Occupy Wall Street

Occupiers on Wall Street

The Scruffy Slacker Hippies Who Could

(Note: Some of this article appeared in an earlier article, titled Organizing the Occupation: Wall Street, Post Megamarch.)

What a difference a week makes. The weather was unseasonably mild on Friday afternoon, and as The New York Observer strolled around Zuccotti Park, the atmosphere still had the feel of a Ren Faire that had wandered into the wrong neighborhood. But there was definitely something different in the vibe over at Occupy Wall Street H.Q. Since the unions called out the troops last Wednesday, marching in solidarity with the protesters, the demo has skewed older—for instance, a pair of women standing in the front of the park looked as though they’d qualify for discount movie tickets. They held signs that read “Pissed off Grey Hairs say ‘Jail the Wall Street Bastards.’” Read More

Occupy Wall Street

Talib Kweli at Occupy Wall Street.

Talib Kweli! Occupy Wall Street Now the Best Place In New York for Random Celebrity Spottings [Video]

Last night, Talib Kweli stopped by Zuccotti Park for a rhyme. “Here with the 99 percent,” Mr. Kweli tweeted. At the protest, he used the human mic to amplify a short speech. “They want to know what the end game is?”

“THEY WANT TO KNOW WHAT THE END GAME IS,” echoed the crowd.

“This is the end game.”

“THIS IS THE END GAME.”

The protest at Occupy Wall Street is drawing random acts of celebrity from Richard Simmons to Susan Sarandon to Lupe Fiasco and Immortal Technique. Yesterday, actress Justine Bateman and musician Ted Leo were there. On Wednesday’s march, Mike Meyers attempted to blend into the crowd. On Tuesday, the reclusive Jeff Magnum from Neutral Milk Hotel appeared. Read More

Rapper’s Delight

Flatbush native Talib Kweli recently moved to Carroll Gardens. The rapper sounded vaguely uncomfortable about this turn of events when reached by phone Monday, hesitating a second too long when asked to specify where exactly in Brooklyn he has been living. He’s been there only a little while, he said, but he loves it.