A Resonant Purpose

Above: Two Citizen Movements Working for Social and Economic Justice. At Left, in early 2011, hundreds of thousands gathered for rallies on the grounds of the WI Capitol; At Right, in that same year, Occupy Wall Street participants maintained an ongoing presence at New York's Zucotti Park.

When massive protests sprung up at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison earlier in 2011 in response to draconian anti-worker, anti-education legislative proposals by the new governor and legislature, people across the nation and the globe reached out in solidarity. Many of them had learned about developments in Wisconsin through the Social Media. In the months since then, a massive movement for workers' rights, open government, quality education, and responsive healthcare is taking hold in the US and well beyond, most recently exemplified by the Occupy Wall Street movement. While the venue and name may change over time, this movement is here to stay, and resonant non-violent protest movements everywhere are gaining strength from the organizing power of the web.

In that same spirit of solidarity, through this blog, Wisconsin activists hope to share what we have learned through our use of on-line organizing with participants in the Dec. 17-18th Netroots New York conference at Pace University, where several Wisconsinites will be presenting. As a prelude to the conference, we share these samples of innovative organizing from the Wisconsin Uprising linked to social media. Thanks to all who have produced the contributions linked to here, and to all who shared their favorite social media examples, with special thanks to Joanie Juster. Working together, we can and will make a difference!

The blog format was the fastest and most efficient way to bring together these clips for conference goers. Nonetheless, it is a topically-arranged list of content trying to fit into a chronologically-based blog format. A couple of navigation tips: 1) If scrolling through the contents in the order postings are presented, be sure to select "Older Posts" to reach additional listings beyond the bottom of each page, and 2) an ad hoc "Table of Contents" can be found in the Blog Archive list at lower right.

WI CAPITOL PROTESTS

Happy Third Anniversary, Wisconsin Capitol Protests
Please venture further into this site to an archive of representative social media from this important social movement, which is still making its presence known three years later.

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

The Ian's Pizza Story: Social Media Feed the Protest

One of the most powerful indications that people around the world were following the protests through the social media was the fact that Ian's Pizza had received calls from all 50 states and every major country of the world, footing the bill to provide free pizza for much of the protest.



From Ian's Pizza on State Youtube page

From the comments for this video:
When the orders from across the country started coming in last Tuesday, the pizzas were delivered one by one to the capitol. As more and more people heard about this, more and more orders came in, and more pizza was made. On Saturday, after the first 40 orders came in, Ian gave away the next 600 slices on the house. Now they have set a maximum daily limit for orders based on what they can produce and do not take people's money for pizza not made.
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Mini-Documentaries

MADTOWN: A Wisconsin Protest Documentary in Three Acts



A Wisconsin protest documentary in three acts, MADTOWN goes inside the Capitol to hear from the people who occupied it for 17 days in opposition to Governor Scott Walker's union-busting bill.

Directed, Produced & Edited by Mike Scholtz and Michael Pickering
Produced by Misty Havens and Valerie Coit
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Powerful Individual Stories

Ruby Fox: protester with stage 4 cancer speaks out passionately against Governor Walker's proposed budget



Video and Interview by Luciano Matheron
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Famous Visitors

Jesse Jackson Entering Wisconsin State Capitol, Friday 2 18 2011



Rev. Jesse Jackson "We Shall Overcome" Madison, WI April 4, 2011 (union solidarity)



Link to some other amazing videos of the Wisconsin Uprising by videographer Tona Williams

'America Is NOT Broke': Michael Moore Speaks in Madison, WI -- March 5, 2011



Video by Riley Moore

John Nichols, The Nation, interviews Susan Sarandon in Madison, WI



Susan Sarandon's March 14th rally speech before a crowd of 100,000



from the youtube page of rchrisreeder
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UW Teaching Assistants Document Early Events

From the YouTube site of the Teaching Assistants Association (the union that represents teaching assistants at the University of Wisconsin-Madison).

The First Days of the Wisconsin Budget Repair Bill Protests

Rally Day 1 at the Capitol Madison WI 02 14 2011



Rally Day 2 Morning Madison WI 02 15 2011



First Sleep-In Day 2 Madison WI 02-15/16-2011


Protest Rally Day 3 Madison WI 02 16 2011



Protest Rally Day 3 Capitol Rotunda Madison WI 02 16 2011



Wisconsin Budget Repair Bill: High School and Middle School Youth Chanting "This is What Democracy Looks Like" 02 17 2011



Wisconsin Budget Repair Bill: Protestors Sing National Anthem in the Rotunda (Day 4 Madison WI 2 17 2011)

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Analysis: Labor and Working Class Studies Project Forums

The University of Wisconsin's Havens Center, through its Labor and Working Class Studies Project, produced several significant forums that analyzed the Wisconsin Uprising.  This project is an initiative linking labor, campus, and community.

Media and the Wisconsin Labor Struggle 3 3 2011



The Economics of the WI Labor Struggle 3 11 2011




"What Next for the Wisconsin Labor Struggle? Strategies, Tactics, and Movement Building" 4 27 2011

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Monday, December 5, 2011

Sources of Breaking News

Community Journalists were often the first to break news of new developments. For many people, Facebook, Twitter, and community radio and other "alternative" forms of social media were among their only reliable source of news, because they did not trust the bias or omissions represented by traditional reporting. More often than not, social media journalists captured the scene from a citizen-participant's perspective, adding to the sense of being in the midst of what was happening for the viewer.

Wisconsin Dems Chanting "Shame! Shame! Shame!" After Walker's Budget Bill Passes (in the wee hours of the morning)




from talkingpointsmemo.com
Few traditional media remained at 1 am when the GOP leadership of the WI State Assembly used parliamentary trickery to push through the governor's budget bill, in effect closing off the voting before many opponents had the chance to vote.

A Moment Out Of Time From The Wisconsin Union Protest



by Rob Matsushita
Rob Matsushita's Vimeo Page

Wisconsin Citizens Shout Out in Indignation at WI State Assembly members, beyond a police line on the bottom of the staircase to the chambers, about to vote on Gov. Walker's draconian budget bill.

Rep. Cory Mason Addresses the Crowd at 1:15 am Following the Vote



From WYOU TV

Sunday, February 27th: Difficult Decisions of Conscience as Police Evacuate the Capitol, and Protestors Contemplate Civil Disobedience



from crev2002's YouTube Channel

Wisconsin Protests: Closing the Doors of Democracy?



A friendly debate ensues about whether to leave or not to leave.

From the Vimeo page of Shahin Izadi

Be sure to click on the "Older Posts" link below at the bottom of this page for many more examples of creative and inspiring social media examples from the Wisconsin Uprising....
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