#OccupyAtlanta Day 8
October 15th, 2011 § 2 Comments
The Occupation of Woodruff Park has entered it’s second week, and shows no signs of going away without city intervention. It’s been 4 days since my last visit to the park, and after hearing about recent developments I decided to take a ride down and have another look.
The occupiers erected a small wall at some point over the last several days, and every square inch was covered with stories of hardship and sadness. A public outcry in scribbled sharpie, each one a little sadder then the next. I stood in front of wall reading for almost 20 minutes, and couldn’t help but feel the pain of each persons short story. No matter what side of the political spectrum you fall on or how you feel about this protest, I think everyone could benefit from reading some of these.
The number of tents has almost doubled, with almost the entire park covered with some type of temporary shelter. Around 11am, most members of the camp gathered in the center of the park preparing to take part in a march on City Hall, where they would join a larger protest on job cuts in Georgia.
The march began with a little over 100 people taking part. They started down Peachtree St, chanting the entire way, before turning on MLK. Motorcycle cops provided a security detail, stopping traffic at every light so the group could move smoothly.
We arrived at City Hall around 11:30am, where the group was addressed by several speakers. I walked around City Hall listening to the speakers before being completely distracted by the numerous statues around the building. I could write an entire essay on the symbolism around City Hall, it’s stark contrasting message to today’s politics and what the protesters were saying, but I think I’ll save that for another day.
great photos! i didnt know you were down there for all of this.
Thanks for checking out my stuff Mark! Ya, I’ve been covering them since day 1.