In the previous post, I talked about how there is an element of community building at many Occupy movements around the country. Those efforts are sometimes subtle, sometimes overt, and what they accomplish cannot always be anticipated. Occupy Baltimore offers a specific example.
Last week, the general assembly of Occupy Baltimore elected to issue a statement on sexual abuse and harassment. Aside from its ostensible purpose, however, the statement also reflects an effort to create community values. Of all the countless transgressions Occupy Baltimore members could feasibly commit against one another, sexual assault was highlighted with a lengthy policy statement, positioning it as a special taboo. It reads in part:
Sexual abuse and assault are dehumanizing acts for the survivor as well as the abuser. It strips people of their right to safety, dignity, and respect, basic values which embody many of the intentions behind Occupy Baltimore. As a vibrant community, we recognize and give power to these values and the rights of survivors.
Obviously, to the extent one accepts that sentiment, it is also true of most violent crimes. So why issue an especial statement about sexual assault? One reading is that it’s an effort to establish a sense of community by creating a value system. By singling out sexual assault from other unacceptable behaviors, Occupy Baltimore was creating a taboo and establishing beliefs that members are expected to internalize and adhere to, as they would in an actual community
But it’s not just about printing up rules for people to follow. Communities don’t only create rules, they also find ways to enforce them. That aspect of community building can be seen in the Occupy Baltimore statement on sexual assault as well. First, it bans from Occupy Baltimore anyone who commits sexual assault. But beyond that, should someone become a victim of sexual assault, the statement discourages them from going to the police. Instead, it encourages the victim to first report the incident to Occupy Baltimore security.
Though we do not encourage the involvement of the police in our community, the survivor has every right, and the support of Occupy Baltimore, to report the abuse to the appropriate law enforcement. Any member of the Occupy Baltimore community who believes he/she/they have been a victim of, are aware of, or suspect a commission of sexual abuse, are encouraged to immediately report the incident to the Security Committee. The point person for dealing with these situations will be [name and phone number]. Survivors of Sexual Abuse will be given the support, resources, and assistance needed for their emotional and physical health.
For this, Occupy Baltimore understandably took some heat. The statement was first picked up by a hostile blogger for Andrew Breitbart’s right wing web site. From there, The Baltimore Sun ran with the story, and Occupy Baltimore was soon on the defensive. After all, there are time constraints for gathering evidence in sexual assault cases, and delaying or discouraging a police report has potentially serious consequences. Furthermore, it’s pretty dubious that Occupy Baltimore, despite all of its intentions and earnestness, really has the wherewithal to give a victim all the “support, resources, and assistance needed for emotional and physical health.”
It should be noted that there have not been any sexual assaults at Occupy Baltimore. But regardless, the question begs: Why did Occupy Baltimore’s general assembly go to the lengths of creating a statemen
t on sexual assault, apart from other crimes, and imbue it with such language?
There are many obvious reasons why an Occupy movement doesn’t want local police arresting its members. But beyond that, the statement can be read as an effort to create and enforce community values. A viable community doesn’t just set rules for people to follow. It also employs potent tools for enforcing those rules, everything from private chiding to public humiliation to employing something like a “security team.”
So one reading of the Occupy Baltimore general assembly’s statement on sexual assault is that it was an effort at community building. It expressed elements of a value system and attempted to impose and enforce those values, the way any community would.
In its unofficial quest to build communities, the Occupy movement is speaking to the desires of many people throughout the America hoping to find something that they do not have in their everyday lives: the quest for a more meaningful life through varied and important relationships, and through shared ideals and values beyond politics and economics.
I don’t believe that the Occupy movement will succeed in establishing any actual communities in the historic sense. After all, not only are communities vibrant social organizations, but they are also quite complex and generally develop the institutions and mechanisms necessary to sustain themselves over many generations, something that is unlikely to develop at McKelden Square, on Wall Street, or anywhere else that 
protestors are pitching tents.
Nonetheless, the Occupy movement is replicating some aspects of community, and it is doing so in ways that go beyond many existing popular surrogates, such as churches, online social networks, and spectator sports.
All eyes are understandably focused on whether the Occupy movement will be responsible for concrete political and economic changes. It will also being interesting to see what long term social cultural impacts it may have as well.