Seems appropriate.

Occupy Wall Street grows more inventive with each new protest action and the movement's latest tactic may be well-suited to many who have, until now, followed events passively via the Internet: protesters are sacked out tonight on sidewalks  not far from the New York Stock Exchange. What's more, the concrete naps of the disaffected may have more legal protection than a tent in Zuccotti Park:

Attorney Gideon Orion Oliver says protesters are protected from arrest by a 2000 court decision that allows sleeping on sidewalks to express political views.

A spokesperson told the Associated Press that the action is already several days old.

The Sleep-out isn't actually a brand-new tactic; various Occupy movements were holding solidarity sleep-outs for the homeless in late 2011.

It does appear peaceful protest can't get much more peaceful.

Not the bagpipers arrested. (Brian Gautreau/Flickr)

The N.Y.P.D. was holding back regarding Occupy Wall Street protest actions on Saturday night until they put the smackdown on a band of European bagpipe players in nothing flat. The pipers showed around 11 p.m. and began playing for the assembly, but within 5 to 10 minutes they had been arrested, resulting in a sharp rise in tension in the crowd.

Bagpipers just started marching into the park bringing the party mood with them, NYPD arrested one of them, and things got real heated. #OWS

— Occupy Wall Street (@OccupyWallStNYC) March 18, 2012

As police led the musicians away, the crowd chanted, "One more song!" The @NewYorkist Twitter feed reported the bagpipers were French musicians who had participated in a St. Patrick's Day parade earlier in the day.

Authorities began mobilizing in force to evict protesters and close Zuccotti Park after the bagpipers were taken away. Many protesters passively resisted by linking arms and sitting but mass arrests ensued.

Screengrab from TimCast on UStream

In case you thought the Occupy Movement had somehow vanished during the cold but relatively brief Winter, Occupy Wall Street protesters returned in force Saturday to familiar locales, apparently determined to make sure we knew they were still around and still D.T. P. (Down To Protest).

The Times reported early Saturday night that protesters "embarked upon a winding march" which led to a few arrests in and around the original home of the protest, Zuccotti Park.

The Times also noted Saturday's action was familiar:

In several respects, the march on Saturday was similar to the inaugural one. The crowd was on the small side but spirited and marched past the bronze sculpture of a bull at Bowling Green, which had served as a mustering spot for the first march. The marchers were accompanied by police officers on foot and on scooters who at one point blocked access to Wall Street, just as they did on Sept. 17...

Around 8 p.m. on Saturday a text went out stating "Liberty Square is being RE-OCCUPIED! 500+ people and growing! Come on down! Bring blankets & food!"

There was a brief celebrity appearance by Michael Moore, who endured some heckling from the assembly over his personal wealth. Code Pink, "a women-initiated grassroots peace and social justice movement" dedicated to ending United States-sponsored war and occupation was also in evidence.

500+ RE-OCCUPYING LIBERTY SQUARE RIGHT NOW! JOIN US! #OWS #SPRING

— Occupy Wall Street (@OccupyWallSt) March 18, 2012

The crowd appeared to grow throughout the night, as evidenced by live footage broadcast over journalist Tim Pool's UStream page. Mr. Pool aired a "human mic" invoking calls for a "general strike" as well as an instance of a form of "direct action"--protesters linking arms and charging across Liberty Square at a full run.

Waves of marchers continued to fill the park well into the night. Around 10:30 p.m. it looked as though some protesters were attempting to set up tents as chants such as "We are not leaving" and "Occupy the food supply" rippled through the crowd.

Organized online, the meeting started at 12:30 Sunday afternoon with community members taking turns to "speak about what Charas meant to them." They echoed each other for half an hour, finishing up with a united message: "Give It Back."

The Observer could see the demonstrations from our window, so we headed down to get a better view. It was a quintessential OWS protest with a one-woman-band, homemade placards and a giant papier-mâché Statue of Liberty whose delicate limbs made it difficult for her to join in the banging.

Charas Comes Home For The Holidays, as it is affectionately being called, is in support of the place that "served as the hub of a thriving movement of low-income, activist, and artist communities on the Lower East Side."

The event was organized to mark the ten year anniversary of the eviction of the building and according to one protestor was, "a call to Mayor Bloomberg to tear the wall down and let the people in."AnonOps, the website promoting the protest states that, "Ten years ago this Saturday, the community center was evicted, robbing New York's left of one of it's beating hearts."

As the banging progressively grew louder the New York Police Department became aware of the disruption, dispatching five cars which pulled up only minutes after the drumming began. From then on, they attempted to get the situation under control, resulting in at least three arrests and numerous confrontations. Police at the scene declined to comment on what those arrested were charged with,  and as The Observer was leaving one of the arrestees was let out of the car, but remained in handcuffs.

The crowd, who were ushered to the other side of the street, stood on the sidewalk chanting "Viva Charas!" and "Tear it Down!" while officers cleaned up the mess. This was part of a day of protests throughout the city which also saw an Immigrants Occupy! march and a speech from Tania Bruguera in Foley Square.

hkrempels@observer.com

09/23/11; Day before Mass-Arrests from JRL on Vimeo.

Musicians seem to be taking to the protests--the rapper Immortal Technique played a concert at Zuccotti Park Sunday night, and chronic drum circles lend an agitating or festive vibe, depending on one's state of mind.