Hundreds of Occupy Wall Street protesters converged in lower Manhattan on September 17, 2012 to celebrate Occupy's one-year anniversary and continue protesting inequality and corporate greed. Nearly 150 protesters were arrested. (Video by Evan Puschak | msnbc.com)
Hundreds of protesters gathered in parks around New York City early Monday morning to celebrate the one-year anniversary of Occupy Wall Street.
Protesters, ranging from children to grandparents, met in four different "zones" surrounding the New York Stock Exchange to protest inequality and corporate greed. At Zuccotti Park, the original site of the Occupy camp, protesters met at 7 a.m. to discuss nonviolent action and resistance as many employees and executives began their work day.
"There is nothing negative about this," Sergio Uzurian, 26 from Buffalo, N.Y., said about the gathering. "This is for the people."
As the crowds gathered around lower Manhattan, groups of NYPD officers stationed themselves in front of banks and along the streets, and directed traffic and Wall St. employees around the protesters. Police set up barricades around Wall St. and the Stock Exchange, and only let people through who could show employee IDs.
Organizers handed out maps in the morning of the various meeting places, but despite the pre-planned actions for the day, the morning was chaotic. NYPD set up barricades to keep protesters from crossing certain streets, and people were often separated from their zone groups as they sought new ways to access Wall St.
Cops began arresting protesters just before 8 a.m. on Pine St., and arrests continued through the morning as protesters marched to Bowling Green park—the location of the iconic Charging Bull sculpture. The bull, which was under heavy police guard, has been off-limits to tourists since last year's Occupy protests.
Traci Lee | msnbc.com
Police officers block the Charging Bull sculpture at Bowling Green Park near Wall Street in New York City on September 17, 2012.
Many of the protesters participating in the Monday demonstrations have been a part of Occupy movements—from New York to Philadelphia to Hartford—since last fall. Daniel Valdes, 27, has been with Occupy since last year, and he believes the one-year anniversary events will re-energize the fight and bring attention to the dissatisfaction Americans feel about the government and politics.
"The political system shut us out," Valdes said. "It's a circus at this point."
Also among the protesters were new faces to Occupy. Nineteen-year-old Joseph Califano, an economics student at Sarah Lawrence College, arrived at Monday's Occupy protest (his first) with a sign that read, "Why develop empathy, when you could be making $350,000+ a year running a Ponzi scheme?"
Traci Lee | msnbc.com
Two Occupy protesters don Obama and Romney masks in New York City during the one-year anniversary protest on September 17, 2012.
"I hope income inequality becomes a part of the national conversation," Califano said.
By the afternoon, NYPD reported nearly 150 arrests. Along with an increased police presence, National Lawyers Guild representatives and a large number of journalists were also among those present throughout the protest.
Events are planned through Monday night, when protesters plan to re-occupy Zuccotti Park. The protest wraps up a weekend of anniversary celebrations, but many protesters believe Occupy will continue to grow moving forward.
"We have to keep going," Veterans for Peace's Crystal Zevon said. "I feel like I've lived my life, but I don't know that my grandsons will be able to live theirs if things don't change fast."
Leave a Comment:
How is the movement progressing? Haven't heard much about them lately. Last I remember, Ed, et al, found brilliance in their plan to move forward without a plan. When they refused to define what they were about. Great strategy- how's it working?
You are so right Rusty. They should have seen that Obama comes closer to their values and should have organized, picked a leader and given Obama some policy ideas. The movement was about inequality in our democracy but one has to work with Government to change things in any real way. Obama adopted their idea of the 1% and the 99% but a slogan does not change things without organization.
You're right. They are totally against the concept in capitalism where someone "wins" more than someone else. In fact, some may lose. They are in camp Obama on that front. He seems to be committed to letting the competition fall where it does, then demanding after the fact that the winner at the poker table hand over a fair number of chips to those that don't win as much.
QUOTE OF THE DAY:
Speech filled with angry rage to work up the Warriors before the insurrection starts:
"First of all le me say I’m not anti-Christian I don’t mind the sane Christians and Catholics, But those other Tony Perkins, Ralph Reed, Pastor Hagee, Rick Santorum, Jerry Boykin devils got to go…
I wanted to write this rant on the 1st year anniversary of Occupy:
You ever notice how the right wingers always get a free pass when it comes to law enforcement?
