SAFETY CONCERNS ARISE AT OWS
Wall Street OWS MASS LETTER DELIVERY
Organized by OccupyTheBoardRoom.org and OWS Direct Action, a mass march took place on Friday, Oct. 28. Protesters, including foreclosure victims, unemployed New Yorkers and students with debt, split into two groups and marched from Bryant Park, delivering letters "from the 99 percent to the 1 percent" at the headquarters of Bank of America, Morgan Stanley, Wells Fargo, Citigroup and JP Morgan Chase.
SAFETY CONCERNS ARISE AT OWS
Last Friday, Oct. 28, members of the Fire Department of New York and the New York City Police Department reportedly confiscated six generators and biodiesel fuel from people camping out in Zuccotti Park on the grounds that the items were potential fire hazards.
Rep. Jerrold Nadler, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, State Sen. Daniel Squadron and Council Member Margaret Chin released the following statement that day in response to community concerns about OWS: "We continue to work with the city, OWS and all stakeholders to respond to community concerns. Fire hazards like generators and gas affect both the community and the protestors. We are glad that there were no incidents as the FDNY carried out its safety inspection this morning.
"Other major issues remain, specifically noise, sanitation and access related to barricades. We've met with the city and, today, Borough President Stringer and Senator Squadron met with representatives of OWS who have been designated to work with the local community to address these ongoing concerns."
Lower Manhattan ICONIC SHOPS CELEBRATE ANNIVERSARIES
Today through Sunday, Nov. 6, J&R Music & Computer World and Century 21 Department Store will celebrate their 40th and 50th anniversaries, respectively. The businesses, just a few blocks from each other in Lower Manhattan, have partnered up to launch a special gift card promotion during this time. Shoppers who spend $100 or more at J&R will receive a $10 Century 21 gift card and tote, while shoppers who spend $100 or more at Century 21 get a $10 J&R gift card and tote.
Lower East Side CHIN RALLIES TO PROTECT P.S. 137
Council Member Margaret Chin attended a rally on Tuesday, Oct. 25 to support the P.S. 137 community in the Lower East Side. Although the Department of Education hasn't officially ordered the school to close, school officials have been warned that its doors might be shuttered due to low performance.
That day, Chin also sent a letter to City Schools Chancellor Dennis Walcott, noting that P.S. 137 has struggled to establish its identity since it was moved into the P.S. 134 building in 2006. She added that the school lost many experienced teachers mid-year because of attrition and has had to cut one after-school program due to budget cuts.
The DOE is expected to conclude its evaluation of the school by December.
Chinatown PRESCRIPTION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM
Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and City Council Member Margaret Chin met with senior citizens at the Project Open Door Senior Center at 168 Grand St. in Chinatown on Thursday, Oct. 27 to help educate them about the Partnership for Prescription Assistance program.
The program helps some 6.5 million people across the country get the prescription medicines they need. Patients seeking help in obtaining medicines can call PPA (1-888-4-PPA-NOW or 1-888-477-2669) to talk to a trained specialist. Specialists speak a number of Chinese dialects, including Cantonese and Mandarin Occupy Wall Street Out in the Cold: The winter weather is setting in a little earlier than expected. According to the National Weather Service, the snow on Saturday, Oct. 29, was a rare, early-season storm that broke several historic Northeast records for this month. Central Park charted 2.9 inches of snowfall. Photographer Scot Surbeck found his way to Zuccotti Park and snapped this image of protesters braving the sleet and frigid temps. Surbeck's work can be found at cityclickr.net. Photo by Scot Surbeck