Cincinnati Has Its Own Occupiers

Though we may be hundreds of miles away from Wall Street, Cincinnati is also being occupied by protestors. Since the Occupy Wall Street movement began on September 17, in Zuccotti Park in New York City, satellite protests have sprung up in almost all major cities in the United States, as well as in some cities in other countries, and Cincinnati is no exception.

The occupiers of Cincinnati have chosen Piatt Park, at the corner of Garfield Place and Vine Street, as their occupation site, and they camped out there for nearly two weeks until November 16 when police cleared out their camps and arrested 21 protestors. The occupiers claim they have a right to occupy Piatt Park at all hours since it is public property and cite their First Amendment free speech and freedom to assemble rights.

At the time of this writing, the protestors are not allowed to re-enter Piatt Park, and it is "closed until further notice," but the protestors plan to return as usual.

Though Occupy Cincinnati does not have as many participants as some of the bigger cities, attendance here has been steady, ranging from about 30 people to a couple hundred on days of bigger marches. Many of the protestors are University of Cincinnati students and faculty, but there are also protestors from every walk of life, much as in the other protests.

Two months after the protests started, even though temperatures in most parts of the country are now starting to drop, the movement does not seem to be running out of fuel.

As things seemed to be ramping up in New York City, Rev. Jesse Jackson gave two talks to the Cincinnati occupiers on November 15 and 16, energizing the movement, resulting in a loud night in the normally peaceful Piatt Park and over a dozen arrests.

The occupiers encourage anyone who is interested to come and join them for their demonstrations and to participate in their General Assembly, which meets every day at 6 p.m. at Piatt Park.

For more information visit their website, occupycincy.org.