What began as a small protest outside of the New York Stock Exchange on Sept. 17 has since exploded into an international phenomenon known as the Occupy Wall Street movement.

A makeshift community including a gas-powered generator, a self-published newspaper, an improvised hospital and media center, and thousands of enthusiastic activists has sprung up in Manhattan’s financial district, which continues to act as the epicentre of a series of peaceful protests.

Amid news reports of hundreds of arrests and ever-increasing momentum, similar demonstrations have popped up in several other U.S. cities over the few weeks since the movement began.

Currently, protests against corporatization inspired by the activists in New York are being planned and carried out in major cities the world over, from Tokyo to Toronto.

On Oct. 15 the Occupy Wall Street movement arrived in our own city, in the form of Occupy Winnipeg. After meeting at the Manitoba Legislative Building early in the day, those involved in the event embarked on a peaceful march toward Portage and Main.

The “occupation” aspect of the demonstration - a show of solidarity with the protesters in New York - took place on the lawn of the Leg once the march was over. Information regarding the event can be found on Occupy Winnipeg’s Facebook page.

The Occupy Wall Street movement is certainly inspiring.

Just as many observers sympathized with the infectious passion of the protesters involved in the recent Arab Spring, it’s hard not get excited as our TV screens fill with images of some of our neighbours to the south taking on the man.

A story of rebellion and revolution never fails to capture our imaginations - this much is obvious.

What’s even more encouraging is the absence of violence on the part of protesters thus far.

The demonstrations have been consistently peaceful. Contrasted against a few well-publicized accounts of police brutality, including footage of a high-ranking officer aggressively pepper-spraying activists without provocation, the Wall Street protests couldn’t look more like upstanding examples of proper civil disobedience.

There is still, however, room for criticism of the burgeoning movement.

So far, the demonstrations seem to lack a clear, unified objective. Instead of aligning themselves against specific policies, protesters - many of whom are university students - have been criticized for opposing the vague entities of “corporate greed” and “big business.”

These targets are simply too undefined to be directly opposed.

Public demonstrations simply for the purpose of exercising the right to protest are still valuable, but they are ultimately ineffective for bringing about change unless clear, unified and realistic demands are set.

It is also imperative that as protests inspired by the Occupy Wall Street movement continue to take place around the world, they remain absolutely peaceful.

I have my fingers crossed that a few troublemakers won’t decide to start smashing windows and lighting police cars on fire, as this could quickly cast a shadow over this noble movement and bring it to a halt.

Though it is a nebulous term, “corporate greed” is indeed a major enemy to true democracy, and it absolutely deserves opposition. Now, let’s all hope that the Occupy Wall Street movement finds its voice so that some real change can take place.

Carson Hammond is a second-year English major at the University of Winnipeg.

Published in Volume 66, Number 8 of The Uniter (October 19, 2011)