real deal. This is it.

Have a happy Thanksgiving!

This document was introduced to the OWS GA on 11/20, received well, and sent back for the addition of friendly amendments which are incorporated in the draft below


What follows is a living document that will be revised
through the democratic process of the General Assembly

From the General Assembly of the Occupy Wall Street movement, To the people of World we offer a Declaration of our Vision.

We envision a truly free, democratic, and just society

where we, the people, come together and solve our problems by consensus;

where all are encouraged to participate in decision making for their community;

where all who reap society’s benefits accept their fair share of its responsibilities;

where all of our institutionswork to benefit all, not just a privileged few;

where we provide full and free education to everyone, not merely to be productive members of society, but to grow and flourish as human beings;

where we value meeting human needs over monetary gain, and ensure decent standards of living, without which effective democracy is impossible;

where we learn to live in harmony and embrace principles of toleration and respect for diversity and the differing views of others;

where we work together to ensure that life on earth is sustainable, and that future generations will have safe and clean air, water, and food supplies.

In order to make this vision a reality,

the inalienable civil and human rights of all must be secure from violation or infringement by tyrannical forces, specifically unchecked corporate power and unjust government;

institutionalized racism, sexism, and other forms of discrimination based on socially constructed labels must be wiped out;

non – violence must be embraced in all aspects of daily life;

the global environment must be protected against disastrous climate change, and all species must be protected against extinction.

The Working Group on Vision and Goals continues to work toward a more comprehensive statement of visions and goals to be incorporated as soon as possible into this living document.

This is an official document crafted by the Working Group on Vision and Goals. The New York City General Assembly came to consensus on ______________ to accept this working draft and make it accessible to the public by posting it online.

END OF DOCUMENT