Occupy Zuccotti Park

Cities face Occupy movement's 'mass day'

By the CNN Wire Staff

updated 10:24 AM EST, Thu November 17, 2011


Are you there? Send photos to Open Story.

New York (CNN) -- Protesters in New York launched what they called an effort to "shut down Wall Street" Thursday morning at the beginning of a nationwide day of what could be the Occupy movement's largest protests yet.

From New York to Los Angeles, organizers were calling for a "mass day of action" to mark two months since the movement began.

A heavy police presence was in place as protesters kicked off the effort with the early morning demonstration against Wall Street.

CNN personnel could see about a dozen people arrested, including a retired Philadelphia police captain, Ray Lewis, who had joined with the Occupy Wall Street protesters. CNN saw him arrested and as he stood with other protesters in the middle of a street near Wall Street on Thursday morning.

On its Twitter Feed, Occupy Wall Street reported the arrest and added the hashtag "#shame."

Earlier, on CNN's "American Morning," Howard Wolfson, a New York City deputy mayor, vowed, "We'll make sure, if people want to peacefully protest, they have the right to." But, he added, "if people break the law, we'll have to deal with that."

"If they attempt to enter a building they're not allowed in, that's breaking the law. If they want to express their concerns about Wall Street, that's totally fine," Wolfson said.

"It could be a very fluid situation," he said, noting that "police on the ground are very well trained to deal with these situations."

Occupy Wall Street, on its website, accused police of brutality in at least one location Thursday morning.

Police had no immediate response.

On Twitter, Occupy Wall Street wrote, "Some bankers are holding signs that say, 'get a job.' Unemployment is at 10% and they're smug in suits."

Laying out the thinking behind Thursday's plan, the group wrote, "Enough of this economy that exploits and divides us. It's time we put an end to Wall Street's reign of terror and begin building an economy that works for all."

Other events planned for Thursday in New York include "occupy the subways," a plan to gather at 16 hubs, and "take the square," meaning Foley Square, across from City Hall.

Organizers also plan a march across the Brooklyn Bridge.

Across the country, cities were bracing for angry demonstrations.

A website listing events being organized nationwide, occupytogether.org, called for "mass non-violent direct action" Thursday.

Among the events listed is "occupy colleges," when students will gather at their school to protest rising costs and "diminishing quality."

In Portland, Oregon, plans include "occupy banks." "Let's shut them down!" the organizing website n17pdx.org says.

And in Los Angeles, organizers called for a protest downtown, shutting down an intersection.

Events are also planned in Boston, Minneapolis, and other cities.

Occupy roundup: Movement marks 2 months

While organizers stress that the plans are non-violent, the "mass day" comes after a demonstrator in New York was arrested for allegedly making violent threats.

Nkrumah Tinsley, 29, also was accused of "aggravated harassment" on Wednesday evening in Zuccotti Park, where the movement was based, New York City police said.

Tinsley is seen in a YouTube video making threats toward a department store. "In a few days, you're going to see what a Molotov cocktail can do to Macy's," he said.

In another part of the video, Tinsley threatens to burn New York City to the ground on Thursday.

Wednesday's arrest is Tinsley's second in as many months. He was arrested on October 26 for assaulting a police officer.

About 200 Occupy Wall Street demonstrators were arrested Wednesday, police said.

While the city has come under fire from protesters and other critics for arrests and removing protesters from Zuccotti Park, Wolfson insisted that "we had to act" to stop illegal activity, such as drug use, and to eliminate fire hazards.

"This is a place where we honor the First Amendment," Wolfson said Thursday.

CNN's Josh Levs, Mary Snow, and Brian Vitagliano contributed to this report.

---

New York's Zuccotti Park is nearly empty at dawn on Wednesday.