Tag: activists

At least 93 protesters were arrested this weekend in Chicago when thousands of members of the Occupy Wall Street movement descended on the city to protest a meeting of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Two people also were detained by the Secret Service for allegedly attempting to scale protective fencing around the summit at McCormick Place.

Sixty heads of state converged on Chicago for the two-day NATO summit, where they discussed the conflict in Afghanistan and other global issues behind closed doors Saturday and Sunday. Similar meetings of global elites, notably those held each year by the World Economic Forum, have helped funnel jobs to low-wage economies while keeping prices high in the developed economies where the displaced workers live.

Protesters sought to highlight those imbalances and to shine a spotlight on the continuing Afghan War, which began after the 9/11 terror attacks and continues to require 130,000 foreign soldiers. The vast majority are U.S. citizens.

“There’s just a great resonance with the Occupy movement, because if we weren't spending such outrageous amounts on war, we have money for human needs," said Lillian Moats, 65, of Downers Grove, Ill. "It seems like our country's priorities are upside down."