Straight A's and a Staunch Supporter of the Occupy Movement

My name is Emma. I am 19 years old, and still have a lot to learn.

Nevertheless, with every ounce of my being, I believe in the Occupy Movement, for I believe in the power of the people in this county and in this world.

When I was in grade school, I was known as that girl who was always speaking up in class and would never shut up or put down her hand. I would sit there, learning these concepts and moments in history, that have brought us to where we all are today.

I guess you could say my outspokenness grew out of my confusion and my outrage. I’m not so sure I knew that when I was in middle and high school, but then something inside me was enlightened on Sept. 17, 2011. All of my pent-up emotion overflowed into a catharsis. I have always had this fiery passion within me to combat injustice, and to put these timely concerns on the table instead of simply brushing them under the rug. Now was my time. Now was our time.

This fall, there was absolutely no doubt in my mind that I would be marching on the streets and executing direct actions in solidarity with the Occupy movement. To me, this only makes sense. Call me a radical, call me a hippie, call me a socialist, anarchist, liberal, even a communist – but what I am is a human being who is speaking out and acting out against economic and social inequality.

I may be innocently naïve, and that is fair. After all, I am still in my second year in college; I grew up comfortably in a suburban home outside of Boston; I have not travelled as extensively as I would have liked to see every injustice there is out there. Yet, I ask the question: who is anyone to judge my naivety? I know what I know based on my experiences, grounded in my knowledge, and established through what I continue to learn. I whole-heartedly believe that all of us are still developing an understanding of the world we live in.

So, to the gentlemen who tell me that when I grow up, I’ll see how unrealistic my ideas are, and to the ladies who wish that I would simply sit down and relax instead of getting so agitated about an unfocused notion, and to the people out there who simply badger, insult and bully those fighting for your rights and your future – I say to them: learn with us. Educate with us. Embrace us. Join us.

The nay-sayers do have a point, though. I still have so much to learn to begin to comprehend this country and the entire world. Sure, I have a lot ahead of me, but so do they – and so does the Occupy movement.

This is only the beginning.

Oh, and this semester, I carried a full course load, had three part-time jobs, a 10-hour-a-week internship, was heavily involved with three on-campus organizations, and still marched on the streets with my brothers and sisters. Also, I got straight A’s and I am on the Dean’s List.

And I took a shower this morning.

Solidarity.

Editor's Note: Emma MacDonald, a resident of Framingham currently attends Emerson College.