Good.
On Sun, Mar 18, 2012 at 10:08 AM, Tommy News <[email protected]> wrote: > Scores Arrested as the Police Clear Zuccotti Park > By COLIN MOYNIHAN > > > 1:09 a.m. | Updated Scores of Occupy Wall Street protesters were > arrested on Saturday night as police officers swept Zuccotti Park in > Lower Manhattan and closed it. > > Dozens of demonstrators sat down and locked arms as officers moved in > about 11:30 p.m. The protesters chanted “we are not afraid” as the > police began pulling people from the crowd, one by one, and leading > them out of the park in handcuffs. > > The operation occurred after hundreds of people had gathered in the > financial district to observe the founding of Occupy Wall Street six > months ago. Earlier, protesters had embarked upon a winding march, > after which police officers made initial arrests of about a dozen > people near the park. > > By 11:30 p.m., as police officers massed on Broadway, a commander > announced that the park was closed. Those inside shouted back that the > park was obliged through an agreement with the city to remain open. > The commander then announced that anyone who remained inside would be > arrested and charged with trespassing. > > After clearing the park, police officers and private security guards > began placing a ring of metal barricades on the park’s perimeter, as > those who had been arrested were placed inside a city bus. > > At one point, a woman who appeared to be suffering from seizures > flopped on the ground in handcuffs as bystanders shouted for the > police to remove the cuffs and provide medical attention. For several > minutes the woman lay on the ground as onlookers made increasingly > agonized demands until an ambulance arrived and the woman was placed > inside. > > By 12:20 a.m., a line of officers pushed against some of the remaining > protesters, forcing them south on Broadway, at times swinging batons > and shoving people to the ground. > > Kobi Skolnick, 30, said that officers pushed him in several directions > and that as he tried to walk away, he was struck from behind in the > neck. “One of the police ran and hit me with a baton,” he said. > > Earlier that afternoon, as protesters gathered under blue skies while > carrying banners and signs, the day was in some ways reminiscent of > the first time the Occupy protesters gathered in mid-September. Just > after 1 p.m., brandishing placards with messages like “Take back > government from corporations,” the crowd left Zuccotti Park headed > south on Broadway, chanting the now familiar slogan “We are the 99 > percent.” > > When the first protesters set foot in the financial district six > months ago, few people imagined what would follow, including a > two-month encampment in Lower Manhattan, similar camps in cities > across the country and critiques of corporate greed becoming part of > the national dialogue. > > The movement was mainly quiet during the winter, but organizers said > they were aiming for a springtime resurgence. > > “It’s just a reminder that we’re here,” Brendan Burke said, as the > crowd marched past the New York Stock Exchange. “It’s an opportunity > to remind Wall Street that we aren’t going anywhere.” > > In several respects, Saturday’s march was similar to the inaugural > one. The crowd was small but spirited and marched past the bronze > sculpture of a bull at Bowling Green, which had served as a mustering > spot for the first march. Marchers were accompanied by police officers > on foot and on scooters who at one point blocked access to Wall > Street, just as they did on Sept. 17. > > And, as they did that day, the marchers made sudden turns that > appeared to surprise the police and walked along Wall Street for at > least a brief time. > > At one point, several demonstrators stood on the steep steps of > Federal Hall and chanted “1-2-3-4, I declare class war.” > > Later, members of the group ignored orders from the police to remain > on sidewalks and flowed onto parts of Exchange Place and Beaver > Street. Later, on Broad Street, a deputy inspector turned to a > sergeant and said, “We got to start collaring some.” > > For the next 30 minutes or so, things remained calm as marchers stuck > to the sidewalks and entered Zuccotti Park. > > But then, just after 2 p.m., police officers began telling a large > group of protesters that they could not stand on the sidewalk on a > stretch of Liberty Street. Officers pushed the crowd until more than > 100 protesters on the sidewalk were pressed against a wall that > borders the park. > > Then the police began grabbing and arresting people, taking into > custody at least half a dozen. Officers surged into the crowd, > dragging protesters toward the street, as people yelled objections. > > “They were grabbing people randomly,” Zachary Kamel said, adding that > his girlfriend, Lauren DiGoia, had been arrested while dancing on the > sidewalk. > > One sergeant grabbed a woman wearing a green shirt by the bottom of > her throat and shoved her head against the hood of a car. A moment > later, another officer approached and forcefully pressed her head > against the car before placing her into the back of a police truck. > > Over the next few hours, protesters conducted meetings inside Zuccotti > Park and held a dance party fueled by a saxophone and a battery of > drums. Sporadic moments of tension also arose. > > At one point, the police arrested a handful of protesters on Cedar > Street near Trinity Place. A few moments later, near Cedar Street and > Broadway, a police captain pushed a man by the shoulders for almost a > block, then released him when a crowd loudly demanded to know whether > the man was under arrest. > > The man, Charlie Gonzalez, 31, said that the captain had told him he > was not permitted to stand on the sidewalk. > > About an hour later, the same captain pushed another man several > hundred feet east down Cedar Street, about a block from Zuccotti Park, > and briefly detained him. > > That man, Yoni Miller, 19, said he was counting officers standing in > rows near Broadway when the captain forced him to walk around a corner > onto Cedar Street, then asked him if he was a terrorist or was > planning any crimes. > > Paul Moore, 25, said that he was videotaping the encounter when the > captain asked him for identification and began pushing him away, > telling him he was not permitted to document what was happening. > > After nightfall, the number of people inside the park swelled to more than > 500. > > About 10 p.m., some of those in the park began a regimen of running > and dancing that they called “spring training,” which they said was > meant to prepare for coming demonstrations. > > At 10:30, protesters sprung up a green tarp, folded over a piece of > rope suspended from two trees near the center of Zuccotti Park. > Security and police officers looked on from the perimeter. > > More: > > http://p.nytimes.com/email/re?location=cdOHbQcFwieSwGnV/swc3pcO+JEZkG243empz0btCl3fhL9Sj+ybfQBKp500oW0MXvEnhqRPAPsLcncxVN6ruJIfRogi+WdDUs6P59TO4Vyge0UshVb4vCOB1nQZENetCAqaxVqYejzIwr4Sd91tuSV5bfqj7AWY/Pb8SgUE1MCZuc7zuVoSlYXtUlb+33yfNm0iwP2OQ6o=&campaign_id=61&instance_id=13750&segment_id=31060&user_id=306f04b20902c4fa5735282b605fa80b > > -- > Together, we can change the world, one mind at a time. > Have a great day, > Tommy > > > > -- > Together, we can change the world, one mind at a time. > Have a great day, > Tommy > > -- > Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. > For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum > > * Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/ > * It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls. > * Read the latest breaking news, and more. > -- Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum * Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/ * It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls. * Read the latest breaking news, and more.
