Occupy Wall Street

Demonstrators Pour Into New York's Financial District

September 17, 2011. Hundreds of peaceful activists are taking to the streets of New York’s Financial District today for what protestors have dubbed, “Occupy Wall Street.” According to participants, the action is being taken in effort to spark a mass movement against corporate dominance.

One of Occupy Wall Street’s organizers, Justin Wedes stated “More than having any specific demand, per se, I think the purpose of September 17th, for many of us who are helping to organize it and people who are coming out, is to begin a conversation, as citizens, as people affected by this financial system in collapse, as to how we’re going to fix it, as to what we’re going to do in order to make it work for us again.”

Several weeks ago when the event started to gain traction via online social networks and activist publication AdBusters.org, NYPD officials began preparations for what they believed could potentially become a mass turnout of up to 20,000 demonstrators.

The iconic “Charging Bull” statue that stands in Wall Street’s Bowling Green Park, was cordoned off by officials in effort to pre-empt potential vandalism.

In a press conference leading up to the event, NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg said “People have a right to protest, and if they want to protest, we’ll be happy to make sure they have locations to do it, as long as they do it where other people’s rights are respected, this is the place where people can speak their minds, and that’s what makes New York, New York.”

As a side note, it appears as though the controversial hacktivist group “Anonymous” is also taking part in the demonstrations. Though we don’t have clarification as to the extent of their official involvement, a recent video bearing their name was posted to youtube and other media outlets. The group’s trademark Guy Fawkes mask has also been seen on several of the protestors and promo material.

Police presence on Wall St has increased drastically over the the past several hours as the crowd continues to grow. Chants of “We the people, not we the banks!” can be heard from several blocks away.

And in other news, corporate Wall Street executives enjoyed their quiet weekend getaways in the Hamptons. Sorry guys, I just had to throw that in for good measure. We’ll keep you posted!

To learn more about the protest, go to: OccupyWallSt.org,  AdBusters.org or follow the live tweets at #occupywallstreet