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As the Occupy Wall Street protests enters a third week in New York City and similar protests spread across the country – including in Washington, D.C., as of Thursday, October 6 – it’s worth remembering that nationwide protests and strikes by disgruntled and aggrieved workers are hardly something new. The U.S. has a long history of large groups taking to the streets to express discontent with wages, hours, benefits, and more. Here’s a look back at some of the largest economic-related protests in American history.

--The Boston Tea Party of 1774

It was one of the most successful pieces of political theater ever staged. Colonists protested a variety of British tax policies. Fifty members of “The Sons of Liberty” political organization boarded three ships in Boston Harbor and dumped 342 crates of Darjeeling tea into the sea in response to a parliamentary act that imposed restrictions on the purchase of tea in the colonies.

--Homestead Strike

It was messy. For nearly five months in 1892, ironworkers and steelworkers clashed over contract negotiations with private security agents. The prolonged conflict became known as the bitter “Homestead Strike” at Andrew Carnegie’s steel plant in Homestead, Pennsylvania. In the end, the unions came up on the short end of the stick.

--Coxey's Army

Led by Ohio businessman Jacob Coxey, swarms of unemployed workers marched on Washington, D.C., in 1894, the second year of a four-year economic depression and the worst in U.S. history at that point. The unemployment was caused by the Panic of 1893; in some cities, joblessness among industrial workers was as high as 25 percent. Workers wanted the government to create jobs through public works projects such as building roads – a radical request back then.

--Bread and Roses

After organized labor won a new state law to reduce of the number of hours worked each week, employers in the mills of Lawrence, Mass., fought back by slashing wages. In 1912, more than 25,000 immigrant textile workers fought against these “poverty” wages. They managed to improve working conditions for mill workers throughout the east. The movement was dubbed the “bread and roses strike,” since protesting women carried signs that said, “We want bread, but roses too.”

--Men of Steel

As many as 350,000 steelworkers walked off the job in 1919 to demand union recognition. At the culmination of the four-month long strike, there was an all-day gun battle in Homestead, PA. that left 12 dead and dozens more wounded. In January of 1920, the strike was called off; the result was that the steelworkers lost their fight and returned to work.

--Wanted: More Public Works

In January 1932, some 25,000 unemployed Pennsylvania workers, dubbed “Cox’s Army,” stormed the nation’s capital in the hope that Congress would create a public works program. The group was led by Father James Renshaw Cox, a Roman Catholic priest from Pittsburgh who was also a candidate for president in 1932. The march led to the creation of the Jobless Party.

--The Great Depression

By the depths of the Depression, which began in 1929, about a third of Americans were unemployed. It was the longest and most severe depression experienced by the Western world. Many people lost their homes or farms; many starved. By 1934, over 1.5M workers took part in some 2,000 strikes to bargain over wages, hours and conditions.

--Rail Strike Cripples U.S.

With WWII over, a wave of strikes erupted in the spring of 1946. Upwards of 400,000 coal miners and railroad workers staged protests that paralyzed the U.S; railroads came to a halt and left thousands of people stranded. The strike cost rail providers $25M in lost revenue each day. A month later, President Truman ordered troops to seize the railroads and coal mines.

--The Post Stops Here

Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers—except for unfair pay. The first mass work stoppage in the 195-year history of the Post Office began in 1970 with a walkout of letter carriers in Brooklyn and Manhattan and quickly drew 210,000 more postal employees. With mail service virtually paralyzed in New York, Detroit, and Philadelphia, President Nixon declared a national emergency. The stand-off ended two weeks later.

--Grounded for Good

More than 12,000 members of the Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization walked off the job on August 3, 1981, setting off a chain of events that would redefine labor relations in America. In response, President Ronald Reagan fired thousands of striking air-traffic controllers who he said were violating the law. Before this protest, major work stoppages averaged about 300 per year; today, that number is fewer than 30.

--A Subprime Mess

The mortgage crisis and predatory lending that caused the economy to slip into a recession in 2008 sparked rage among homeowners. Lenders targeted included the now defunct Countrywide Financial Corp., the nation’s largest lender and loan servicer with 62,000 employees and assets of $200B. Bank of America bought Countrywide in 2008; it later agreed to pay $108M to settle federal charges due to overcharging homeowners.

--Today's Tea Party

Tens of thousands of conservative grassroots activists, or “Tea Party” members, descended on Capitol Hill in October 2009 to protest the runaway growth of government spending. Crowds from all 50 states filled nearly every pocket of the west lawn of the Capitol. The gathering was largely peaceful, but it helped fuel hundreds of rallies that have rocked primaries and rattled both Democratic and GOP politicians.

--Cheeseheads Control the Capitol

The fight for collective bargaining powers ignited a firestorm of protests in Madison, Wisconsin, in early 2011. Gov. Scott Walker held a tough stance against unions who said that in order to balance the state’s budget he would have to impose higher health care and pension co-pays. Upwards of 100,000 demonstrators stormed the state’s capital for over one month to protest against anti-union proposals.

