by Sandy Maze
Occupy Olympia: Our tents make a statement for the world to see
2:42 am in Uncategorized by Sandy Maze
One may alternately view the profound sight of this encampment in downtown Olympia, the Capitol of Washington state, as either a source of inspiration or as a visible gaping wound exposing our society’s massive shortcomings.
I am not accustomed to writing about social/political/economic justice campaigns from the outside looking in, but that is mostly the perspective from which I am now positioned in relation to my community’s Occupy encampment: Occupy Olympia. So it is with a deep sense of humility and gratitude that I currently serve as the FireDogLake Occupy Supply liaison for Occupy Olympia.
Occupy Olympia’s first package from Occupy Supply arrived at my house on December 1, 2011. The hats, socks and scarves were enthusiastically received by grateful recipients.
My main contact at the encampment is a young woman named Audrey. She and her husband Alex, both students, have two small children and have been core participants from the outset, setting up and maintaining the medic tent which distributes supplies and dispenses first aid.
I first encountered Alex in the early weeks of the encampment on a cold rainy day in late October. I went to the medic tent and asked what supplies were most needed. Alex responded that 8 x 10 foot tarps were needed as something in which to wrap cold, wet, shivering people coming to the medic tent in the middle of the night on the verge of hypothermia. I returned later that day with a load of tarps, and used fleece blankets and jackets but looked around at the cold, muddy encampment and was overwhelmed by the enormity of the need in evidence. Read the rest of this entry →
