Occupy Wall Street Movement: Judge Orders Protesters Back to Zuccotti Park
New York Supreme Court Judge Lucy Billings issued a court order to allow the Occupy Wall Street protesters back in Zuccotti Park after police preformed a midnight raid and cleared all occupants.
Beginning just after 1 a.m., police in riot gear forcibly evicted protesters who were caught off guard.
The move comes after calls of concern from residents and business owners began to make their way to Mayor Bloomberg’s ear. The calls were citing numerous cases of unsanitary conditions and an overall degradation of residents’ quality of living.
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Police handed out flyers when they entered the park to kick out protesters. "You are required to immediately remove all property, including tents, sleeping bags and tarps, from Zuccotti Park. That means you must remove the property now,” read the note.
As police began to clear protesters, some took to barricading themselves in the center of the park. While others began shouting and chanting: "Whose park? Our park" and "You don't have to do this."
The occupy movement began on Sept. 17. Since then, the movement has spread across America and even made its way to some cities in Europe.
City officials and protesters have continually butted heads about keeping the park accessible to everyone. There were also safety and health concerns after reports of several rapes occurring within Zuccotti Park. Human waste was another major concern with residents claiming the protesters are using the corners and sides of buildings as a bathroom.
Some local businesses are also angry over some protesters depositing fecal matter into their garbage cans - health code violation that business owners are responsible for.
Mayor Bloomberg said he was not infringing on anyone’s first amendment rights but that if protesters wanted to stay they "must follow the park rules if they wished to continue to use it to protest."
“Protesters -- and the general public -- are welcome there to exercise their First Amendment rights, and otherwise enjoy the park, but will not be allowed to use tents, sleeping bags or tarps and, going forward, must follow all park rules," said Bloomberg.
Jeremy Baratta, a 32-year-old Army veteran and protestor, responded to the raid: "You're going to have to deal with us. We're not going to show up for an hour and then leave. They're going to have to acknowledge us."
