One Wisconsin Now Statements of Solidarity with Occupy Wall Street, Wisconsin Uprising

MADISON, Wis. — One Wisconsin Now Executive Director Scot Ross released the following statements in solidarity with the ongoing “Occupy Wall Street” efforts, which are spreading across the nation, including upcoming events in Appleton, Green Bay, Milwaukee and Madison and other cities around Wisconsin.

“Wisconsin is ground zero in the battle between the needs of the people and the anti-democratic takeover of state government by corporate special interests. Gov. Scott Walker has already passed $2.3 billion in new tax breaks for corporations and the wealthy and has dismantled public education, our public university and technical college system and will strip away health care from 53,000 Wisconsinites and increase costs for as many as 200,000.

“Gov. Walker and the Republican legislature promised us jobs, but instead have delivered our state government’s treasury and regulatory power on a gold platter for corporate special interests. Gov. Walker has stolen our rights as workers, stolen our voting rights and stolen our children’s futures. It is a testament to the corporate takeover of Wisconsin’s government that even as law enforcement closes in on members of Team Walker, the governor wants to sign model legislation crafted by the corporate American Legislative Exchange Council that would further reduce corporate accountability, while keeping fully intact anti-consumer measures that reward banks and financial services.

“And all the while, Gov. Walker’s policies will add to the $1 trillion in student loan debt, which is stealing the futures of post-Baby Boomers across this state and the nation.

“On behalf of our 52,000 online supporters, One Wisconsin Now stands in solidarity with the efforts to wrench our government back from the corruption of Wall Street and Corporate America. Ending Wall Street and Corporate America’s dominance of our public policy is the economic civil rights struggle of the next decade. To paraphrase slain civil rights leader Malcolm X, ‘We didn’t occupy Wall Street, Wall Street occupied us.’”