Occupy LV vows publicity push as national poll shows most unaware of movement’s goals

By Joe Schoenmann

Monday, Nov. 21, 2011 | 2:23 p.m.

With a national poll showing a majority of Americans are oblivious to the "Occupy" movement, Las Vegas organizers say they intend to embark on a recruitment campaign to get out more information.

"At this point, our goal is to have an awareness and recruitment campaign and more of an education outreach so people understand what we are about," said Jennifer Reed, a member who is also a UNLV graduate student. "There's more buzz about (Occupy Las Vegas), but then questions about, well, what is this movement?"

A USA TODAY/Gallup Poll out today found 56 percent of the Americans neither supported nor opposed the movement and that about the same percentage said they didn't know enough to have an opinion about its goals.

Occupy Las Vegas' message currently focuses on eliminating big money in politics. Members have said that would include both union and corporate dollars. Part of that would be achieved, the Occupy Las Vegas website says, by eliminating the "personhood" status granted corporations and by re-establishing "equal time" so political candidates are given equal time on television for free during campaign season.

None of the Occupy Las Vegas goals, Reed said, is likely to come about quickly.

"This is a long-term thing," she added. "We hear from younger people and those not involved before that this has been going on for a few months, but what have we accomplished? But if you look at any social movement, it takes a long time. This is a long-term battle, a long-term challenge to get things to happen."