--Occupy Wall Street

The current Occupy Wall Street protests, which were begun by a ragtag group of demonstrators on September 17, 2011, in downtown New York City, have spread across the country – and the unions have now lent their muscle to the protests against economic inequality. “We’re in it together, and we’re in for the long haul,” said one member of the United Auto Workers. http://www.thefiscaltimes.com/Special-Features/Slideshow/Wall-Street-P
rotests/Slide14.aspx

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Occupy San Francisco protesters are marching and demonstrating outside Wells Fargo headquarters today in the city's Financial District today.

The group gathered at Market and Drumm streets at 7 a.m. for an anti-Wall Street rally and march. A news release states that the group wants banks to pay their fair share of taxes and be held accountable for their role in causing the economic crisis.

10:10 a.m.

Police have arrested 11 protesters on charges of trespassing, a police official said. None have been released so far.

Buff Bradley, a retired teacher from Fairfax, said he came to the protest to call attention to the "incredible economic injustice that has our country by the throat."

Wells Fargo is a target for the protesters because the banks are "complicit in the assault on ordinary people," said Bradley, who taught kindergarten in El Cerrito, East Palo Alto and Corte Madera.

The goal is to be in the streets and let people know they don't have to accept the assault by the top 1 percent, he said. Bradley hopes for mass uprisings similar to what happened in Egypt earlier this year.

-- Angela Woodall, Oakland Tribune

9:50 a.m.

So far, police have arrested 10 protesters for blocking entrances to the building as Wells Fargo employees tried to get in this morning. Some protesters said that those arrested may have been cited and already released.

About 300 are gathered for the event and four entrances to Wells Fargo are blocked, including those on Montgomery and California streets. The protesters aren't blocking the street, but traffic is sluggish.

There's music and costumes and many children among the demonstrators. About two dozen police are monitoring the event.

-- Angela Woodall, Oakland Tribune

9:25 a.m.

Protest organizer Pete Woiwode, with the group California Partnership, said 10 people were arrested on Liedesdorff Street, a small street that runs behind the Wells Fargo building, according to Bay City News

Police officers at the scene said 10 to 15 people who were in front of the doors on that street were arrested for trespassing.

9 a.m.

Ten people have been arrested outside the bank headquarters, according to KTVU. The protesters are sitting and standing around the bank chanting "We are the 99 percent."

Meanwhile, the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency has suspended service on a cable car line as the anti-Wall Street protesters march downtown, the Associated Press is reporting. Service on the California Street cable car line will remain suspended until the crowd clears.

8:40 a.m.:

Bay City News reports dozens of demonstrators are sitting down in front of the Wells Fargo building, located at 420 Montgomery St. between Sacramento and California streets, while others are standing by or marching around the block.

Some demonstrators held signs reading "Foreclose Wall Street," "Stop the corporate greed," and "We are the 99 percent."

San Francisco Supervisor John Avalos, who is running for mayor, was among them and addressed the crowd.

"I welcome your fight and I join you in the effort," he said.

The march is organized by a number of groups including Causa Justa Just Cause, Unite Here Local 2850, the California Partnership, Young Workers United and the Chinese Progressive Association

8:15 a.m.:

Occupy SF protesters are blocking entrances at Wells Fargo Corporate Headquarters on Montgomery St., according to KTVU.

Police are starting to remove some protesters in handcuffs.

Cable car service in the area has been stalled. In addition, traffic is clogged throughout the Financial District.

The "Occupy Wall Street" movement spread to San Francisco last week, and to Oakland, San Jose and other Bay Area cities this week.

Demonstrators say they want banks pay their fair share of taxes and be held accountable for their role in the economic crisis.

Check back for updates. http://www.mercurynews.com/top-stories/ci_19095538 quite a bit of the Bay Area is getting active:

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In New York on Tuesday, the anti-Wall Street protesters got personal, marching past the homes of some of the wealthiest executives in America jeering, "Tax the rich!" and "Where's my bailout?"

In Washington, D.C., a handful of protesters were arrested after demonstrating inside a U.S. Senate office building.

But in San Jose, they remained polite, shaking hands with police officers even as they were given citations. And in Oakland, a city official has joined their cause to show solidarity.

No matter the prevailing mood, hundreds of members of the growing Occupy Wall Street protest movement around the country and in the Bay Area are staying on message: Corporate greed and social inequality must be reckoned with in a country facing 9.1 percent unemployment and little hope of imminent change.

As the Occupy Wall Street protests have spread, they've become a political issue, with Republicans accusing the demonstrators of waging "class war" and President Barack Obama saying he understands their frustrations.

In Manhattan, protesters paused outside buildings where media mogul Rupert Murdoch, JPMorgan Chase Chairman and CEO Jamie Dimon and oil tycoon David Koch have homes, and decried the impending expiration of New York's 2 percent "millionaires' tax" in December.

"I have nothing against these people personally. I just think they should pay their fair share of taxes," said Michael Pollack, an office worker in a law firm. "It's time for a new New Deal."

