Dreams of Sleeping in Public Spaces: The Occupy Wall Street Movement and Sleep as Symbolic Expression

On September 17, 2011, about 1000 protesters converged in Zuccotti Park near the New York Stock Exchange in lower Manhattan. This was the beginning of the Occupy Wall Street movement, in which demonstrators expressed their objections to the “disastrous financial decisions that [had] enriched the few at the expense of the many.” The movement quickly spread to other cities; the protesters took the term “occupy” literally, meaning that they not only demonstrated during daytime hours, but brought tents and sleeping bags to create encampments where they could remain for days, weeks and months. In cities across the country, police arrested members of the Occupy movement when the protesters did not vacate the premises of private or public parks after police had warned them to do so. This discussion will begin with a close look at how city administrators responded to the Occupy movement in New York City, Philadelphia, Washington, DC, Los Angeles, Oakland, and Chicago, including whether or not the protesters received permits. We will also take a close look at litigation resulting from the Occupy movement, including the question of whether sleeping in tents in a public space comprises symbolic expression that the First Amendment protects. We will also examine class action suits resulting from police tactics such as “trap-and-detain” or “kettling,” inconsistent enforcement of curfews, and blatant police brutality against demonstrators in cities such as Oakland, California.