Jesse Jackson rouses the Occupy crowd

At 70, Rev Jesse Jackson still knows instinctively how to whirl a crowd. Even an extremely cold crowd. Even an extremely cold and not very large crowd of a few hundred on the steps of St Paul’s Cathedral in London this afternoon.

Billed as the ‘Occupy Everything’ day – in truth nothing at all was occupied beyond the existing camp outside the cathedral. The 50 or so noisily marching around banking offices this morning, barely augmented much this afternoon to hear The Reverend run through a vast gamut of social injustice from poverty and racism to – yes – the banks, as the reason “why we occupy”.

“You represent Jesus” he told them, “outside the temple”. And they cheered.

“The people left you,” he said, throwing his notes to the ground, “the banks got bailed out.” And more cheers rang out and more bemused stares for the passing tourists.

And there was more in the Jackson vintage, enjoining his flock to repeat each phrase after him which they duly did:

“Occupy is a spirit worldwide. Its time has come,” he concluded having ranged through the iniquities of sub-prime mortgage foreclosure to telling the British audience that over three hundred people have died in police custody in this country in the past decade and nobody has been prosecuted. All of it designed to work up a sense of injustice and wrongdoing from the rich and powerful that scarcely needed stoking in this audience.

In truth, again, it was a highly civilised affair. Gentle almost and Jesse Jackson keen to ram home the message of non-violent activism at all costs. Judging by the conduct of today’s actions that message has been well-learned.

With that, he was off and so were some of the activists, for more action – presumably peaceful – on the streets of Piccadilly.

Follow Alex on Twitter: @alextomo