Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Marjolijnkok

Global Day of Action, May 15, 2012, Times Square
Photo: Stacy Lanyon


I’m from Rotterdam in the Netherlands. I first heard about it in the news, and I saw it in the city, some people I met in the street. I’m really a researcher, and there was a lot of news in the newspaper about it saying they were all drunks and jobless. I was thinking, “Well, they don’t look like that. I’m going to investigate it. I want to make sure what’s being told in the media about Occupy is accurate.” So I started out as a researcher for Occupy. Once you start there, you get more involved. It’s more participating for me now.

It’s important because we want to make people aware of what’s happening in the world and also to give them some tools, so they can change it themselves. There’s a lot on emphasis on making people aware in Rotterdam. We have a lot of signs outside of the tent to engage people in discussion. We have what we call a bank run. We run from the bad banks to the good banks because it’s not just that money is bad but that you can use it in a better way. Then we give leaflets to the people about how they can change banks easily and where they should go. It’s about informing people about how they can change their environment to bring about more equality in the future.

There’s still a tent. We only have one tent. We are part-time occupiers because most of us have a job. We keep one tent, and it’s very clean. We’re one of the cleanest camps, but it’s also because we are in the middle of the city. We want to engage and be friendly and open. We are very open. People don’t feel afraid to enter. It’s a big party tent, really. It’s decorated like it’s a living room, so people can sit and have coffee and talk. It’s very nice.

I hope for a world where there is more friendliness and more equality and that it’s not just a few deciding for everyone, especially not the corporations deciding what everyone should do. I want to see a world where we have friendliness towards each other. That’s very important. it's important that we’re not all in our little corner looking at other people, but that we’re really engaging with each other. I want to see a world where everybody is happier with what they are doing and that people who have jobs get normal pay and can fulfill all their wishes.