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City says they're prepared to work with Occupy Philly
The city will not block protesters from occupying City Hall, and says that organizers have agreed to secure permits for any marches.
City says they’re prepared to work with Occupy Philly
Representatives of Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter met with Occupy Philly organizers this afternoon, according to Managing Director Richard Negrin.
“First and foremost it’s about getting together and having some common goals and shared interests,” Negrin told City Paper. "The magnitude and all of that is obviously outside our control, and it's something that will be determined over the next days.”
The city will not block the protesters from occupying the land around City Hall, and Negrin says that organizers have agreed to secure permits for any marches so that blocked streets don’t disrupt ambulances and create a public safety issue. He says that the city will go out of its way to help secure permits on an expedited timetable.
“Our interest with those leaders is, how we can do this in a thoughtful, reasonable, and orderly way, that is both lawful and the least disruptive to everyday Philadelphians as possible? The group has committed to us to be as peaceful and orderly as possible. To be as vocal as possible is really their purpose, to fully exercise their First Amendment free speech rights, which we wholly support. Philadelphia is the cradle of liberty, and sometimes democracy is inconvenient.”
Negrin is confident that protesters and the city will be able to work together, and says that Mayor Nutter shares the protesters' goals of social and economic justice.
“This is a global, national problem about the shrinking middle class, and the few who hold the overwhelming amount of wealth. I think the mayor’s sympathetic to that. Those interests generally align. I think we’re looking for social and economic justice across the board. There’s no adversity or antagonism from us in terms of the righteousness of their cause.”
Police, says Negrin, are prepared to handle the protests professionally.
“We’re very fortunate to have a police commissioner who the Mayor says is one of the best in the country. He’s an expert at protests having come from D.C.,” where he was the long-time police chief.
But civil liberties advocates have long criticized Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey for his handling of two protests in the nation’s capital where hundreds of activists were preemptively arrested. D.C. settled the cases for $8.25 million and $13.7 million a piece.
“We think we can make it work,” says Negrin. “Folks just need to keep their word. We’ll keep ours.
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Send your personal testimonies and photos to daniel[DOT]denvir@citypaper[DOT]net and we will post them over the coming weeks--or months?
Follow me on Twitter @DanielDenvir for continuing Occupy Philly coverage.
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