"We Are The 99%"

Madelynn Fretto

Dr. Stephanie Brown

English 306

29 September 2016

Rhetorical Analysis of “We Are The 99%”

Protesting is a basic constitutional right and one such protest that invokes this right is the Occupy Wall Street (OWS) movement. This movement began in New York City when people opposed the unjust income inequality in America and united under the slogan, “We are the 99%.” The 99% refers to the percentage of the population that feels corporations and the wealthiest Americans are unfairly accumulating wealth at the expense of their livelihood. The OWS movement strives for a country that not only supports its wealthiest citizens, but also its poorest. This slogan unites the millions of people advocating for this protest and states their platform in a simple yet effective manner.

The intended audience for this slogan is the general public of the United States, particularly those who fall within the 99% category. It unites those who feel the economy is unjust and favors the 1%, who has power over the means of production, politics, and capital. The wording brings to mind an “us versus them” mentality, as it is meant to be divisive. This slogan of the protestors brings to light the consolidation of wealth in the top 1% of people who earn an income in the United States. This slogan resonated with numerous people because of the Great Recession that began in December 2007, when the United States faced financial devastation it had not seen since World War II. Starting in 2007, mortgage-related financial assets were facing extreme declines, which ultimately affected the global market. Financial firms that used to be powerhouses had the Federal Reserve bail them out (Weinberg 2013). During the recession, the unemployment rate rose to 10% and home prices dropped 30% (Rich 2013). Starting in 2011, public employees and the general public began to revolt and Occupy Wall Street was established (Yates 2013). The movement initially began in Zuccotti Park in downtown Manhattan during September 2011. The injustices being protested have been income inequality, mortgages, and student loan forgiveness. Unfortunately, the effects of the Great Recession can still be seen today in the working class, who are debt-ridden and struggling in the work force.

The purpose of this slogan is to shed light on the income inequality between the most affluent percentage of the population and the remainder of the population. The slogan attempts to disband the notion that everyone is taken care of when the wealthiest in society are taken care of financially. There are numerous facts that augment the platform for this movement and the unfairness they are protesting. For example, the wealthiest 74 Americans earned as much income as the 19 million lowest paid Americans combined. Additionally, the wealthiest 1% of the population earned 24% of the total United States income (We Are The 99 Percent). The slogan encapsulates these statistics that point to inequality. This slogan is also “consciousness-raising” of the injustices that had been occurring for decades. Consciousness-raising means there is an increase in knowledge and awareness of political and social issues (Consciousness-raising). The identities articulated are the Americans who feel their income is not sufficient to live a decent life. It also provided the protestors a common phrase to unite under, since financial devastation was and still is the reality of many American families and individuals.

The creators’ purpose of this slogan was to expose the policies that solely benefit the wealthiest citizens and defend those being taken advantage of by politicians and corporations. Ethos was utilized in this slogan by appealing to the authority of everyone’s common experience of being taken advantage of by the 1%. This movement exposes Wall Street and corporations by exhibiting their corruption and contribution to the immense income inequality. However, attempting to actually end this corruption is a laborious effort. The slogan appeals to the common identity of the 99% and assists the protestors in their endeavor to change the system that favors the 1%.

The slogan employs logos by exhibiting the fact that the wealthiest Americans are more affluent than the rest of the population. There is corruption and inequality that does not allow the wealth to be distributed in a fair and just manner. Implicit logic can be extracted from the slogan, which follows the thinking that 99% of people is a large majority of the U.S. population. If there are so many people, why does this group not have more control? Instead, the control is in the hands of corporations and the wealthiest Americans, hence the motivation behind this slogan. Because of this disparity, those on the poorer end are more susceptible to dire consequences, including a lower life expectancy, lack of education, and debt, among other factors (We Are The 99 Percent). The logic that low-income citizens have a more difficult time succeeding in life is how the slogan uses logos in order to legitimize the OWS movement. This allows people to identify as a member because of this general thought process.  

This slogan is intended to exacerbate feelings of anger and resentment towards the 1%, and this tactic is utilizing pathos. Logos and pathos are interrelated because these bitter feelings are channeled through logic. This logic is that the affluent are monopolizing the wealth in the country and creating a substantial discrepancy between the two groups. This fuels the motivation of the outspoken people behind this movement. Reading the signs and watching the protests aggravates these feelings of resentment because these acts put an actual face to the inequality we hear about. Seeing a student who cannot afford to pay their loans or a single mother living paycheck to paycheck humanizes this issue and creates the visceral reactions that are broadcasted for the country to observe.

The object, which is the “We are the 99%” slogan, was highly effective in achieving its purpose, which is to create a movement that no longer stands for the inequality that plagues this country. Wall Street and corporations have amassed an unimaginable amount of wealth at the expense of those who are not nearly as affluent. The rhetoric and word choice of this slogan allowed this succinct phrase to have much more meaning to it. “We” allows those who are affected by this inequality to unite under a common cause and protest those who are not in the 99% category. This movement was largely successful and became a national phenomenon that exposed income inequality in an unprecedented manner. The slogan was the catalyst that allowed people to discuss how wealth is accrued in this country and how society can work towards supporting the entire populace, rather than one small facet of it.

            Occupy Wall Street was a protest that began in New York City and from there, spread across the United States and world. The movement’s purpose resonated with enough people that it became a global phenomenon and demonstrations occurred in numerous countries. The protest successfully expanded beyond its initial starting point through its unifying slogan that expressed and counteracted the injustices the middle and poor classes had been experiencing for years. “We are the 99%” was the resounding phrase that summarized the purpose of the protest and who the group identified with. Even though Occupy Wall Street has dissipated somewhat, its impact is still present in the consciousness of American citizens.    

Works Cited

"Consciousness-raising." Cambridge Dictionary. Cambridge University Press. Web.

14 Sept. 2016.

Rich, Robert. "The Great Recession of 2007–09." Federal Reserve History. 22 Nov. 2013.

Web. 14 Sept. 2016.

We Are The 99 Percent. The True Patriot Network. Web. 14 Sept. 2016.

Weinberg, John. "Support for Specific Institutions." Federal Reserve History. 3 Dec. 2013.

Web. 14 Sept. 2016.

Yates, Michael D. “Occupy Wall Street and the Significance of Political Slogans.”

CounterPunch. 27 Feb. 2013. Web. 14 Sept. 2016.