Occupy Anchorage gets a new home

With the holiday season upon us, Occupy Anchorage has been strongly encouraged to move from Town Square Park, where various other winter events will be taking place (ice skating and so on) to a new location on the Park Strip, which is on the edge of downtown, but on a route that many people use every day. Originally the city wanted Occupy to get a pricy permit and liability insurance, but since we couldn't get the insurance, they waived the permit. Sounds like a good compromise to me. :rofl: The plan is to keep a presence at Town Square as well as the Park Strip, but maybe vacate Town Square at night over to the other site. The city and our police have been quite accommodating, so everyone seems cool with this arrangement, at least for now.

So today, instead of rallying, the few of us who were out in the 3-degree chill, set up the new camp. When I arrived, it was pretty much just a sagging canopy full of snow, a few tents and a pile of stuff. It looked like this.



After four hours, it looked like this. Here is happy Matt waving goodby from his new and improved home. He's really a sweet kid, just 19 and very passionate about the movement. He came up here from Oregon a couple of months ago, and has been occupying 24/7 ever since, through some remarkably bad weather, sub-zero with strong north winds and three times more snow than we usually have by this time of the year -- over 30 inches.




I didn't take a lot of pictures because I was working (sort of) and it was too cold to take off my mittens to shoot, but the few other pictures I have are here: http://northernvisions.smugmug.com/Politics/Occupy-Anchorage/Occupy-Anchorage-11-22-and-11/20286118_qL98Tt#1603798764_6xZFbQs

Please take care of yourselves. Occupy needs you strong and healthy.

except for one frost-bitten toe.

Thanks for being there and DON'T EAT THE YELLOW SNOW!!!

Freezing my behind in Prudhoe. ;)

It's pretty cozy, actually. Not as much people contact as Town Square, but still visible. I think it will work out.

And, of course, nothing says you can't carry a sign ANYWHERE in town. :)

but they've done a pretty good job of tying everything down and walling in the shelter with the wonderful blue tarps (Alaskan chic).

Occupy Honolulu instead? ;-)

:yourock: