Washington, DC
November 17, 2011

Today, mayors and police chiefs across our nation are once again having to face Americans who are protesting against decisions made in Washington (DC) and the board rooms of corporations.

This movement confronts the mayors and our police forces. The national media covers the “clash” between the citizens and the mayors and chiefs without investigating why the demonstrations are happening.

In the ‘60s and ‘70s, the reasons and goals of the civil rights movement and demonstrations that are forever etched in our political culture were very clear. And the huge anti-war demonstrations, with one to two hundred thousand a weekend, were all about ending the Vietnam War.

Today’s Occupy Wall Street movement is different in that we have tents and urban encampments and no clear leader and no specific goal. It is a shotgun approach where many concerns are scattered; there’s no clear message and no leader like Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. or Sam Brown, the national peace activist of the time.

But we all know all of the above doesn’t really matter if you are a mayor or police chief. They are confronted by people in their cities showing up by the hundreds to gather and live in tents in places that are not set up for camping, sleeping, eating, and using toilet facilities.

It is on the mayors’ shoulders to provide the peace, public safety, and ensure there is no danger to the health of citizens.

Former Denver Mayor Wellington Webb told the German Parliament in 2002, “If you don’t have a safe city, you don’t have a city.”

And another mayor of the 1960s, Dick Lee of New Haven, said that a mayor’s job is to use care and conviction as you wipe away the tears of many and as you have to put people in jail.

Today’s era of mayors in 2011 who have served 86 percent of the American people going through the worst economic times since the Great Depression should be commended, because even before the occupy movement started, just one month ago, I said that it is the mayors who are holding our country together. People are frightened, scared, afraid, concerned and pissed off about the appearance of a national government that continues to do nothing about the tough times so many are experiencing now.

When things happen in cities, mayors, since 1932, have had to talk and learn from each other. So it is in our political culture that we have been having regular phone calls with mayors. These are round robin discussions and we are finding that the occupy movement is not the same across the nation. They are different and each mayor and police chief is being forced to make decisions that are very local.

These calls are being chaired by Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter, who serves as our Vice President and Chair of our Mayors and Police Chiefs Task Force. These calls will continue; for information on times and dates please contact Laura Waxman at lwaxman@usmayors.org.

On behalf of the Officers and staff of The United States Conference of Mayors, we wish you a wonderful Thanksgiving with family and friends.

This is the time we are to be thankful. I’m thankful for all of you – the mayors – as you give so much for all who live in our cities. No doubt these are challenging times and that’s why your membership and participation mean so much at this time. Together, mayors through The United States Conference of Mayors will continue to meet challenges together. Again, thank you all. Happy Thanksgiving 2011.