by Andrea Gordillo

I like to think of myself as a relatively informed citizen of the world, but I knew very little about the largest protest movement in America in decades, the Occupy movement. I had made an active decision not to learn more because I had written it off as a radical movement that expressed legitimate concerns but lacked the leadership, ideas, and organizations to have any real effect in the political arena. It was not until recently, at the celebration of the movement’s one-year anniversary, that I started to really understand Occupy and what it stood for. What brought me to this realization was not reading about the issues or anybody persuading me on the street – it was theatre

Adam Odsess-Rubin, intern and assistant director of the Civilian’s Paris Commune and Dan Lipton, actor and company member, led one of our Studio classes on a Wednesday a few weeks ago. They began the class with a few exercises based on Boal’s work on Theatre of the Oppressed. These exercises forced us to reflect not only on the terminology of the Occupy movement, but also on the feelings and motivations behind it.

We were asked to create a tableau that recreated the scene of the student protests at UCDavis. A few of us became the students lined on the ground about to be maced, a few became the spectators looking on, and one became the police officer macing the students. The experience was surreal. I was in the group of students linked in protest, I was startled by how much the usual assumptions of imaginary circumstances in acting were suspended. I understood, first-handedly, how these students felt. I understood their urgency, their fear, their determination. At the same time, after hearing from my studio-mate who assumed the role of the police officer, I understood his frustration and hunger for power. Suddenly, the Occupy movement made sense to me. It was no longer black and white; I could no longer dismiss it. It became, for me, real, tangible, and complicated.

Andrea comforts The Civillians’ Adam during a tableau exercise.

That is, essentially, the purpose of theatre. It transports a person from what he /she knows and believes and takes him to the “other.” No other medium allows people to fully embody the “other” as effectively as theatre does. The work that the Civilians do takes this basic principle of theatre and specifies it to teach and inspire audiences about real world issues. Their work transports their audiences to the “other” whose voice is suppressed. Naturally, the audiences develop empathy and connections are formed. Once an audience can reach the “other,” the very concept of the “other” disappears. The distance between “you” and “me” is breached; through theatre, people can find that they are universally connected.

I still believe that organization is a major weakness in the Occupy movement, but I understand now from where it originated. People’s desperation, indignation, and passion cannot be dismissed as easily as it has been. Frustrations over class inequality, economic disparities, and civil rights violations are perfectly validated and should be taken seriously. Their voices need to be heard, but not through mediums where their message can be manipulated or distorted, as it has through mainstream media. Theatre acts as a vehicle for these stories to be shared truthfully; even if they are entirely foreign to us, if we truly listen we will be hard pressed to ignore the connecting thread of humanity.

*****

See Andrea perform one of the monologues from The Civilians’ Occupy the Mind series in the Semel lobby before or at intermission of The Grapes of Wrath (October 18 – 21, 2012).

The Dust Bowl Migration and the Occupy Movement are roughly eighty years apart, yet there are several issues that these events have in common.  Police interference, for example, is prevalent in both.  This interference ranged from controlling boundaries to making multiple arrests under duress.

The ability of the police to keep control spiraled out of control in the 1930s.  Migrants flocked to California by the thousands in the 1930s in hopes of securing employment and a place they could call home. In 1933, the men and women who worked in the cotton fields near Corcoran, CA went on strike.  Their pay had been docked from $1.00 to $.40 per 100 lbs of cotton picked, causing one thousand and eight hundred workers to walk out.  The growers called the police, who came and organized a squadron, which shot eleven strikers and killed two.  After twenty-four days, the strikers won, raising the $.40 to $.75 per 100 lbs of cotton.  (1)

In 1936, the state of California enforced blockades along its border, forcing migrant families to pay for entrance into the state. Police force was used to stop trains and check for transients and people they believed should not be coming into the state.  However, after two months of the blockade, the charges of outrage against them were too much and the police were retracted. (2) And the farming families kept coming, looking for work and hope.

