Occupy Oakland shuts down one of nation's busiest ports

Thousands of protesters affiliated with Occupy Wall Street shut down the Port of Oakland, California on Wednesday. After spending the day picketing and marching through city streets protesters converged on the port's facilities and by late afternoon it was closed.

OAKLAND, CA (Catholic Online) - Police reported the demonstrators vandalized banks and at least one grocery store.

Around 5 PM a protest, about 5000 strong, had completed its takeover of the fifth busiest port in the nation. Oakland authorities called for law enforcement backup from neighboring cities and the California Highway Patrol. Police in riot gear were seen toting teargas in the event of a confrontation with protesters.

Leaders of the occupy open group have announced that they want to stop "the flow of capital" at the port, a critical facility for the importation of Chinese exports to America.

Port officials sent their employees home by 3:30 to ensure safety, while buses began to arrive carrying protesters. Protesters chanted, "Let's go Oakland!, Take the port!," and "We got sold out!"
Some protesters blocked tracks and others were seen climbing atop cargo containers in the port. Officials declared the port closed, but said that normal operations would resume as soon as it was safe to do so.

Everyone from the protesters to city officials expressed their hopes throughout the day at the general strike declared by the movement would remain peaceful. Last week, that didn't happen. On On that occasion,  police deployed tear gas to clear protesters from an encampment before City Hall, and an Iraq war veteran was shot in the head, possibly with a rubber bullet.

So far, the protestors have been loud and have blocked streets and closed the port. However, no violence has been reported.

One highlight of the march took place at noon as hundreds of people surrounded a Chase bank. People chanted, "Bank's got bailout, we got sold out." And, "Hey Chase what do you say? How many houses did you take today?"

Across the country, solidarity marches were held for the Oakland protesters who have been seen by sympathizers as a persecuted group, especially after last Wednesday's clash with police. Generally the movement remains peaceful nationwide, but reports of arrests are coming in daily from cities across the country as some protesters become increasingly unruly.

Now more than six weeks old, the movement shows no signs of abating.

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