2011-2012
The Occupy Wall Street Movement
America’s response to the 2008 housing market collapse

The Occupy Movement was a direct response to the 2008 housing market collapse, which caused massive job losses, home foreclosures, company closures, and a global recession (Hussain, Ali 2025). The Great Recession, as it was called, lasted between 2007 and 2009, and was the worst economic downturn to hit the world since the stock market crash of 1929 (Furhmann 2025). 

2008-2009: A small handful of billionaires profited off of >10 million Americans being thrown onto the streets

Approximately 10 million Americans lost their homes due to foreclosure, according to The Los Angeles Times and Investopedia. Many key figures in the United States government and the financial industry played roles in the crisis, both in causing it and helping to recover from it (Hussain 2025).

As Americans were getting kicked out of their homes, five investors made big investments during the 2007-2009 financial crisis, eventually generating huge gains as a result: Value Investor Warren Buffett, Hedge fund manager John Paulson, CEO of JPMorgan Chase Jamie Dimon, former head of the Federal Reserve (Fed), Ben Bernanke, and investor Carl Icahn (Furhmann 2025). 

Resentment against wealthy insider trading festers as Americans discover what happened

In 2009 social activist Michael Moore released the following documentary, Capitalism: A Love Story, which depicted the cruel callousness the business community shown toward common Americans at the time, and how a very small percentage of the population gained billions at the expense of the American people, who were essentially thrown out into the streets:

“We are the 99%!”: The Global Occupy Wall Street Movement took to the streets

Many Americans naturally felt betrayed and infuriated by the wheeling and dealings of a financial elite, who gained billions at their expense. Thus began the Occupy Wall Street protests.

Image from Miranda Leitsinge (NBC News) utilized in accordance with the Fair Use Doctrine for legitimate First Amendment purposes.

Image by Daniel Goodman (Business Insider) utilized in accordance with the Fair Use Doctrine for legitimate First Amendment purposes.

With nowhere else to go, millions of homeless Americans “Occupy” public spaces

Due to the fact that more than 10 million Americans had lost their homes — many of whom were not rehoused — protest encampments were set up on public “taxpayer funded” properties around the country. The message was simple, “The financial elite created this situation and financially gained from it. Don’t punish us. Hold them accountable. Meanwhile, since we can’t be in our homes and have nowhere to go, we’ll occupy our publicly-owned property.” Black’s Law Dictionary 10th Ed. defines occupation as, “The act, state, or condition of holding, possessing, or residing in or on something; actual possession, residence, or tenancy, especially of a dwelling or land.” 

Within weeks, Occupy spread to over 950 cities across 82 countries, uniting millions around the slogan “We are the 99%”. It pioneered consensual, leaderless organizing—even while challenging itself to scale decision-making and maintain momentum.

Image from Occupy D.C. at Freedom Plaza (Mach 2011):

Map from October 7, 2011 depicting various locations of the Occupy Wall Street encampments (Strauss 2011):

From Protest to Poverty; a Movement Wanes as Police Clear the Camps

Although Occupy began as a robust, energetic movement, eventually public encampments became less sanitary, and financially the movement could not sustain. In 2012 police began to forcibly clear encampments around the country.

Criticisms

While impactful in raising awareness about economic inequality and corporate influence, the movement is often considered to have “failed” due to a lack of clear leadership, defined demands, sanitary conditions, and sustained organization. Despite sparking important conversations and inspiring future movements, Occupy struggled to translate its momentum into concrete political or policy changes (Ehrenberg 2017).

Purpose Fulfilled: Occupy Wall Street shone a spotlight on extreme wealth inequality in America

The overall success of Occupy Wall Street was the fact that protestors shone a spotlight on how, through insider trading, “the 1%” gamed the stock market in their favor, at the expense of the American people. With the rallying cry, “We are the 99%!“, the message was clear: “We need to keep organized, and remain watchful.“

Occupy Recap: An Overview of the Movement by Robert Reich

In 2021 former Secretary of Labor, Robert Reich, and Research Manager from the California Policy Lab, Kara Segal, released this powerful recap about the importance of Occupy Wall Street, and how it was a unifying catalyst that helped wake up the nation:

Subsequent National Movements Sparked by Occupy

In 2013, the movie Wolf of Wall Street came out, starring Leonardo DiCaprio. Although not officially connected with the Occupy Wall Street movement, the film’s cultural impact was shaped by the political and economic climate that Occupy brought into the mainstream conversation. Occupy Wall Street popularized the terms “the 1%” and “income inequality.” By the time The Wolf of Wall Street hit theaters, public anger at Wall Street had been simmering for years. The film—though based on events from the 1990s—arrived at a moment when audiences were ready to see Wall Street greed exposed and ridiculed.

2015-2016: The Bernie Sanders Movement

2016-2017: The #NoDAPL “Standing with Standing Rock” Water Protector Movement

References

Strauss, Jesse. (October 7, 2011). Map: #Occupy protests across America. Al-Jazeera News. https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/2011/10/7/map-occupy-protests-across-america

Furhmann,(March 22, 2025). 5 Top Investors Who Profited From the Global Financial Crisis. Investopedia. https://www.investopedia.com/financial-edge/0411/5-investors-that-are-both-rich-and-smart.aspx.

Goodman, Daniel. (Dec. 9 2011). A DAY IN THE LIFE: Wall Streeter Turned Occupier Shows Us What Its Like To Coordinate A Protest. Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/exclusive-occupy-homes-2011-12

Hussain, Ali. (April 9, 2005). Major Players in the 2008 Financial Crisis: Where Are They Now? Investopedia. https://www.investopedia.com/insights/major-players-2008-financial-crisis-and-where-they-are-now/

Mach, Andrew. (Oct. 14, 2011). Cities fret over democracy’s costs as ‘Occupy Wall Street’ stretches on. The Christian Science Monitor. https://www.csmonitor.com/USA/2011/1014/Cities-fret-over-democracy-s-costs-as-Occupy-Wall-Street-stretches-on.

Miranda Leitsinge (2012). One year later, what ever happened to Occupy Wall Street? NBC News. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/one-year-later-what-ever-happened-occupy-wall-street-flna1b5927957.