The Mayor Confronts the Protesters
NYT editorial
The Occupy Wall Street protesters had achieved a great deal before they were rousted from Zuccotti Park by New York City police on Tuesday morning. This ragged group, living in tents and tarps for two months in the financial district in Lower Manhattan, helped focus everyone’s attention on the growing income inequality in this country. They made “99 percent” into popular language for the have-nots. They spawned protests against further enriching the already rich 1 percent, like those in Chicago, Boston, Oakland, Calif., New Haven, and even London.
For two months, a confrontation between the demonstrators and the City of New York has been steadily brewing. Mayor Michael Bloomberg restrained the police and resisted political pressure for weeks, but he had some legitimate worries about crowding, drug use, noise and unsanitary conditions. His decision to clear tents and sleeping bags out of Zuccotti Park, the focal point of the protests, and have the area cleaned, was justifiable legally.
The Supreme Court has made it clear that city governments may prohibit overnight camping in public spaces. A state judge followed that law in backing up Mr. Bloomberg on Tuesday.
But Mr. Bloomberg hasn’t done as good a job as he might have in managing the appearance of this last move, and we worry that his decision to clear the park of tents could end up quashing the entire protest.
(More here.)
The Occupy Wall Street protesters had achieved a great deal before they were rousted from Zuccotti Park by New York City police on Tuesday morning. This ragged group, living in tents and tarps for two months in the financial district in Lower Manhattan, helped focus everyone’s attention on the growing income inequality in this country. They made “99 percent” into popular language for the have-nots. They spawned protests against further enriching the already rich 1 percent, like those in Chicago, Boston, Oakland, Calif., New Haven, and even London.
For two months, a confrontation between the demonstrators and the City of New York has been steadily brewing. Mayor Michael Bloomberg restrained the police and resisted political pressure for weeks, but he had some legitimate worries about crowding, drug use, noise and unsanitary conditions. His decision to clear tents and sleeping bags out of Zuccotti Park, the focal point of the protests, and have the area cleaned, was justifiable legally.
The Supreme Court has made it clear that city governments may prohibit overnight camping in public spaces. A state judge followed that law in backing up Mr. Bloomberg on Tuesday.
But Mr. Bloomberg hasn’t done as good a job as he might have in managing the appearance of this last move, and we worry that his decision to clear the park of tents could end up quashing the entire protest.
(More here.)
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