As a horizontal and leaderful movement, Occupy Wall Street invited wide participation. Individuals often independently produced documentation on how to join the movement. This unattributed flyer, produced during the post-May Day "Week of Actions Against Austerity," offers a flowchart to newcomers on how to join Occupy. While this flowchart suggests a wholly egalitarian movement—one could simply show up and "Occupy Wall St. regulars will talk you through some workings of OWS, answer your questions, and help you plug into groups and projects”—the entrenchment of societal oppressions in Occupy was very real and was a barrier to participation for many.
Image Description
Black handwritten text is set on a white page. The reader is prompted by a question "How Can I get More Involved in Occupy?" and offers "3 things you can do next." The document takes on the form of a flowchart, providing information, inclusive of links to websites, for how to be involved in one of three ways: 1. Come to a weekly orientation, 2. Come to the week of Actions Against Austerity 3. Plug in online.
Citation
Get Involved with Occupy flyer, circa 2011-2012; PE.029 Printed Ephemera Collection on Subjects; box 25, folder "Occupy Wall Street (Robert Reiss Donation)"; Tamiment Library/Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives, New York University