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Wall Street Protesters Join With Labor Groups, Thousands March
Protesters have been camped out since Sept. 17.
By Deepti Hajela and Verena Dobnik
| Wednesday, Oct 5, 2011 | Updated 6:00 PM EDT
Thousands March in Wall Street Rally
http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local...131144823.html
An aerial view of the Wednesday rally by the Occupy Wall Street protesters and labor groups.
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Unions gave a high-profile boost to the long-running protest against Wall Street and economic inequality Wednesday, with their members joining thousands of protesters in a Lower Manhattan march. Across the country, students at several colleges walked out of classes in solidarity.
Thousands gathered at Foley Square, and from there they marched to Zuccotti Park, the protesters' unofficial headquarters.
Sterling W. Roberson, vice president for the United Federation of Teachers, said union members shared the same ideals as activists who have been camped out in sleeping bags for more than two weeks.
"The middle class is taking the burden but the wealthiest of our state and country are not," he said.
Thousands of protesters packed Foley Square, standing behind police barricades in front of the courthouse buildings. Some wore union T-shirts, others were in business attire, and many left work early to be there.
People in the crowd were carrying red-white-and-blue signs bearing a giant star-graced A — representing the motto "Rebuild America." Other signs bore slogans including "Tax Wall Street" and "Make Jobs Not Cuts."
Some union members came from other states.
Karen Higgins, a co-president of National Nurses United, came down with a group of colleagues from Boston. She said they had seen patients who skipped important medical tests because they couldn't afford them.
"Tax Wall Street," she said. "Those who make all the money need to start paying their fair share."
Roxanne Pauline, a coordinator for the Northeastern Pennsylvania Area Labor Federation, said some of her union's members plan to stay in Zuccotti Park over the weekend.
"They'll teach the younger people what unions are — that they're not thugs or mobsters, but working people," she said.
The Occupy Wall Street protests started Sept. 17 with a few dozen demonstrators who tried to pitch tents in front of the New York Stock Exchange. Since then, hundreds have set up camp nearby in Zuccotti Park and have become increasingly organized, lining up medical aid and legal help and printing their own newspaper.
The protesters have varied causes but have reserved most of their criticism for Wall Street. They've spoken out about unemployment and economic inequality, saying "we are the 99 percent" — in contrast to the wealthiest 1 percent of Americans.
Hundreds of college students at New York's sprawling public university system walked out of classes Wednesday afternoon, some in a show of solidarity for the Wall Street movement but many more concerned with worries closer to home. Protests were scheduled at State University of New York campuses including Albany, Buffalo, Binghamton, New Paltz and Purchase.
Danielle Kingsbury, a 21-year-old senior from New Paltz, said she walked out of an American literature class to show support for some of her professors who she said have had their workloads increased because of budget cuts.
"The state of education in our country is ridiculous," said Kingsbury, who plans to teach. "The state doesn't care about it and we need to fight back about that."
No one needs a permit to protest in New York City, where picket lines and marches go on nearly every day. But a permit allows demonstrators to do things that would normally be illegal — like filling an entire street.
About 700 members of the Wall Street group were arrested and given disorderly conduct summonses for spilling onto the road at the Brooklyn Bridge on Saturday despite warnings from police.
MoveOn.org is planning a "virtual march" on its website by encouraging people to post photos of themselves with the caption: "I'm the 99 percent." The group's executive director, Justin Ruben, called the protesters "brave young people" who have successfully inspired others to join them.
"From our perspective, we're protesting kind of the greed that led to the collapse of our economy," Ruben said. "The fact that these banks aren't paying their fair share."
Copyright Associated Press / NBC New York
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