Lord Mayor Robert Doyle was subjected to a barrage of harmless ideas by Occupy Melbourne.
[Reprinted from sean bedlam. Transcript below.]
Councillors! We are Occupy Melbourne! We come here in peace … We’ll only take a few minutes of your time. We’ve come to speak to Robert Doyle but he refuses to speak to us.
We understand that some of the council support us. We urge you to speak out publically.
To Robert Doyle, we offer this statement: We are Occupy Melbourne. We are part of a global movement. Our movement is non-violent. Our movement seeks to reclaim our voice and democracy.
We occupy because people’s needs are not being met. We occupy because we are opposed to injustice. We occupy because the colonisation of indigenous people is a horror we have never accounted for.
We occupy because we are fighting wars where 90% of the casualties are civilians. We occupy because a system in which homeless people freeze outside while others live in luxury, does not deserve to exist. We occupy because a system which allows people to go hungry while others make billions, is unacceptable.
We occupy because the economic, corporate and political systems are corrupted and coopted [and reflect] an unjust and inhumane society. We occupy because we are sure it does not have to be this way. We occupy because another world is possible.
We occupy for the people and the survival of our planet. We occupy because we have already allowed too much destruction. We occupy because we have already allowed too much suffering for the sake of power and greed.
We occupy because we have had enough apathy. We occupy because we have had enough of your … complacency.
We will continue to occupy because you cannot evict an idea. We will continue to occupy because there is no deadline for our civil rights. We will continue to occupy despite council harassment. We will continue to occupy despite police brutality and intimidation.
We will continue to occupy for the fundamental tenets of democracy. We will not move. We will continue to occupy. Please approach us with love and respect. We are Occupy Melbourne!