One of the first congregational events that I attended in Vancouver was the local occupy movement. Though controversial, attending the public rally on Saturday, October 15th was a good opportunity to gain an objective perspective. Much of the media coverage on this event focused on the movement being a burden on tax-payers because of the resources the city had to dole out to accommodate the occupy population. Other criticism included questioning the legitimacy of the movement because of the number of disenfranchised occupants and some criticized the number of different platforms that Occupy Vancouver addressed ie: some protesters wanted affordable housing while others protested genetically modified foods. Regardless of what specifically motivated people to come out to Occupy Vancouver, the common thread was that the general public felt mobilized enough by their concerns to participate in a multi-week rally. It felt empowering to be part of this rally and I used my presence as a means to learn about the local concerns; an important step to integration.
Occupy Vancouver
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