In D.C., police on Tuesday charged six protesters with unlawful conduct for protesting inside the Hart Senate Office Building, where some senators have offices. Video footage from television news stations shows the demonstrators attempted to unfurl a banner inside the building that said, "Tax the Rich." The banner was grabbed by a police officer.

Cheers in Bay Area

Support for the effort is coming from some notable places.

In San Jose, Mayor Chuck Reed on Tuesday said he hopes the protesters have an impact on the Obama administration's willingness "to do something about the lying, stealing and cheating going on on Wall Street," he said.

"I didn't hear anybody out there complaining about Apple making big profits," he said. "So it's not just corporate greed in general. It's a little more targeted than that."

Like other cities, Reed noted, San Jose has filed suit against some Wall Street investment banks for "ripping us off on some bond issuances."

Since Oct. 2, a few dozen Occupy San Jose protesters have been camping out in the City Hall Plaza, a violation of the city's municipal code. By Tuesday morning, five members of the group had been issued citations for trespassing or camping on city property.

But the city's shrinking Police Department -- reeling from three homicides and an officer-involved fatal shooting in the past few weeks -- has "a lot of things to do" said Reed, who noted that camping violations are not a priority.

Camping out in Oakland's Frank H. Ogawa Plaza also violates city code, but that didn't stop about 50 people from sleeping there Monday night as part of the Occupy Oakland protest, including Councilwoman Desley Brooks.

On Tuesday morning, Brooks was among the protesters emerging from several tents pitched outside City Hall, saying her goal was to show solidarity with the demonstrators. Oakland Mayor Jean Quan has allowed the protests while U.S. Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Oakland, and Rep. Pete Stark, D-Fremont, expressed their support in emails.

"I understand their frustrations," Stark said. "People want to work, they want to make a fair wage, and they don't want to see the out-of-control transfer of wealth that has gone from the middle class to the wealthiest of Americans. It's not right. Hopefully this movement will focus Congress on what should be our top priority -- creating jobs and opportunity for all Americans."

A Monday afternoon demonstration in Oakland drew about 500 people, and followed the Occupy San Francisco demonstration in front of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco last week.

On Tuesday, another group of East Bay protesters struck similar chords at an oil giant's headquarters.

Chanting "Hey, hey, ho, ho, corporate welfare has to go," several dozen members of the public policy advocacy group MoveOn.org gathered outside Chevron's corporate headquarters in San Ramon to protest government subsidization of Big Oil companies.

The demonstrators, who hailed mostly from the Tri-Valley and other cities in Contra Costa and Alameda counties, included several former and current Chevron employees.

"We're looking at the power of big money and it's controlling our country like it hasn't since 1929," said Sheilah Fish, a retired marriage counselor from Moraga and organizer with MoveOn's Central Contra Costa chapter.

Spreading rage

The 13-year-old nonprofit is separate from the Occupy Wall Street movement, but MoveOn's leaders said they wanted to take advantage of the public's growing anger to raise awareness of related concerns -- namely the lobbying power and government subsidization of Big Oil companies.

More protests are scheduled Wednesday in Walnut Creek and Palo Alto, according to organizers in both cities, as well as a protest against banks by the San Jose chapter of People Acting in Community Together.

In Walnut Creek, two groups -- Occupy Walnut Creek and Contra Costa 99 Percent -- plan to protest near a Bank of America branch Wednesday afternoon. Demonstrating in Walnut Creek makes sense, said Mike Veiluva, a member of Contra Costa 99 Percent.

"There is wealth inequality here," Veiluva said. "We have people who are just barely getting by and then we have the 1 percent living in these palatial homes on the hills that surround us."

Sergio Lub of Occupy Walnut Creek said he is protesting because some media outlets portray protesters as young people who don't have jobs and therefore have nothing better to do.

"I am almost 60 and employ a dozen people in my business," he said in an email, "so myself and my neighbors are so removed from the stereotype that corporate media is trying to sell us." http://www.mercurynews.com/bay-area-news/ci_19091989 for HIM!

Like I said, the bigger cities are no surprise, but Moraga? Walnut Creek? PALO ALTO?? Palo Alto (I lived there for a while) is a pretty rich city--yeah, Stanford's campus is there and there are of course students, but it's NEVER been known for protests! This is getting reeeely weird!

ETA: I was going to say "the day it hits Marin I will fall over backwards", but omigawd, it's HERE! Gathering today at 1:00 in front of our local BofA! I'll be there with bells on...this is just starting to make me feel a teeny, tiny bit less hopeless/helpless. For those who say protests do nothing; if enough people protest around the nation, especially in the burbs and small places not known for EVER protesting, it means something to TPTB. We certainly didn't stop 'Nam, but we made our voices heard and it was contributory. Peaceful protests have changed the world in the past, and sometimes it's all we can do.


Hippie Operative Nikovich Nikita Nicovna Talibani,
Contracted Agent of Veritas Oilspillus, code name “Nike”,
signing off