Tensions Between Archivists and 'Occupy' Protesters Over Preserving the Movement 153
An anonymous reader writes "At one point an NYU librarian literally got into a shouting match with a protester at an Occupy protest, trying to make the case for why a digital record should be kept of photos, videos, audio recordings, posters, and other materials, so future scholars and activists can recount what happened. Academics are taking unusual steps to preserve the protesters' stuff, including 'distributing postcards promoting archiving at protests, developing automated systems to download photos posted online, and asking participants to vote on which images are most important for the historic record.'"
The anonymity they deserve...? (Score:2, Interesting)
Maybe the protesters were right.
Silly (Score:-1, Interesting)
Doesn't it come off as a bit silly? The protests were hardly that historic or even effective. No change occurred in the world as a result of them. There are certain people in the world who are bored with their daily lives and need to feel like they are part of a revolutionary movement. I was amused when I saw the issue of Time magazine that intentionally printed photos of the protests in black-and-white to hearken to the Vietnam protests. In other words, the protest were typical of most of the so-called movements in the world today--cynical, self-aware, and more of an outlet to vent rather than a positive force for change.
Re:Lol (Score:4, Interesting)
You're trolling, but there is truth to the point that many of the people at the protests didn't even know why they were there. Literally, when asked on camera, they couldn't give an answer. They just wanted to be part of an anti-authority movement. It ended up becoming another generic anti-capitalism movement, like what the Iraq War protests became after a few days. A certain element was defecating on police cars, committing sexual assault, and littering parks with tons of garbage.
It's so much easier to blend into a crowd and yell with them at the top of your lungs to make yourself feel better about a general anger you have toward society. It's so much harder to actually effect change by contacting politicians, convincing the public, studying the law, and generally having an impact on the legislative process so that something actually comes out of any of it.
It's one of the reasons I'm irritated by anyone with a bullhorn, even when they say things I would normally agree with. It comes off like a pushy way for them to vent. They're aware of the image of themselves as a protestor with a bullhorn, and they get hooked on that image. Then it's over, and they go back to the office job they were trying to get away from in the first place.
Actually change something--then I'll be impressed!