Occupy DC On No-Camping Enforcement: 'We Appreciate Them Working With Us'

WASHINGTON -- Occupy DC protesters at Tuesday morning's House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing on their McPherson Square encampment appeared surprisingly sanguine about the National Park Service's announcement that it would soon be enforcing its no-camping regulations against demonstrators.

In the hallway outside the Rayburn House Office Building hearing room, Sara Shaw -- one of the protesters featured in the Washington Post's story about love in McPherson Square -- said she was very pleased by parts of the hearing, such as Rep. Danny Davis' (D-Ill.) reading of Occupy DC's statement into the record.

But Shaw said she is not happy with the announcement that the prohibition against camping in McPherson Square will be enforced -- it will negatively impact the park's homeless residents, she said, noting that Jonathan Jarvis, director of NPS, testified that enforcement would be against individual campers, not against the Occupy encampment as a whole.

Jarvis said during the hearing that his job "is to protect the individuals' rights under the First Amendment," and that he would work with the demonstrators to stay within the law.

"We appreciate them working with us," Shaw said. "If they were going to throw everyone out, we're not going to go easy. We're here fighting for our First Amendment rights. We're here standing up for what we believe in. And occupying that space is one of our tactics."

Nathan Gorecki, who joined Occupy DC on Oct. 5, said the hearing "went okay. Jarvis still stayed on our side, still stayed on the Occupy side."

Gorecki added that he is not worried about Occupy DC's tent city being dismantled if the camping prohibitions are enforced. "There's more to the Occupy movement than just McPherson Square," he said.

Adrian Parsons, looking healthy since ending his D.C. voting rights hunger strike in early January, said he was heartened to hear Davis, Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) and Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) compare Occupy DC to the civil rights movement and champion occupiers' right to continue the protest.

Committee Chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), who in December sent a letter to Interior Secretary Ken Salazar asking him to explain the department's handling of the McPherson Square situation, kept going in and out of the hearing. Parsons said he took that as a sign that evicting Occupy DC from McPherson Square isn't the chairman's "bread and butter."

In December, Parsons stood on top of the McPherson Square barn as it was being torn down as a protest against the National Park Service. What will he do once NPS starts enforcing the camping prohibitions in the park?

"The future is wide open in terms of tactics," he said.

"They're gonna do what they're gonna do," said demonstrator Phillip Benoit, who lives in D.C.'s other Occupy encampment -- the the tent city in Freedom Plaza. "Escalation is not a good idea amongst desperate people. We don't have homes, we don't have jobs. I'd say we are the very definition of desperate people."

On Tuesday afternoon, a few hours after the hearing ended, at least one of the people didn't seem so desperate:

@Sara_Jeans
Sara Shaw

Great community circle going on at #occupydc right now. Laughing, sharing stories, and enjoying this great weather.

January 24, 2012 7:44 pm via TweetDeck Reply Retweet Favorite

Related on HuffPost:

Comments

[Capitalism Is King]

07:45 PM on 01/24/2012

Yawn! Occupy failed faster than Air America.

[riannaco]

09:47 AM on 01/25/2012

Given that: A) They are still out there protesting, and B) Their pet issues have entered into the national discourse as major issues, I'd be curious to hear your definition of "failed".

[Mac Donald]

03:32 PM on 01/26/2012

riannaco,
In response to your post about the definition of failed, most Americans do not approve of your tactics when trying to get your message accross (ie blocking of ports and private places of business, the moving into houses and buildings that are not yours, the destruction of property, the throwing of objects and cursing of law enforcement, ect, ect, ect). Due to these things your message is not resonating with the American public as you wished so you have "failed" in that aspect. If Occupy really wants to affect changes in the government they must change their tactics or they will not get any traction and will continue to be perceived as a fringe group who are only protesting for the sake of the same. I know that many Occupiers don't feel this is the case but your message is not getting through.

[JordanPerry]

07:26 PM on 01/24/2012

Standing tall along side you in solidarity! The Occupy movement is not an isolated action. It's a cumulative response to a cumulative problem. As such, it will, by definition, continue to evolve. Our society's problems are pronounced - and I share the view that it's also quite systemic. At a minimum, open public debate, even if it doesn't reflect a "ready to televise" town square atmosphere is a wonderfully empowering democratic development. People want to speak, and expect to be heard. I'll never turn my back on that true freedom.