Occupy Liberty Park 11-15-11

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After a long work day I headed down to the OWS General Assembly yesterday around 7pm at Liberty Park. I'd been following the displacement of the occupiers earlier that morning. I managed to catch the last half of the GA. The big message was the day of protest on the 17th. Initially there were roughly 1000 people but the crowd thinned out as the night went on. There appeared to be a fresh wave of energy throughout the park. The footlights that covered the parks floor had been turned back on. I hadn't noticed them on my previous visits. They gave the entire space a kind invigorating glow. The entire perimeter of the grounds is now surrounded by heavy metal guard rails and there is a strong presence of private security guards in yellow reflective vests. The new strictly enforced law is no sleeping bags, tents or sleeping in the park. After the GA, a smaller group of people went to march on the city courthouse to protest the polices treatment of some of the female occupiers that were recently arrested. At various points throughout the evening people brought plates of food, pizza and even cookies and sweets. By the time I left at about 11pm there were probably only a few hundred people there, keeping a sort of waking vigil. I saw legendary activist songwriter David Peel. I also saw my friends Mark and Cy. Mark said he was spending the night in the park and had brought a change of clothes. I was curious to see what would happen if people fell asleep. The act of clearing out the park seems to have brought a large wave of press coverage. The mild fall weather and beautiful golden leafed trees made the evening feel a bit like a fresh start to me. I'm looking forward to this Thursday's "Non Violent Day of Action." I urge people who are interested in supporting this movement to check it out. It appears to be a crucial time in it's evolution. http://occupywallst.org/action/november-17th/

To stay informed on about regular activities check out: http://www.occupywallst.org/

If you're interested in getting more specifically involved check out the NYC GA site here: http://www.nycga.net/

Here are some pics I snapped.