But with the whole world seemingly going into the obscurity of 'occupation', where exactly does the Isle of Wight fit into all this?
Feature and Video Report
by Joe Briscoe
AFTER the many hundreds of people that turned out earlier in the year for the Stop the Cuts March in Newport on the Isle of Wight, the fifty or so protesters that "occupied" St Thomas' Square last week seemed something of a disappointment. Indeed, that figure probably also includes the various members of the public that curiously stopped by for a quick listen.
But as one of the speakers at the rally, Unison branch secretary Mark Chiverton said: "It may not be a huge gathering in terms of numbers, but I think symbolically it is very important."
Mr Chiverton was himself present back in February for the far larger rally, sparked by the Isle of Wight Council's cuts to local services. Back then however, his message was very different, saying that the huge number of people that turned out sent a clear message to the council that the Island was opposed to the cuts, even calling it "the biggest demonstration on the Island for many years, if not ever."
Back then, organisers estimated more than 1,000 people took part, while a less enthusiastic headcount put the number at a still respectable 500. But with #OccupyIOW continuing to receive coverage in the local press, radio and online, and with protesters themselves going on air to defend the numbers, the question which many islanders are asking is: "does a mere fifty people really equate to an occupation?"
In his speech on November 5th - a symbolic choice of date if ever there was one - Mr Chiverton, who disappointingly chose to appear without a Guy Fawkes mask, went on: "This kind of meeting or "occupation" is really multiplying all over the world" he said. "If you look at websites like wikipedia, it's just an indication of how many such gatherings there are at the moment."
And he's right. If the sheer ubiquitousness of the occupy movement is any indicator of the level of support for it, then it continues to do rather well indeed, with new cities and counties going into and out of occupation every day. Gary Younge of The Guardian wrote this piece on just how widespread the protests are only a day after the rally in St Thomas' Square - even going so far as to mention the Island's antics in it.
So is 50 enough? Let's look at the numbers of some of the other local occupations around the country. Two hundred people turned out in Exeter. The same in Norwich. A hundred in Birmingham - more than enough to get the attention of shoppers in the area and make it into the local paper.
But even away from the big cities where fewer numbers are to be expected, the sheer boldness of the protesters has ensured their credibility. An example of this is the BBC coverage of the ten or eleven people who camped out at Occupy Bournemouth and, mirroring the larger scale protests in New York and London, have been fighting their own legal battle to remain. Even the few up in Nottingham and the handful in Bradford - while having even less turn out than on the Isle of Wight - at least had the determination to bring their tents to the party.
So while the speeches of those that gathered on the Isle of Wight show that the protesters may indeed have valid points to make, it seems that many in the area are just not listening. And while attempting to increase the reach of their campaign may be a risky strategy which could result in sympathetic ears becoming crowds of annoyed christmas shoppers, I can't help but feel the local movement is in need of one of two things.
Either they desperately need to increase their number of supporters to a regular three digits (not the ten people that appeared in St James' Square a week later), or they need to unpack their camp beds, wrap up warmly, and pitch their tents outside County Hall or in St. Thomas' Square. Maybe then, people would take more on an interest in finding out just what this is all about.
"I'm as p****d off with everything else as the rest of you"
Read here on Island Pulse.
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