Similarly, the officers who were called in during Occupy protests have been caught using excessive force; the differences being, they didn’t use guns, and this time, their actions were photographed and sent out to the public.  The police were seen using pepper spray on men and women of all ages who were protesting in Los Angeles and Seattle in 2011. (3) Then in November of 2011, the Occupy settlement of Zuccotti Park was evacuated, under order of the mayor of New York City, much like the 1936 border patrols in California; both orders were given to clear the streets of their respective cities/states.  In Zuccotti Park, the police used pepper spray and force to remove the Occupiers from their tents, and were successful.  However, the same hope for change that brought the farming families back brought the Occupiers back as well.  The protests continued sporadically after the camp was evacuated. (4)

1 http://www.farmworkers.org/strugcal.html

2 http://courses.csusm.edu/econ327rb/LAPD%20Blocked%20Dust%20Bowl%20Migrants%20at%20State%20Borders.htm

3 http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/gallery/2011/nov/22/occupy-movement-police-brutality-pictures#/?picture=382161163&index=3

4 http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/organizations/o/occupy_wall_street/index.html

By: Roisin Dowling

Edited By: Tanya Flink

In the Frank Galati’s script, Ma muses, “I wonder – that is, if we all get jobs an’ all work – maybe we can get one of them little white houses.” Like Ma, many migrant families had dreams of beautiful orchards and quaint white picket fences; however, the vast majority of Dust Bowl migrants found themselves living in tents, irrigation ditches, and cramped temporary housing.  These camps were often created by the migrants themselves; they were crude constructions of  desperate necessity.  Commonly referred to as squatter camps or “Hoovervilles,” due to the rage and blame that most migrants had towards President Herbert Hoover for the Great Depression.  In the 1930s, hundreds of families lived in these crude towns along Route 66, which led into California.

The Hooverville camps were mostly stationed in desolate areas, outside of towns and cities, where the migrant workers could hear about work from employers coming into the camps.  However, the living conditions were terrible and eventually the government became involved.  Under President Franklin D. Roosevelt, land was provided for permanent migrant camps.  One, in Arvin, California, was named “Weedpatch”, and became known for the safe and cleaner living facilities in 1935.  Families paid $1.00 per week to camp, and they were provided with bathrooms, showers, and laundry rooms.  Weedpatch was synonymous with home for a lot of families in the late 1930s and onwards.

These makeshift homes were responsible for the lives of thousands of people after the Dust Bowl; the camps allowed the unemployed to continue fighting and looking for work, and for families to stay together as long as possible.  At the same time, the Hooverville camps were unclean and only temporary.  The conditions improved slightly with Weedpatch, but it still cost money most did not have.  There was no easy solution for the problems caused by the Dust Bowl, but Weedpatch was a step in the right direction.

FROM EBSCO:

Crossen, Cynthia. “Americans Who Fled Drought in the 1930s found Little Sympathy.” Wall Street Journal: B.1. Sep 07 2005.OxResearch; ProQuest Central. Web. 7 Oct. 2012 .

Harvey, Steve. “THEN Hooverville-Refuge for L.A.’s Homeless in Depression Years.” Los Angeles Times (pre-1997 Fulltext): 1. Jun 15 1987. OxResearch; ProQuest Central. Web. 7 Oct. 2012 .

WEBSITES:

http://www.teachamericanhistory.org/File/Hooverville.pdf

http://www.weedpatchcamp.com/History/history.htm

During the 1930s when our production takes place, millions of Americans were faced with crippling economic hardships.  Unfortunately, a large portion of citizens today feel that the economy is still severely flawed and unjust for many. These people often point to wage inequality as the culprit.  The Occupy Movement arose in September of 2011 as a way for concerned Americans to voice their frustrations about the continuing fiscal struggles of the majority of the population.  Many Emerson students showed initiative within the movement once it took Boston by storm.  A few determined young Emersonians participated in meetings, marches, and even inhabited the camp in Dewey Square for a time. In the spirit of raising awareness, two of these students (Student 1 and Student 2) agreed to share their experiences with Occupy Boston. Below are their stories:

1. What do you think caused the Occupy Movement/what are the goal(s)?
Student 1:  

The major reason why I believe it started is that people around the country, mostly college students, wanted something to actively fight for. … Many people involved in Occupy were looking for a revolution; the last really big protests in America were the Anti-Vietnam protests. I feel as if the Occupy Movement was the product of bottled-up energy combined with wanting to change the dialogue our nation was having politically, socially, and economically. … The Occupy Movement wants to make sure that politics are about the issues and not about the donors, wants to make sure that banks cannot collapse the economy again, and wants to make sure that everyone is paying their fair share of taxes.

2. What demographic usually attends the marches?
Student 1:

The demographic that usually attends the marches/camps in the Occupy campsites consists of people that can’t afford a college education, people in college that wish for reform, college graduates that cannot afford a job, and adults well into their lives that want to see change within this country.

Student 2:

The marches could be incredibly diverse. Young punks, out of work dads, working mothers, veterans for peace who served in Vietnam, literally anyone could be found.

