Synopsis
This Changes Everything: Occupy Wall Street and the 99% Movement, edited by Sarah van Gelder and the staff of YES! Magazine, is a compact yet powerful anthology published in 2011 that captures the early energy, ideas, and significance of the Occupy Wall Street (OWS) movement. The book serves as both a historical snapshot and a call to action, compiling short essays, firsthand accounts, and analytical pieces from activists, scholars, and journalists to articulate the movement’s origins, grievances, and transformative potential. Van Gelder, co-founder and executive editor of YES! Magazine, frames the book around the central thesis that OWS fundamentally altered how people perceive themselves, their society, and their capacity to enact change, challenging the dominance of Wall Street and corporate power. The text emphasizes the movement’s role in naming the core issue of economic inequality—specifically the overwhelming influence of the wealthiest 1%—and amplifying the voices of the 99% who bear the brunt of systemic injustices.
The book begins by situating OWS within a global context of unrest, drawing connections to the Arab Spring, European indignados, and other uprisings that inspired activists to gather in New York’s Zuccotti Park on September 17, 2011. Sparked by a call from Adbusters magazine and organized by grassroots activists, OWS quickly grew from a small encampment into a decentralized, global phenomenon, with protests in over 1,500 cities worldwide. The anthology highlights the movement’s nonhierarchical structure, exemplified by its use of consensus-based decision-making and the “people’s mic,” which fostered inclusivity but also led to challenges in articulating unified demands. Contributors like Naomi Klein, David Korten, Rebecca Solnit, and Ralph Nader, alongside activists such as David Graeber and Marina Sitrin, explore how OWS shifted public consciousness by rejecting the shame of economic struggle—whether from joblessness, debt, or foreclosure—and replacing it with a collective political awakening. The book argues that this shift empowered the 99% to see themselves as agents of history, capable of reshaping a society that prioritizes the many over the few.
A key strength of the book is its focus on the movement’s grievances, as articulated in pieces like the “Declaration of the Occupation of New York City,” which lists injustices such as corporate greed, environmental neglect, and the prioritization of profit over human dignity. The text critiques the media’s portrayal of OWS as aimless, pointing out that the movement’s refusal to issue a single demand was a deliberate rejection of a system that ignores systemic issues. Essays delve into specific concerns, including wealth inequality (noting that the top 1%’s income grew 275% between 1979 and 2007, compared to just 18% for the bottom 20%), the subprime mortgage crisis, and the failure to develop sustainable energy. However, the book also acknowledges criticisms of OWS, such as its lack of concrete solutions or long-term plans, with some contributors suggesting that its strength lay in raising questions rather than providing answers. The anthology’s tone is unapologetically progressive, reflecting YES! Magazine’s commitment to solutions-oriented journalism, though it has been critiqued for its lack of sociological depth or perspectives from outside the movement.
Ultimately, This Changes Everything portrays OWS as a movement that transcended its physical encampments, reshaping how people view power, community, and possibility. It celebrates the courage of occupiers who faced police suppression—though it notably omits detailed analysis of the coordinated crackdowns, a point raised by some reviewers—and underscores the movement’s lasting impact on grassroots activism. The book’s royalties and hundreds of free copies were donated to OWS sites, embodying its solidarity with the 99%. While some critics found it repetitive or overly idealistic, others praise its raw, inclusive spirit as a reflection of the movement itself. Through its vivid accounts and urgent prose, the anthology remains a vital resource for understanding OWS’s role in challenging corporate dominance and inspiring a vision of a more equitable world.