Dr Giles Jackson an American based academic and long time supporter of the anti capitalist movements worldwide has come up with a novel way of uniting those who support this cause under a tartan banner. He has registered a tartan called ‘Liberty Square’ which he hopes those who support the cause will wear. The tartan has this gold lines which he says reflect the uneven distribution of wealth. The tartan is one of a series that his ‘Liberation Kilt Company’ have registered that support global causes such as climate change, water aid, and political freedom of expression.
Dr Jackson, an associate professor at Shenandoah University in Virginia was born in the UK and has Scottish roots, he was inspired to design a tartan for the movement after wearing a kilt to a protest in 2008. He said: “I’m tapping into a long and glorious tradition. Long before tartan became the garb of royal subjects it was a badge of dissent.” His first design was a tartan for the climate change movement but from there it expanded into many other causes. A percentage of the profits from the sale of products produced will go towards helping the relevant causes.
The notes on the Liberty Square tartan on the Public Register of Tartan’s website reads:
Liberty Square (fictitious name) symbolises the golden rule of capitalism: ‘Those with the Gold make the Rules’. In a throwback to the gilded age, the spoils increasingly go to a protected class of global profiteers (represented by the gold stripes), while the ordinary citizen (centre) is gradually stripped of their freedoms, money and dignity. In the US, real wages for average workers are slightly below their 1970 level, whereas the top 0.1 per cent has increased its share nearly fourfold, with the 400 richest people now having assets equal to the poorest 140 million. Many democracies are becoming virtual plutocracies designed to prolong, protect and intensify the wealth and influence of those who already have wealth and influence, sapping entire nations of their vitality. This tartan honours the Occupy protesters around the world who have recognised the danger and stepped up to demand transparency, reform and a return to democratic values.
The occupy movement has divided opinions and its foray into tartan is no exception. Many online discussions have become heated with some in support of the idea but just as many condemning it. We would love to hear your opinions on this.
The “occupy group mentality” is toxic. They are the bain of capitalism and free enterprise systems which drive all economies. These people want to play, smoke pot, indulge pleasures of the flesh while they expect those work work to hand over their earnings to them. What blarny this is!!!
These people need to get off their lazy butts, bathe, attend to their personal hygiene, and go LOOK FOR JOBS! There are jobs all over the United States for those who WILL WORK. It may not be your choice of an occupation, but few of we have the luxury of owning a job we “love to go to every day”…this is why it is called work.
There is great sense of accomplishment and self pride in having earned a day’s pay for an honest day’s work, in paying for your own groceries and a roof over your head that you actually earned. Stop looking for a hand out for every necessity of life.
Please do not shame tartan of any clan or nation by using it support such a selfish, lazy mentality.
Proud America,
Cindi
Cindi- I couldn’t agree more with your post. This “movement” is just about a group of people that want a reason to protest, think it is cool to “Occupy” something, and have a serious sense of entitlement. Just follow the money-trail to learn about real antagonists of this mess: Unions, ACORN, George Soros ($$$$), Elizabeth Warren ($$$$), and Hollywood celebrities (most are the very 1% that this movement is supposed to detest). The biggest group of hypocrites and frauds you will ever find.
If you are in Europe, please don’t believe what the media is telling you about these protests. This is bogus and being funded to create a distraction for the upcoming election. Many of the idiots don’t even know what they are protesting. No, this is quite different than the Tea Party movement. Those rallies have no violence, leave no trash, and don’t want anything for free. Occupy Movement is riddled with such lovely scenes of violence, trash, rape, drugs, and people wanting more “freebies” from the taxpayer.
I agree with Cindi, the occupy movement are a lazy bunch of layabouts and I do not think we should be tarnishing the rest of us hardworking Scots with any support at all.
Did you know that in a recent survey around 85% of those taking part in the occupy protests in the USA were either employed or in full time education and doing this in their own time, compare this with a similar survey of Tea Party supporters where only 56% give their status as ’employed’
From what I understand the movement is against corporate greed but not against corporations. Many large companies run on ethical lines have supported the movement. The issue has been the large financial institutions who have brought the USA into recession while still payin themselves record bonuses.
