Wednesday, Dec. 07, 2011

We Are the 99 Percent

It's rare that an internet meme is based off of actual news, but such was the case when the Tumblr, We Are the 99 Percent went viral. The blog, which features people from all over the nation holding up detailed signs that tell their life stories and explain why they feel slighted by the 1%, began in August, nearly a month before the Wall Street protests began, as a way to rally support for the planned Occupy Wall Street movement and to rope in those who live far away from Zuccotti Park. Some of the most touching stories detail the average Americans who owe hundreds of thousands of dollars in student loans, some even near starvation, who've faced constant foreclosure. But through it all, many show a desire to contribute to society. "No charity — just a chance," one sign reads. Naturally, other percentage-based spinoffs followed, including "We Are the 53%," referring to the proportion of Americans who pay annual federal incomes taxes, and "We Are the 9%," which took a hard-line stance against the oppression of left-handers in the U.S.