The populist-themed and increasingly popular "Occupy Wall Street" movement , as dozens of protesters gathered before the entrance to Bushnell Park in Hartford to express their dissatisfaction with what they termed income inequality and corporate greed.
What started as a small gathering of a handful of protesters shortly after 8 a.m. Wednesday had swelled to a large and vocal group that numbered close to 100 less than one hour later — and the movement showed no signs of losing steam as the morning wore on and more and more people seemed to be drawn to the crowd.
Many in the group expressed the sentiments echoed at "Occupy Wall Street" rallies across the country, summed up in the words of David Morse of Storrs, who carried a sign which read, "Tax the Rich."
Since then, the movement's spread across many states across the country, and Patch asked local residents to chime in and add their thoughts to what's going on.
"I'm warily optimistic of this movement," said . "It's nice people are standing for change, however, unless any power, money, or influence falls directly behind it, I doubt its longevity."
Chad Messenger, himself a Redding resident and , said he doubts the movement's authenticity.
"I understand the dissent between those without jobs and those making lots of money on the top," Messenger said. "But the whole group seems disjointed to me. They argue against the rich, then they argue that their student loans should be forgiven. Who lent them money [for education] in the first place?"
Rowley wondered what would come next if the movement's demands are met.
"I would love to see justice served where it's due and to see a true paradigm shift occur in our time," he said. "Hopefully, the best people to assist in this choose the right side."
Messenger said he wished the protesters were constructive and offered solutions, rather than seemingly protesting against capitalism.
"There's power in protesting, certainly, but like I said, this group doesn't even seem to have a cohesive point," Messenger said. "Rather than banging on drums and yelling against corportations — sure CEOs make a lot of money, but look at how many jobs they create — maybe these people would be better off looking for work. At the very least, they could offer some solutions, rather than complaining about problems."
