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— Cheris Hodges
MUSIC
iPod Shuffle: You must have an iPod and a playlist of protest music — you know, Public Enemy's "Fight the Power," John Lennon's "Imagine," Sam Cooke's "A Change Is Gonna Come," CCR's "Fortunate Son," anything by Rage Against the Machine or (since this all started on Wall Street) Pink Floyd's "Money." Just don't include anything too cool or underground like Minutemen or Immortal Technique. How's The Man gonna know you're protesting him if he hasn't heard your song on TV?
Lucky Five: These Charlotte funk-rockers have come up with the perfect Occupy-ready album title (see photo). If nothing else, carrying around a CD called La Resistance with the image of a firing squad on the cover will get you in with the Che Guevera T-shirt crowd.
Temperance League: Charlotte's Bruce Hazel and Co. wear their politics on their sleeves, tackling topics including war, the economy and unemployment. But the singer's greatest revolutionary talent is his ability to spit beer higher than any other rocker that ever existed.
Inspired By ...: In order to properly cash in on the Occupy movement, you must be indie and you cannot be a '90s mainstream "alternative" has-been. Therefore, Charlotte hip-hop group Eyes of the Elders' song "Occupy" (and its video including requisite news footage) is permitted, while that shitty pop song with the line "Come on and meet me down at Zuccotti Park," by Third Eye Blind, should be avoided at all costs.
Si Kahn: If you're going to have a revolution, you must have an old dude who plays an acoustic guitar and sings protest songs everyone can sing along to. Charlotte has just that dude. Problem is, Si Kahn is retired. Protest singers don't retire! Pete Seeger's 92, for Christ's sake! Someone needs to occupy Mr. Kahn's front yard and demand that he make a comeback.
— Jeff Hahne
MEET-UPS
Common Market: If you're planning a revolution, you must have a place to go meet your comrades and do your strategizing. With its literally hundreds of oddball knickknacks, most touting some kind of leftist propaganda (Obama breath mints, anyone?) — not to mention a killer selection of beer, wine and coffee — Common Market easily would be my No. 1 choice. Owner Blake Lewis even has a full-size poster of Vladimir Lenin on the door of his office. He calls it his Lenin closet.
Amélie's French Bakery: For starters, it has a French name, a French vibe and it's open 24/7. There's plenty of mismatched furniture and tables for computers and note-taking. The pastries are amazing and the coffee's not half bad. And the staff is so lackadaisical about serving customers, you'd think you were selling them something. Can't get much more anti-bourgeois than that.
Area 15: This funky building wedged into the edge-of-downtown neighborhood of Optimist Park (appropriate name, huh?) is like a commune of art spaces and small businesses. Members of Occupy Charlotte have been known to do their strategic planning here. As far as we know, no business owner at Area 15 is part of the 1 percent.
Philosopher's Stone: I'm not an alcohol drinker these days, but if I were, this would be the place I'd sit with my crew over a few cold ones and talk revolution. How can you not talk revolution at a watering hole with a jukebox full of meandering Dead songs and a name like Philosopher's Stone? OK, so the jukebox could stand a few more energetic tracks by the likes of the Clash, the Coup, Phil Ochs and Billy Bragg.
Starbucks: Ha! Just kidding. Corporate scum!
— Mark Kemp
RESTAURANTS
Carlos Café: Fidel Castro's 26th of July revolt in 1959 set a standard for last century's Latin American political revolutions. The culinary benefit, though, was the creation of Little Havanas with Cuban eateries in major metropolitan areas up and down the East Coast. Charlotte never had a large Cuban community, so if you're Occupying at the Old Court House Uptown, it might be hard to get down to Rock Hill for your revolutionary fill of Ironbeer (a soft drink), green or sweet plantains, Cuban sandwiches (see photo), and arroz con pollo a la chorrera. Maybe catch a ride with a comrade. (1998 Cherry Road, Rock Hill, S.C., 803-329-7171. www.carloscafe.com)
Wan Fu: The Chinese had a tumultuous two centuries filled with revolutionary ideas and battles. The Righteous Harmony Society Movement (aka The Boxers) was a group of disenfranchised people who responded to Western encroachment and religions with an uprising. During this time, imperial palaces became places of refuge for Westerners. Some of those palaces were called Wan Fu, which literally means "10,000 happiness." Charlotte's Wan Fu first opened its pagoda-style building in 1989 and has been running strong with a six-page menu since. (10719 Kettering Drive, 704-541-1688. www.mywanfu.com)
