Rage Against The Machine -- Southern Style

While images of unrest and violence among anti-riot police and protesters in Oakland, Calif., and arrests in Atlanta have grabbed headlines this week, the scene surrounding is downright bucolic in comparison.

Granted, Columbia is hardly a hotbed of radicalism, either on the right or the left. And it could hardly be confused with Oakland, Atlanta, or any number of other cities nationwide that are holding similar -- and much larger -- occupations to protest the corporatism that protesters allege has stripped political and economic power from average citizens.

Still, it might be cities such as Columbia that prove illustrative of how to handle and sustain a form of protest not seen since the Great Depression, when legions of unemployed men, the homeless and veterans erected tent cities and shanty towns known as "Hoovervilles."

Many protesters tell Patch they have managed to create what is, for the most part, a respectful and cooperative relationship with local law enforcement, not to mention the city, residents, and the authorities who oversee the State House grounds, where Occupy Columbia holds court.

"The cops have been nothing but kind," noted a protester who only gave his name as "Brandon," who along with a couple of other protesters spoke with Lexington Patch late one night and into the wee hours of the morning earlier this week as their fellow protesters slept around them. 

A continual police presence persists at the State House grounds day and night, but according to fellow protester Will Urquhart of Columbia, "the police aren't here to watch out and keep an eye on us so much as they are here to actually protect us. That's the how I see it." 

So far, there have been no arrests. And, unlike some larger cities, there are no apparent moves afoot to evict protesters and overnight campers, who are being allowed to occupy the grounds without a permit. 

"We have a very positive relationship with them," Urquhart said of the police. "When it rained, for example, they let us all go up to the top of the capitol steps there to spend the night [under the portico]. They didn't have to do that for us, but they did it anyway. And we all really appreciated it."

The group has rules (absolutely no alcohol or drugs, for example) and it attempts to self-police itself as well. According to Urquhart, protesters meet each morning to coordinate their day and confer with law enforcement about their plans. 

This "General Assembly" meeting, as it is called, also meets again each evening. While the Columbia Free Times reported this week that there have been a few rough spots, for the most part things have run very smoothly, protesters said.

"We are not only non-violent, we want to go beyond non-violence," stressed protester Kyle Lacio of West Columbia. 

"They (law enforcement) constantly say to us 'you have a right to a redress of grievances'" Lacio said. "The police aren't the ones to worry about; it's the ones above them," he said of the state's lawmakers, who won't return to the State House until the General Assembly reconvenes on Jan. 10. "They're not going to get sick of us until they are back in session."

Occupy Columbia has expressed its outrage and solidarity with Occupy Oakland, but instead has chosen to express it in slogans, signs, and  through awareness on social media such as Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, and an official blog.

The Occupy Columbia crowd is no doubt serious and spirited and sometimes blunt in their message, but creating a civil disturbance and making a spectacle is not part of the plan, protesters said. In some instances, the group can be downright genteel. 

Attending a recent press conference Monday inside the capitol, held by conservative GOP presidential candidate and Texas Gov. Rick Perry, protesters uttered nary a word. Instead, whenever the group wanted to show their disagreement with Perry, who was in the state touting his proposed tax and economic plan, the group displayed "spirit fingers," with disagreement shown by raising their hands and holding their fingers down and wiggling them.

Serious unrest has been the exception rather than the rule for the lion's share of Occupy protests around the country, and Occupy Columbia is no different. With the exception of a few hecklers and counter-protesters here and there, and the occasional rude, late-night drunk, Occupy Columbia members have been able to maintain a mellow, if serious, vibe. 

"We're taking non-violence to a very extreme definition of it," said Lacio. "I've been in protests where you protest in the middle of street. We're not doing that. This group has just decided not to go along with it. We even follow traffic signs. … We even decided that yelling was too much violence, like when counter-protesters come up, or something like that. We've actually been able to talk to them."

"The overall message is, we care about people," Lacio summed up. "It's a message  of love."