These fascist pig motherf**k’n police all over the nation spent the last year pepper spraying and arresting the Occupy crowd but these power mad puppets won’t arrest that scandalous right wing, fundamentalist Christian idiots who made that blasphemous movie about Mohammed?
Ok let me get this straight you Conservative CONTROL by AUTHORITY idiots… you’re trying to tell me that Concerned Citizens who demand for ethics, responsibility and accountability from a corrupt Ruling Class are worse than the jerk who caused insurrection all over the Middle East by those right wing fundamentalist Muslim idiots.
Rich Neo-Conservatives have spent the last 60 years playing those fanatic Middle Easterners for suckers. It ain’t no coincidence the Arab unrest is happening just before a major US Presidential election. The Evil Republicans got the whole Middle East working to beat President Obama right now.
You Hajjis got to learn a con is a CON… no matter in a ghetto back alley or an Ivory Tower, the trick is recognize IT and not get played for FOOLS!”
2012 by Charlie Stunats
As posted on jinnbad.blogspot.com
Another non consequential post topic given the state of the questions beginning finaly to be asked about whether or not the Obama administration had paid due attention to security concerns in the Middle East and Western Asia, prior to the 11th Anniversary of 9/11, and whether Obama's foreign policies in the Middle East and Western Asia are to blame for the situation raging there now! And that isn't to say anything about Obama's policy failures reference our "in the doldrums" economy, the persistently dreadfully high unemployment and underemployment rate, and the continued out of control deficit spending for social programs of this administration leading to the ever increasingly more dangerous national debt level.
This just shows how the rich are always are protected...People have the right to be protesting this unfair and unjust economic unfairness...No one is against being successful.No one begrudges being rich...It takes work no one is disputing it takes hard work.The rich have gotten rich it have gotten more breaks then the average person.No one wants so called socialism..which is a crock anyway...All people want is fairness....To stop letting people have tax havens off shore...ie..Mitt Romney and others.
All people want is basically to have a fair wage to support their family.A little help to send their children to college.As well as to pay their bills and own their own home.I do not think that is asking much.Healthcare also so when something happens they can be seen by a doctor.There is nothing wrong with it.It was the way it was always in this country.But now it seems that the politicians forgot about the middle class...They broke the spine of it and look what happened.
The rich need the middle class and when they broke it..They hurt themselves.Just pay your fair share of taxes.The economy is like a body...the head is the rich...the spine is the middle class and the feet are the working poor...When the spine got broken...Down went the head on top of the feet.The feet cannot support the head.It is that simple.The so called job creators are holding back money to invest in the economy..Which is nonsense..
This division that has taken over the nation is so sad to see..House divided cannot stand...Charity begins at home and that is the core value of our country.Romneys remarks caught on tape just shows his true color...He is not for people it comes down to the mighty dollar for him..He has no place to be the President.
One last note Remember our brave troops fighting and dying in this countries name.God watch over the military and keep them safe...Please do not let the politicians and the rich divide this great nation..We have had this before and We will get out of it again....
Bj, you should read your post. It's silly. Of course you begrudge the rich. Stop kidding yourself or us. Your writing drips of it.
What does it matter the only ones that are upset about Romney truthful statement are the 47% who get the free ride who are not going to vote for him to begin with. They are going to vote for Obama who is promising the continual free ride.
Who he needs to convince to vote for him are the 53% of the American public that are footing the bill for the other 47%
Wake up America if Obama gets reelected before 2016 is here there will be over 50% of America who will be on that free ride. the tax consumers will out number the tax payers. When you have more consuming the tax money then paying taxes guess what happens
Once the tax consumers become the majority in a country its gone. They will simply vote for who ever promises the free ride, paid for by somebody else. The tax producers see this, and go into hiding or leave realizing that everything they have or work for is subject to seizure by a government that simply takes their money, and gives it to someone else to buy their votes. Greece, Spain, we are next
I'll never forget the image burned into my mind of the woman celebrating Obama's election by telling the reporter interviewing her with broad smiles that she helped Obama, and now she won't have to worry about her credit card bills or her mortgage payments anymore. Or the woman being interviewed in the first week of his Presidency in Detroit who was hurrying to get in the long line forming outside of City Hall due to the rumor that they were handing out cash there, and when she was asked what did she think the source of the cash was, she answered "It's Obama money" "Obama money?", the interviewer asked, "and where does it come from?" It's just from him...its what we elected him for!" There are two of your 47% Obama voter base, folks.