newsweek: Our reporter Matthew DeLuca, who stuck...

Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Our reporter Matthew DeLuca, who stuck with yesterday’s “May Day” protests well into the evening, files on Occupy Wall Street’s resurgence back into the mainstream’s consciousness:

The question of course remains of what Occupy will do with whatever momentum it picked up from Tuesday’s demonstration.

For some protesters, the lack of one or two key demands and a stronger organizational structure made the day less effective than it could have been. “I think they have to state their demands along with their actions,” said Anton Alen, a student at Hunter College, adding that he thinks Occupy Wall Street has been clear on many things it would like to see changed. Alen said that the idea of trying to occupy another space Tuesday night was in the right spirit but needed to be thought out better. “I don’t think it can be so spontaneous and still be effective,” Alen said.

Sofia Gallisa of Fort Greene, Brooklyn, disagreed. “This isn’t about specific demands,” she said. “It’s never been about specific demands.” Occupy Wall Street has changed the kind of discussions Americans are having about inequality, she said, particularly around issues of class.

Did May Day Save Occupy Wall Street?, The Daily Beast

[photo by Spencer Platt / Getty Images]