Occupy Wall Street Offers Gen Y Lessons

November 2, 2011 by Tamara Bell

[HTML1] Over the past year or so, we’ve witnessed riots in countries across the world. And today, ongoing demonstrations in our country are making headlines around the globe. But what’s the main reason behind all this unrest?

Solomon Polachek, a preeminent scholar in labor economics and conflict resolution at Binghamton University, joins Keeping Up with Gen Y to explain how the Occupy Wall Street protests compare and contrast to previous movements in the United States as well as more recently in other countries. He also points out lessons Gen Y can learn from the demonstrations as they face high unemployment and job scarcity in a tight economic market.

More about Solomon Polacheck
Solomon Polachek is a preeminent scholar in labor economics and conflict resolution at Binghamton University.

Dr. Polachek joined Binghamton University in 1983. He holds appointments in the Economics and Political Science Departments, and from 1996 to 2000 he served as Dean of the Arts and Sciences College. In 2005 he received the State University of New York Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching.

With a doctorate from Columbia University, Dr. Polachek has had post-doctoral fellowships at the University of Chicago, Stanford, and Princeton. He is coauthor of the book, The Economics of Earnings, and has published more than 100 articles and book chapters. He also is editor of Research in Labor Economics, on the editorial boards of a number of academic journals, and a Research Fellow at the Institute for the Study of Labor in Bonn.

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About Tamara Bell

Tamara Bell is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Y Gen Out Loud, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that provides a platform for Generation Yto discuss national politics and public policy issues.

Tamara began her journalism career as a staff reporter for the Dallas Times Herald. A few years later, she moved to York, Pa., as a political reporter for the York Dispatch, covering local, state, and national government as well as writing investigative stories for the mid-sized daily newspaper.

A Texas girl at heart, Tamara returned to Dallas a year later to work as press relations director for the re-election campaign of U.S. Rep. John Bryant. The next year, she moved to Austin and the Texas Legislature, where she stayed for 15 years. While at the Legislature, Tamara worked for Democratic House members as Chief-of-Staff and Press Secretary, and as a Senior Policy Analyst for the Senate State Affairs Committee chaired by a Republicansenator.

In 1996, Tamara became co-owner of a political newsletter covering state issues and elections. As Editor-in-Chief, Tamara helped shape the weekly publication into a must-read for state officials, legislative aides, and lobbyists. More recently, Tamara wrote a regular column analyzing coverage by the Texas Capitol Press Corps for an online political publication. She also works as a lecturer in the Advertising Department at The University of Texasat Austin.

Tamara has also been a judge for the 2010 Bright Ideas Award given by the Texas Daily Newspaper Association, served as a panelist at the Society of Professional Journalists 2010 Region 8 Conference where the theme was How to Save Journalism, and has been a guest lecture for the Advertising Department’s Internship course, speaking about the jobs outlook for graduating seniors.

Tamara earned her M.A. and Ph.D. in Journalism from The University of Texas at Austin, and her B.A. in Journalism from Texas A&M University. She resides in Austin with her son, Jackson.

Tamara Bell is also the Host of Keeping Up with Gen Y on WomensRadio. Keeping Up with Gen Y offers discussions, interviews, and commentary about important issues of the day from the perspective of Generation Y (18-to 30-years-old). Aimed at all generations interested in learning about and inspiring young people, this show features professionals, experts, researchers, and members of Gen Y who share insights and experiences about the topics on the minds of today’s young adults.