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#NYCMarch2DC Arrival In DC Shows A Movement That Won’t Back Down

You could hear them a few blocks away from McPherson Square, but it was clear when the honks started that they had arrived. Marchers, about 25 of whom had been walking since they started at Zuccotti Park on November 9th, turned the corner and entered the occupy encampment at McPhereson Square carrying flags, backpacks, and smiles.

The #NYCMarch2DC started as group of protesters at Occupy Wall Street who wanted to march all the way down to DC. They had been planned to arrive by November 23, 2011, the day the Super Committee was to deliver a plan to cut trillions from the budget. It’s telling that while the Super Committee couldn’t follow through on their difficult task, the Marchers grew larger and more committed as they made their way South. A few of the Marchers I talked to said they had joined at various points along the way: at Philadelphia, Trenton, Newark, and Baltimore. They had given updates on the road with Twitter and web video, but other than that they seemed straight out of a history book.

When members of the media surrounded the Marchers and tried to peel off individuals to interview, they sprung into action. Via Mic Check, we were told that there would be a General Assembly, including a crash course in direct democracy, several testimonials, and a Q  and A. They were efficient in their methods and spoke with authority to the members of the press. This was not the ragtag, disrespectful group portrayed on Fox News and talk radio. The Marchers, many from other occupations on the East Coast, were in complete control.

Through the rain and the crowd of cameras, it was difficult to pick up on everything that was being said, but the testimonials I heard were incredible. A student from Philadelphia, $80,000 dollars in debt, dropped everything to march for her fiscal freedom. An older economics professor, fed up with the backwards debate in Washington, instead joined the Marchers and shared his experiences with them. The march showed “that even with technology, it is still possible for us as Americans to share a few steps together – to share a few words together,” he said.

One of the coolest stories was from a man who had hosted the Marchers in his home as they made their way to DC. “Members of my family were worried about having the protesters in our home,” he said, adding that watching the news, one might think they “had fleas and slept in their own feces.” Turns out, they left his home “better than it was when they found it.”

The pressing contrast for me is to compare these Marchers with the people they intended to protest, the Joint Committee on Deficit Reduction, or the “Super Committee.” Those who walked from New York or Trenton or Baltimore showed incredible resilience – one of them even got hit by a car! Yet they kept walking, kept tweeting, and kept sharing their stories with those they met along the way.

Meanwhile, members of the Super Committee didn’t only announce failure this week. Several of the committee’s Republican members, most prominently former Wall Street trader Senator Pat Toomey (R-PA) are seeking to undo the trigger mechanism that was set up to motivate the committee in the first place.

Supercommittee member Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) said Democrats were not motivated to reach a deficit-reduction deal because the automatic cuts that were triggered by the panel’s failure were unfairly weighted toward programs that are important to Republicans.

“There was an asymmetry in the motivation,” Toomey said Tuesday on Townhall Radio. “If you just look at the sequester, let’s face it, there are a lot of Democrats whose lifelong ambition has been to cut defense spending.”

This attitude of constantly spinning the truth and constantly passing the buck is typical for Washington, DC, but it is unfamiliar to the Marchers I saw today. They walked through every iteration of weather, every neighborhood, and every rural highway to accomplish the goal they set out.

I still hope they get a chance to meet Congress. The buck-passers and spin-meisters that currently occupy the U.S. Capitol could learn a thing or two from them.

Tags: New York, Occupy DC, OWS