If Occupy is to succeed, people from different backgrounds are going to need to learn how to talk to each other. Yes, there are racial fault lines in the movement, but, at least in Boston, itâs not racial tensions that threaten to undercut Occupyâs potential: Instead, income inequality, the very issue that catalyzed the protests in the first place, can be as divisive within the 99 percent as it is between them and the 1 percent. Differences in background, upbringing, income, and education have created communication barriers between protesters.

For over a month now, the lines have been drawn: Itâs the 99 percent versus the 1 percent. The thing about the 99 percent, though, is that it includes a huge cross-section of people. At Occupy Boston , youâll find middle-aged homeless living right next to 20-something recent graduates.

âNo one on the ground has any respect for anybody who talks like this,â said Phil OâConnell, sticking his finger into a paper he grabbed on his way out of a General Assembly. The paper contains a proposal from the Community Wellness Working Group, those in charge of safety and conflict mediation in the Occupy community. âHonestly, I want to vomit from the frickinâ first word!â

âBarry, the sign guy, he left, and Dave left, too. We lost two of our most important soldiers because they hate this [stuff]. They hate this,â he said, again jabbing at the paper. â[Itâs] all politically correct jargon! Every time we go to these touchy-feely [meetings], this is the type of language you people use.â

Itâs not that OâConnell, a gruff, middle-aged man whoâs spent a good deal of time âon the streets,â as he puts it, or his cronies dislike the educated Occupy Boston organizers -- far from it. âA few of those [Direct Action] kids are bad apples, but some are the shiniest apples Iâve ever seen,â he said. âI mean, theyâre really bright kidsâ¦.Theyâre middle class kids, and thereâs nothing in this society for them, so theyâve gotten a little rebellious, and God bless âem for the spirit.â

But, OâConnell said, their managing style and procedures do not always make sense to him or others like him. âAs soon as you people start talking like this, these guys donât know what the hell youâre talking about,â he said. âThey hear this kind of talk, and every single blue-collar guy I know just gets confused.â

When OâConnell and those "blue-collar guys" go to GAs and try to make their voices heard, they donât always understand the process or hand signals used to communicate. âItâs the same every time,â he said. âMy people go to the meetings and never get a word in edgewise.â

And if that continues, OâConnell said, there will be no way for their voices to be heard. âYouâre going to lose them, and this will just become some little political splinter group trying to get its message out there with blogs and trying to act important and no one will even care,â he said. âAs soon as thereâs no occupation, Occupy Boston is yesterdayâs news.â

âThose soldiers on the ground," OâConnell said, referring to the poorer, less-educated protesters, "donât [care] about the process. Most of the campers just donât really care, ya know what I mean?â If they know their needs are being taken care of, theyâre happy, he said. âIf I go back and tell the people in the camp that [the organizers] are up there figuring out how to get blankets and boots, theyâre happy. They just need to know!â

Nunez, a soft-spoken, wiry-haired guy in his early 20s who preferred not to give his full name, speaks up: âI was talking to a guy last night who was telling me how he was ready to leave because of his shoes -- he needed boots. He was telling me about his whole life and how he is a recovering drug addict and all that. He said that he thought there were a lot of people here who are book smart but not street smart, and so they donât really understand where the homeless community is coming from,â which is a huge issue in politics in general.

âYou know, politicians donât really understand these issues, and so they just condemn it,â Nunez said. âIf the [organizers] hear about these issues, then theyâll know about them and say, âOkay, we have to deal with this.ââ It shouldnât matter if people are eloquent, articulate, or politically correct, as long as their voices are being heard.

OâConnell drew an analogy to the military: âIf youâre a soldier on the ground in an army, and youâre in Grantâs army or Shermanâs army, you believe in trusting Grant or Sherman. You talk to your sergeant or your lieutenant, and it gets passed up. The guys at the top then pass things back down. Thereâs communication that way, up and down the line, and everyoneâs on the same page.â

âA demoralized army is an army thatâll get the [stuff] kicked out of it,â he said. âIf weâre down there in the mud, and weâre getting rained on, we are getting the [stuff] kicked out of us. But if someone says, âDonât worry, theyâre at the meeting right now arranging for boots and blankets,â then thatâs cool. Thatâs really all it takes."

âThatâs what Iâm doing every day,â OâConnell said. âI walk the camp, and I tell people whatâs going on. I stand around with people and make fun of [the organizers] and the way they talk at the meetings. But I do it so I can fit in and earn these peopleâs respect. I donât actually have a bone to pick with [the organizers]. I support them and know they are doing the best they can.â

***

Only when people understand what is happening and feel like they have a voice will they take a personal stake in the goings-on -- and only then will they become engaged and feel a sense of ownership.

Connectors like OâConnell and Nunez are models for how people of disparate income levels can talk about real issues and solve problems. When the 1 percent stops being combative and comes to the negotiating table, these two guys should be at the table for the 99 percent. If they can bridge the gaps between 99 of the 100 percentiles, they can handle the final 1 percent.

Max Chalkin is spending time "in the trenches" at Occupy Boston, speaking with occupiers, attending general assemblies and marches, and learning what camp life is like. His thoughts and observations will be published twice each week as TNGG Boston's âDispatches from Dewey Squareâ series.

Photo by Courtney Sacco

About Max -- Max Chalkin is a recent graduate of Tufts University and is currently working in biotech marketing. His interests include entrepreneurship, technology, politics, food, and nightlife. He is an avid photographer, cook, and scuba diver.

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