No one in the occupy movement is against honest people doing an honest days work for honest pay, that’s what many of them do themselves despite what the media would like to tell you. 🙂
John you are so wrong, what planet are you from? Did you know the the SEIU has paid many of these occupy people $50/hour to demonstrate? Capitalism has built the USA, the Declaration of Independance is based on the Scottish Demands for independance, given to the English, I believe in the 1300’s. If this group is against Capitalism I am so out of here.
You see this is where it all falls apart and people like you demonstrate your off the radar ignorance. If you actually listen to the arguments rather than having Fox News summarise it for you the you might understand that the bigger picture is not an attack on capitalism but an attack on corporations who misuse and abuse their position to exploit others.
Capitalism didn’t build America. Enterprise imagination and had work did. The banks didn’t make America great it was the pioneers of industry
If we left it to you lo we would still have Victorian school kids cleaning chimneys aft all there’s an honest days work fro you.
I would like to comment that really what built America is Freedom. To work and do what was the right thing- care for your families, build a skill or trade, worship God and then pass on that lifestyle to future generations. It is the Veteran who gave us in America the Freedom we have. Granted, in all nations, there are those who take advantaged of the poorer classes. Yet to be against capitalism is foolish. Should we have the government dictate to us what job we should have and how much money we should make, how to spend it, etc? Government is the real problem with nations. Not all rich people are criminals, and not all poor people are victims. In America, we have generations of people who have been on the government handout and don’t want to work. If I want to start a business to support my family, does that make me an evil capitalist? Think about what you support!!!
I run a business with a 6 figure turnover but its run on ethical principles. Staff are treated fairly and paid an honest wage. We have to pay our dues to HMRC (NRS) meanwhile huge companies like Vodaphone screw the system and get away without paying millions in taxes because they can pay for expensive lawyers who can find tax loopholes, use offshore funds and cheat the government and that means cheat you!
labelling the occupy movement as ‘anti capitalist’ is convenient but wrong, anyone within the movement that is saying this clearly doesn’t understand the issues. If you look at the economies of countries like France and Germany you could easily call them ‘anti capitalist’ since there is a degree of collectivism through workers co-determination. Even Japan which has a system of interlocking shareholding to protect companies from hostile takeovers would be seen to show traits that were fundamentally against the ideals of ‘capitalism’
What in the world do you think corporations do? Fox New? What has this to do with this? I have personally witnessed these people, mostly students, well off looking, afraid to go out on their own.
John so are so RIGHT. I wonder where some of the rest of you are getting your “information” from. As for the glorification of capitalism, wake up, take a good look around, it is really working? Perhaps some of you think it is! John you are in a minority here but that doesn’t make you wrong, they will catch up eventually. I am “so out of here”
Must also ad this bloody, false, stupid tartan should be burned!
This is what we do in America. Complain about people making money, then make a product to cash in and make money. Makes sense right?
Occupy Tartan? YUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
What next: The official anarchist tartan? The registered libertarian tartan? The official pro-life tartan? And the registered Freedom to Bear Arms tartan?
YUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Well there has been a Royal Bank of Scotland tartan for years. That would be the same RBS who almost single handedly caused financial collapse in the UK and are now being bailed out by the tax payer while still screwing them on interest charges and paying 6 figure bonuses to its directors, but that’s alright isn’t it?
‘Travesty in plaid’? Of course. But look at some recent registrations from the Scottish Tartans Registry:
Punky Princess
HĂ©ritage SĂ©quane
Rikaco Holiday
Tahrir (Liberation)
Neumann GPS (That’s German Pipe Smokers!)
Brian Boru 2014
Nike Golf (they have two)
Dinarzh: Fortress of the Bear
Iroquois Falls Centenary
and hundreds more. Tartan is no longer only a traditional fabric; it’s a fashion item, a branding tool, and in many cases a personal plaything.
I don’t blame the Registry: their purpose is to avoid duplication. But anyone – absolutely anyone – can use tartan for whatever they like.