California protesters shut down Oakland portThousands of anti-corporate greed demonstrators have closed one of America's busiest ports. The shutdown capped a day in which hundreds of city workers, including teachers, joined the call for a strike. The crowds also stopped traffic at a junction where a military veteran was seriously injured last week as protesters clashed with police. Ex-Marine Scott Olsen, 24, is recovering in an Oakland hospital after being struck on the head with a tear gas canister fired by police. That incident catapulted Oakland, which is on San Francisco Bay, to the centre of the national Occupy Wall Street movement and has spurred fresh demonstrations across the US. Elsewhere in the US on Wednesday:
"At this time, maritime operations are effectively shut down at the Port of Oakland," the port said in a written statement to Reuters news agency. "Maritime area operations will resume when it is safe and secure to do so." Oakland police estimated that about 3,000 demonstrators were gathered at the port. Police said 4,500 people had marched across the city on Wednesday. A number of businesses, including several banks, were shut during the protests, which were largely peaceful during the day, with low police visibility. The demonstration, which included students, families with young children and union members, began with a rally outside city hall. One large protest banner read: "Occupy Everything, death to capitalism." Oakland officials said about 5% of employees had taken the day off, including about 360 teachers. One teacher at the rally, Brother Muziki, told AFP news agency: "Our classrooms are overcrowded. The banks are being bailed out - but not the schools." The BBC's Alastair Leithead in Los Angeles says Oakland has a higher than average unemployment rate and suffered badly during the US recession. The activists have been protesting against a system which they believe favours corporations and the nation's wealthiest 1%. | ||||
source:BBC news | ||||
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
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