“Local authorities were able to enforce, basically in our imaginations, an image of what proper civil disobedience is–one that is simply…

An excerpt from: http://www.thenation.com/article/186129/snowden-exile-exclusive-interview

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The Nation: When was the last time civil disobedience brought about change?
Edward Snowden: Occupy Wall Street.

The Nation: One of us might disagree with you. Arguably, Occupy was a
very important initiative, but it was soon vaporized.

Snowden: I believe strongly that Occupy Wall Street had such limits
because the local authorities were able to enforce, basically in our
imaginations, an image of what proper civil disobedience is–one that
is simply ineffective. All those people who went out missed work,
didn’t get paid. Those were individuals who were already feeling the
effects of inequality, so they didn’t have a lot to lose. And then the
individuals who were louder, more disruptive and, in many ways, more
effective at drawing attention to their concerns were immediately
castigated by authorities. They were cordoned off, pepper-sprayed,
thrown in jail.

The Nation: But you think Occupy nonetheless had an impact?

Snowden: It had an impact on consciousness. It was not effective in
realizing change. But too often we forget that social and political
movements don’t happen overnight. They don’t bring change
immediately–you have to build a critical mass of understanding of the
issues. But getting inequality out there into the consciousness was
important. All these political pundits now talking about the 2014 and
2016 elections are talking about inequality.

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