More than 2,500 people marched through downtown Santa Rosa Saturday, protesting the concentration of wealth in America.
The Occupy Santa Rosa event, modeled on Wall Street protests that began last month, was twice as large as organizers expected, suggesting it is gaining mainstream momentum.
From the steps of City Hall, labor activist Ben Boyce fired up a mostly middle-age crowd, urging a moratorium on foreclosures, an end to Bush-era tax cuts and a national jobs program.
“Today is the tipping point,” Boyce said to a sea of signs and people shouting their support. “It's now time to re-take our democracy.”
Sounding a central theme to the national movement, other speakers railed against financial institutions as the cause of the recession that has led to high unemployment and economic ruin for millions.
“We're all clear who tanked our economy,” said Lisa Maldonado, executive director of the North Bay Labor Council. “It wasn't the public worker. It wasn't the public safety worker. It was Wall Street.”
An enthusiastic crowd yelled back, “That's right!”
Apple Needs to Make it in America
