A group of protesters from the Occupy Wall Street movement, which has taken over Zucccotti Park for nearly two months, is headed out of town.
Occupy Wall Street announced a march to Washington, D.C. that will kick off today at noon. The march, called “Occupy the Highway,” will leave from Zuccotti Park and go on for two weeks until protesters reach the Capitol. Marchers will walk 20 miles per day from 9 a.m to 5 p.m. and hold nightly General Assembly meetings in the towns where they stop to camp.
A blog for the march, NYCmarch2dc, says “Occupy the Highway” has been given $3,000 from the General Assembly of Occupy Wall Street, which will be spent on food, gear, media and transportation for protesters back to OWS. There will not be a support vehicle, but the blog states that organizers of the march plan to get a “crash course” from the OWS medical team.
Protesters on the march plan to visit Occupy movements in other cities along the way, including Philadelphia and Baltimore, until they reach D.C. by the November 23 for the Congressional “super committee” meeting.
“This committee has the power to keep the Bush tax cuts (that only benefit the top 1 percent) or let them expire,” reads the Occupy Wall Street website. “We want to be there to fight for the 99 percent.”
“We want to bring our voice to D.C.and let them know what we think,” Bronx student Andre Medina told Metro.
“Occupy the Highway” is also meant to encourage participation from people who live outside major cities.
“Organizers draw inspiration from the long, historic marches of the Civil Rights Movement and like those marches, participants hope to encourage increasing numbers of the 99 percent in rural communities to become involved and to spread the principles of the Occupy Movement along the way,” said a press release from Occupy Wall Street.
Here is the posted schedule for the two-week march:
11/9/11: Liberty Square to Elizabeth, NJ
11/10/11: Elizabeth, NJ to New Brunswick, NJ
11/11/11: New Brunswick, NJ to Trenton, NJ
11/12/11: Trenton, NJ to Andalusia, PA
11/13/11: Andalusia, PA to Occupy Philly
11/14/11: Day off at Occupy Philly
11/15/11: Occupy Philly to Wilmington, DE
11/16/11: Wilmington, DE to Newark, DE
11/17/11: Newark, DE to Rising Sun, MD
11/18/11: Rising Sun, MD to Bel Air, MD
11/19/11: Bel Air, MD to Occupy Baltimore
11/20/11: Day off at Occupy Baltimore
11/21/11: Occupy Baltimore to Laurel, MD
11/22/11: Laurel, MD to Occupy DC
11/23/11: Occupy DC to The White House for super committee meeting
More on Occupy Wall Street
Occupy Wall Street’s 11-mile march through Manhattan.
Performers Crosby & Nash put on show for Occupy Wall Street protesters.
More on how the protest is affecting the real estate market in Lower Manhattan.
Occupy Wall Street installs portable restrooms after complaints of public urination.
