AFK

I thought I should give an update as I've been absent from Second Life for several weeks now. The main reason is that I've become very captivated and inspired by the Occupy movement, friends have heard me talk about little else since I first became aware of the murmurings in NYC last month. Consequently, I've had no reason or motivation to login to SL, and it seems more than a little negligent to spend time in a virtual world when the real world is experiencing such momentous changes with a movement that is in need of our support.

The 99%, a truly global movement, has been forced to take action in response to the economic crisis, the ruthless greed of the banks, and increasingly severe cuts and austerity measures imposed by our governments. We're seeing the very beginnings of a revolution that is too powerful to subdue or ignore, a fact which has been proven time and time again, particularly in the States, where the unprovoked police brutality has been witnessed all over the world. Despite the violence, misleading press reports and vilification, the protesters remain strong, and even more determined that what they're doing is right and justified.

My own involvement with Occupy London has been small but I think worthwhile. I filmed on the first day of the occupation on October 15th and subsequently made a music video from the footage, which I've been promoting and distributing. In addition I took many still shots, some of which were selected by this blog, and also printed on the front cover and inside issue 7781 of The Inquirer magazine. I've also been contacted by a Canadian academic who wants to use the photos in a presentation "to show the power of social media through grassroots movements like Occupy WallStreet/London."

I want to continue documenting this movement and I'm planning more visits to the camp/s soon. I'll probably still login to Second Life to attend certain performances or exhibitions, but for the foreseeable future I'll definitely not be blogging or creating my own art there.

Please do check out my video below, and you can see more footage here. But more importantly, if you're affected by the issues then get involved yourself, add your own voice, be a part of history.


Steve / Arahan x