UP students Occupy Portland

By noon on Thursday, Oct. 6, Waterfront Park in downtown Portland was unrecognizable as hoards of people, including several UP students, organized into a circle – chanting, photographing and holding signs. But most importantly, occupying.

Occupy Portland is part of a national nonviolent, nonpartisan movement whose participants say they represent the bottom 99 percent of America. It protests what it calls the greed and corruption of major corporations and the failure of government to address growing disparities in wealth and opportunity between the wealthiest Americans – "the top 1 percent" – and the rest of the citizens.

"I'm here to represent the 99 percent of the country who is being ignored and to provide support with my fellow citizens to fight greed," senior Kelsey Reavis, who attended Occupy Portland on Thursday, said.

UP students organized through social media, creating a Facebook group to relay information about the Oct. 6 Portland march and establish a carpool system. As of Wednesday night, the UP group had 27 members.

"This event has been a powerful display of people frustrated with government and corporation corruption," Reavis said. "We're here to be heard and we've been loud."

According to the Occupy Portland website, the protest is in response to a growing national movement of people who believe their government no longer works in their best interest.

Junior Ben Cilwick attended the Oct. 6 march with other UP students.

"I'm frustrated with the system of government and the influence that corporations and banks have on it," Cilwick said.

Occupy Portland is one of several city protests stemming from Occupy Wall Street, an on-going demonstration that began in New York City on Sept. 17.

"New York wants us to know they are standing with us," a Portland rally organizer said Thursday.

The march, representing a wide array of demographics, including college students, the elderly, infants and children, the unemployed, veterans and business men and women of all races, began in downtown Portland on Southwest Ash Street. Protestors paraded up Burnside and down Broadway through the center of downtown, ending near Southwest Naito Parkway.

Portland Police barricaded the streets during the march as the crowd chanted in unison "Power to the people," "Whose streets? Our streets" and "This is what democracy looks like."

"I hope my voice is heard, that my generation will not be saddled with all of the debt incurred by this generation," sophomore Molly Hildreth said. "I want to help with student loans and a universal healthcare plan, and I want a chance to have a ‘piece of the pie' in a sense."

During the march, the crowd huddled in Pioneer Courthouse Square, located in the shadow of local offices of banks and corporations such as Chase and Goldman Sachs.

Despite the large crowd, peace was maintained as megaphones were passed around to share opinions, personal experiences and words of encouragement.

"I'm here to support," junior Jordan Mehl said. "I'm very upset with the U.S. system. It's broken and needs to be fixed."

Crowd estimates range from 5,000 to 10,000, with street bystanders joining mid-march.

"I attended because I wanted to get the attention of our government officials," junior Charity Taylor said. "I went to Occupy Portland to convey the message that Americans are paying attention and to advocate the equality of resources available in regard to the educational resources for those who have special needs, regardless of income. This hits close to home for me because my little sister is autistic."

Although Occupy Portland refused to apply for a required a permit to demonstrate or inhabit the street, Portland Police and Mayor Sam Adams worked with protesters to maintain peace and order.

Police on bikes and horses were present all day Thursday to ensure safety, while the march was kept at a slow pace by Portland rally organizers to preserve a peaceful atmosphere.

"We are here to keep everyone safe," Officer John Billard of the Portland Police Bureau said. "We hope it won't turn violent, and we are trying to keep it open for work people to get to and from their homes and families."

According to the mayor, the City of Portland prepared for Occupy Portland by fostering an environment that would keep the protest peaceful and cooperative.

"I support Portlanders in their right to protest and exercise free speech rights, and I encourage all who participate to do so peacefully and with respect to the rights of others," Adams said Thursday in a press release. "Most of the people that are going to participate in Occupy Portland – as with most of the participants in cities across the country – are there to voice their legitimate concerns about national issues. A peaceful event is the most effective way for participants to deliver that message."

After Thursday's march, a base camp for the Occupy Portlanders was set up at Lownsdale and Chapman Square in downtown Portland.

Junior Kevin Hershey also attended the march on Oct. 6 and plans to continue participating in the movement.

"I hope to attend some more of the events and I hope to support them through donations of food and other necessary supplies," Hershey said.

One potential conflict with the camp was the Portland Marathon held on Oct. 9. But the problem was averted through cooperation between race organizers and protesters, who agreed not to disrupt the race. The camp was temporarily moved to the South Park blocks until the marathon was finished. The demonstration is now back at Lowndale and Chapman Squares.

Conflict erupts over street closure

After allowing Occupy Portland demonstrators to camp in Chapman and Lownsdale Squares and the street adjoining them – Southwest Main Street – since Oct. 6, Mayor Sam Adams asked demonstrators to cooperate and unblock the street on Wednesday.

"We don't want a confrontation," Adams said, as he met with some of the protesters at the encampment. "We just want to get the street open and we will definitely work on safety."

Protesters debated whether or not to clear the street for traffic. While the vast majority of protesters agreed to vacate the street, rogue demonstrators refused to leave and allow traffic to go through.

Via Twitter, many protesters expressed concerns that the rogue demonstrators would tarnish the reputation of the entire movement.

At the General Assembly meeting at the encampment Wednesday night, a speaker read a message from Occupy Wall Street encouraging Occupy Portland to cooperate with the city and clear the street.

As of press time late Wednesday night, the situation remained unresolved.

 

Occupy Portland Goals

Occupy Portland was created with the initial goals of 1) expressing solidarity with the Occupy Wall Street movement that began in New York City on Sept. 17, 2011, and 2) working actively to reclaim government from the hands of powerful special interests.