The Occupy movement that began two months ago at Wall Street quickly spread to cities all over the nation. The Occupy Las Vegas movement quickly caught on, establishing its first camp in late October. The camp is called Area 99 and is located in the popular UNLV area of Las Vegas. The organization managed to obtain a permit for their camp until Feb. 20, 2012.
By Oct. 21, the group had more than 2,000 members. More people have been added every day since, with hundreds turning out to protest.
The greatest success of this group is it has not been splashed all over the news with their violent skirmishes. Unlike some of their more volatile counterparts, Occupy Las Vegas has earned a reputation as a peaceful movement. Members sought approval from police and government leaders before protesting and establishing their camp. They even canceled a protest during President Obama’s visit to the city at police request. In a town that has seen some of the largest economic hits, this is an enormous feat for the Occupy movement.
In fact, the group managed to go weeks without one arrest. However, on Thursday, Nov. 17, 21 protesters were arrested after sitting down in the middle of Las Vegas Boulevard and refusing to stop blocking the busy traffic. They were all cited for misdemeanor charges of being unlawful pedestrians in the roadway. This first act of civil disobedience generated no violence whatsoever, and the police were even informed ahead of time that the protest was going to occur. In this case, no flash grenades or tear gas was necessary.
At the moment, the group is asking for supporters to donate just in case the charges stick. The grand total of the citations could potentially by $3,360. It appears finances are a significant concern to this group.
One of the biggest challenges they are facing is a shortage of supplies. Their website has a list of the items they need, asking for help from Occupy Las Vegas supporters. These items include blankets, tents, coats, non-perishable foods and kitchenware. There is also a link for supporters to donate to the organization.
The group hopes to use civil obedience and government cooperation to further their mission. By not showing themselves as violent fanatics, they believe their anti-greed message will have more weight. Their mission statement declares the organization’s message very clearly: They want to get the money out of politics, remove corporate personhood and get justice on the 1 percent who gambled with the struggling economy.