After swarming the Brooklyn Bridge and blocking traffic for several hours on October 1, approximately 700 protesters were arrested, MSNBC is reporting. The arrests come during the second week of the Occupy Wall Street movement, as marchers began walking across the Brooklyn-bound lanes.
The protesters face charges of disorderly conduct and resisting arrest after they failed to listen to police and began straying onto the street. However, some protesters are claiming authorities had tricked and trapped them before the arrests. Occupy Wall Street media coordinator Jesse Myerson even said police seemed to guide the protesters onto the street.
Many of the protesters arrested received citations and were released. But the arrests also came after the protesters began speaking out against corporate greed and social inequality. They wanted to bring their solidarity march to Brooklyn, and even shouted to officers “We are not criminals” and “Let us go!”
Some protesters tried to get away from police as they began handcuffing members of the group. But the officers felt arresting the protesters was the only option left, as some began climbing the structure of the bridge to get to the wooden pedestrian walkway.
The march began around 3:30 pm EDT from the protesters’ camp in Zuccotti Park, near the former World Trade Center site. The protesters have received support from such celebrities as Susan Sarandon and Michael Moore, who have stopped by the camp.
Written by: Karen Benardello