3. Who organizes the occupiers?
Student 1:

At the meetings, everyone has a say in how the meeting is run. The most important ideal for the Occupy Movement is democracy.

Student 2:

Because the movement was leaderless, organization was led by those most passionate. If you wanted a march in solidarity with any cause, all you had to do was convince others to join with you.

4. Have you seen the movement obtain any success? How so?
Student 1:

I would say the primary goal of the Occupy Movement is awareness, a change in the national dialogue. I feel that people are starting to have meaningful conversations about what the job of the government is and how we feel the government should run. People are discussing what is fairness and what is democracy. … With this change in dialogue, reform in Washington can happen.

Student 2:

Inequality and class-consciousness and solidarity were all 100% foreign to the American political conversation last year until Occupy. While the movement has died down, there are now thousands of people who are radicalized now, who are starting new stuff right now.

5. What is the relationship with the police? Have there been any cases of severe police brutality?
Student 1:

Sometimes there are police officers that are happy to just be working with people. Other times there are police officers that are more violent, both physically and socially. … In the context of the Occupy Movement, how can police officers facilitate the relationship between themselves and the occupiers, themselves and property owners, and the relationship between property owners, law, and Occupiers? … Is there a moral gray area, where a police officer’s actions can be seen as offensive whatever he/she does?

Student 2:

Cars were illegally searched; protesters (including young college women) were followed home by police and threatened. Over a hundred people were mass arrested. The police later had their union newsletter go public that revealed a deeply sexist, racist, classist, and homophobic trend in their rhetoric. The police lost a great deal of respect through their actions.

6. What made you want to get involved?

Student 1:

I wanted to get involved because I am frankly disgusted by what has been going on in our world. … On a lighter note, I feel that in this day in time there are more human rights that need to be considered. … Do I know exactly how we can implement a system so that these rights are provided for? No, but that doesn’t stop me from having the sentiment that we should care for everyone. …

We are not alone. We are humans. We have to stop pretending like

we can live a solitary life that is only supported by ourselves. We have, we

do, and we will always rely on one another. Let’s support that.

Student 2:

I’ve always had an interest in social justice.

Dorothea Lange was a documentary photographer who captured a variety of working class social groups between the early 1920s and her death in 1965.  She is famous for her work during the Great Depression years as she photographed the substandard conditions of migrant workers in California.  We can imagine the Joads faced similar conditions during their time in California.  As in the play, Lange puts an emphasis on women.  The Joad men certainly hold their fair share of power within the family, but Ma is the rock that enables the family to persevere through the desperate times.

History of the Dust Bowl – America’s Heartland

This video is well worth the watch! It features interviews with Dust Bowl survivors, as well as a multitude of varied and significant facts regarding the history and effects of the Dust Bowl.

Ref: Ryan, Paul, narr. History of the Dust Bowl. America’s Heartland, 2009. Web. 24 Sept. 2012.

April 14th, 1935, powerful winds swept across approximately 600 miles of the Great Plains, creating a turbulent dust storm that brought a thick layer of dust and devastation.  On April 15th, 1935, the region effected by this event was first coined “The Dust Bowl.” Five states fell within this region, which included parts of Kansas, Colorado, New Mexico, Texas, and Oklahoma.

Although the phrase was not officially mentioned until 1935, the drought which partially caused the Dust Bowl began in 1931.  The occurrence of dust storms increased rapidly from year to year.  In 1932, fourteen dust storms were recorded; the amount more than doubled in 1933, with a record of 38 dust storms.  By 1936, 70% of Oklahoma had been effected by wind erosion.  Proportionally, Oklahoma underwent more damage than any other state.  Conditions continued to worsen until 1939, when the drought ceased.

Each dust storm brought severe damage to the land and its inhabitants.  Storms could sweep across 400-600 miles and last for ten hours. Houses, farms, and pastures were buried under the dust, which hung in the air well after the winds had abated.  There was a murky shroud that constantly hung over the region.  John Steinbeck illustrated the atmosphere perfectly in his opening lines, “The dawn came, but no day.” Crops quickly withered beneath this dusty blanket that would not allow for sufficient sunlight, and the dryness of the earth hastened this failure.  Livestock died from asphyxiation, and many children developed lung diseases from breathing in the dust laden air.

Farming families struggled to maintain a living in this hostile environment.  Their income plummeted, for much of their produce had been destroyed.  Women attempted to keep up a clean, healthy household, but they could never conquer the dust lingering both in and out of their homes.  As the money began to dwindle and the family grew hungry, some looked to California for work and a chance at a better life.