- October 7, 2011 • 12:00 pm PDT
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In the weeks since protesters calling themselves The 99 Percent started occupying Wall Street in lower Manhattan, the world has started to take notice. There's now a Tumblr blog dedicated to the demonstration, and the movement gets bigger and stronger by the day. Yet despite the fact that the 99 percenters are organized, numerous, and can articulate their grievances with aplomb, some people are still saying they "don't know what they want." CNN's Erin Burnett famously said on Monday that all the protesters seem to want is "a messiah leader, just like they did when they anointed Barack Obama."
Having taken a few minutes to actually listen to the protesters and read through the 99 Percent blog, we've discovered it's quite simple to find out what the Wall Street occupiers want. We've compiled the grievances here, organized into five major issues. Feel free to send this distillation to anyone who, like Burnett and her ilk, complain condescendingly about Occupy Wall Street's "lack of message." We've also included some tangible things protesters can ask for from their elected leaders in order to improve their lives. Because while holding up signs at rallies is a start, that action must eventually become long-lasting policy.
