Occupy Protesters Have Blocked Access to Three West-Coast Ports
Update (1:35 p.m. EST): The Port of Long Beach is back open, The Guardian reports, citing "Freelance journalist and Occupy LA protester Ruth Fowler," who is on the scene. It closed for about an hour this morning. But the Chronicle reports that the Port of Oakland remains closed as protesters' ranks there swell.
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Protesters who said they wanted to shut down ports along the West Coast Monday appear to be getting traction in Oakland, Portland, and Long Beach, where they've blocked access roads and stopped trucks from making deliveries. The Port of Oakland has reportedly closed, The Guardian reports in its live blog, while Long Beach protesters are facing down police as they refuse to move from an intersection, the Los Angeles Times reports. Portland, too, has protesters massing at the entrances to its port, where they blocked trucks from entering and apparently disrupted the port's operation for the day. On the East Coast, meanwhile, police have reportedly started arresting Occupy Wall Street protesters who targeted Goldman Sachs in what they're calling a "squidding" demonstration.
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The protests on the West Coast got started before dawn, when the San Francisco Chronicle reports demonstrators marched to the port to block the roads leading in:
A group of roughly 100 marchers were met by a line of police in riot gear near the intersection of Seventh Street and Middle HarborRoad. Protesters began marching in a circle, preventing trucks from getting through. At least one demonstrator had set up a tent in the intersection.
One trucker, clearly frustrated, blew his air horn and tried to drive through the crowd.
The trucker's frustration seems to mirror that of the International Longshore Workers Union, which did not sanction Monday's port actions. The ILWU said the protests would do harm to its members, costing them a day's pay, according to the Chronicle. But The Guardian reports that protesters say they're acting in support of the ILWU.
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In New York, meanwhile, police have reportedly arrested several protesters at the Goldman Sachs action, confiscating live-streaming video equipment, according to NewYorkist on Twitter. One of those arrested, Brooklyn writer John Knefel, estimated 17 people had been arrested so far. He also tweeted this photo of protesters hanging a banner at the headquarters of Brookfield Office Properties, which owns Zuccotti Park:
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