

About 400 arrested in Wall Street protest - ahalan
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/10/02/us-wallstreet-protests-idUSTRE7900BL20111002

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maratd
Protesting on public land is perfectly fine. Doing it on private land, with
the owner's permission, is hunkey-dory too. I am completely against requiring
a permit to do it. You should be able to speak your mind without government
interference.

However, when you walk into oncoming lanes of traffic, you are breaking a
shitload of laws, endangering yourself AND the people in the vehicles,
impeding the flow of traffic (which might include emergency vehicles), and of
course, your behavior would be the definition of disorderly conduct. Your ass
deserves to be thrown in jail.

Also, why is this happening on Saturday? All the financial institutions are
closed for the weekend. Sounds to me like a bunch of hipsters from Brooklyn
getting hammered and going out to have some fun.

~~~
blendergasket
The twitter says they were led away from the main group (likely by people who
wanted them arrested) and onto the bridge, which was cordoned off beforehand,
where they could be boxed in and justifiably (within the situation that the
authorities created) arrested, but I don't really know because sadly, I wasn't
there.

My guess is that this is happening on Saturday because there's a hardcore
group who stays in the square and on the weekends, when the numbers swell with
working people who feel solidarity with the cause, they march.

------
melvinng
How dare the poor people complain! The wealthy must be protected at all costs!

~~~
tzs
From the article:

    
    
        The arrests took place when a large group of
        marchers, participating in a second week of
        protests by the Occupy Wall Street movement, broke
        off from others on the bridge's pedestrian walkway
        and headed across the Brooklyn-bound lanes.
    
        "More than 500 were arrested on the Brooklyn
        Bridge late this afternoon after multiple warnings
        by police were given to protesters to stay on the
        pedestrian walkway," a police spokesman said.
    
        "Some complied and took the walkway without being
        arrested. Others locked arms and proceeded on the
        Brooklyn-bound vehicular roadway and were
        arrested," he added
    

How exactly does this have anything to do with stopping poor people from
complaining or protecting the wealthy?

~~~
sbov
Not sure how true it is, but the full story as claimed by many of the
commenters:

> This article is misleading. It makes the protesters seem like they caused
> the incident by blocking traffic. The group was led onto the bridge where
> police kettled them in and arrested them 1 by 1.

~~~
tzs
Based on the story at the New York Times it sounds like what happened is
something this:

1\. There was no problem as long as people stayed on the sidewalk.

2\. A small number of protestors left the sidewalk and took to the street,
chanting that they were going to take the bridge.

3\. Police told them to get out of the street or they would be arrested.

4\. At some point, the police were walking in the street, and the protestors
in the street were following them.

5\. People on the sidewalk farther back or not yet on the bridge saw that, and
_thought_ the the police were given the protestors an escort in the street and
that it was OK therefore to walk in the street.

These protestors really need to get better organized. When they decided to
head across the bridge, they should have made it clear that the plan was to
stay on the sidewalk. The leaders knew this, but apparently it was not
communicated to the masses.

~~~
chopsueyar
Link please?

~~~
tzs
[http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/10/01/police-
arrestin...](http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/10/01/police-arresting-
protesters-on-brooklyn-bridge/?hp)

