10 years ago, Occupy Wall Street decried income inequality following the global financial crisis that rocked homeowners across the US.
Today, Wall Street still holds sway in Washington and corporations are paying pennies in taxes.
On the 10th anniversary of Occupy Wall Street, Insider spoke with a host of Occupy participants and observers of the movement: the original organizers, city officials, Wall Street traders, and lawyers on both sides of the battle.
Most of those we spoke with acknowledged that Occupy sparked a global conversation about wealth inequality that continues to this day. But, the wealth gap has widened, raising questions about the movement’s success.
According to Kalle Lasn, one of the original organizers of Occupy Wall Street “young people weren't very happy. They graduated from university, and the future didn't look that bright.”
On Sept. 17, 2011, Occupy Wall Street began. Protestors set up tents at Zuccotti Park, New York and grew a community over several days. As tents popped up, so did a library, a kitchen, a newspaper, and working groups to tackle specific tasks.
Occupy’s decision-making process wasn’t efficient, and marked one of the factors leading to the movement’s fall. In addition, the protestors claimed they represented the “99%.” But they were mostly white, college-educated groups.
Ten days after the occupation began, police arrested 80 protesters who were marching to Union Square, saying they were blocking traffic and lacked a permit.
On October 1, hundreds of protesters were arrested on a march across the Brooklyn Bridge.
Clashes between law enforcement and protestors would then occur often. Even though movements sparked in Los Angeles and D.C., it was this violence kept the movement in the news, rather than its own purpose.
Police evicted Zuccotti Park on November 15, at 1:00 a.m. Over 200 were arrested as officers handed out eviction notices. The occupation was effectively over.
Most of those we spoke with said that Occupy sparked a global conversation about wealth inequality that continues to this day and helped fuel the political rise of democratic socialists like Bernie Sanders.
Farnsworth lives in San Francisco and her largest expense has long been her rent. But over the years, she's found ways to get creative to keep her costs down.
We visited three marijuana companies across the US to see why cannabis industry regulations are so tough to follow and how they're keeping entire communities out of the growing industry.
Since marijuana is still illegal on the federal level, every state has free rein on how to regulate it. Some states may require you to have $250,000 cash on hand, which begins to immediately lock out whole communities from starting marijuana companies. businessinsider.com/marijuana-lega…
Will and Adriana wanted to start a farm in California. But there, a license to grow can cost almost $80,000, with an $8,000 application fee. That's a lot more than a liquor license in California, which can cost just over $15,000 max.
When it comes to salaries, you make your best guess of how much to ask for, based on the few tidbits about pay ranges that you've been able to glean from friends, co-workers, and job apps, and then you negotiate in the dark.
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Once you’re ready to start creating your accounts, this is the information you’ll need to open a bank account. This includes any high yield savings accounts and CDs.
In the five years since “Hillbilly Elegy,” a lot has changed for JD Vance.
He is now running for Senate as a savior of the Rust Belt. But Insiders and experts say that reputation is unearned. 👇 businessinsider.com/jd-vance-ventu…
Aside from running in one of the nation’s highest profile Senate primaries, central to his story are two things he boasted about not being: a successful businessman and a nonprofit founder. businessinsider.com/jd-vance-ventu…
After moving back to Ohio in 2017, Vance founded Our Ohio Renewal, a nonprofit dedicated to fighting the opioid epidemic.
He’s also raised $93 million to launch Narya Capital, a venture-capital firm focused on startups in the Midwest. businessinsider.com/jd-vance-ventu…