Chicago Police Arrest 130 Occupy Chicago Protesters

130 Occupy Chicago protesters were arrested at 1 a.m. on Sunday morning after they attempted to camp in Grant park after closing time.

The protesters were joined by 3,000 people in Chicago earlier in the day as they marched from Federal Plaza in the loop and arrived in Congress Plaza at Michigan Avenue and Congress Parkway.

The park which closes at 11 p.m. witnessed 130 people who decided to stay in Congress Plaza while hundreds of other people moved onto the nearby sidewalk which is located just off park district property.

Chicago Police made several announcements about the park closing time and then proceeded to create a barricade around those protesters who chose to stay.

By 2:40 a.m. 130 people had been arrested and a few hundred more remained on sidewalks towards the east and west sides of Michigan Avenue until approximately 3 a.m.

The newest round of arrests follows 175 people who were taken into custody by police last Sunday around the same 1 a.m. time period.

As police led people away early Sunday morning protesters stood on the sidewalk and chanted against the police:

“You serve the 99 percent,” “Whose park? Our park!” and “Why no press? Let the media in!”

Occupy Chicago is part of a larger movement that started as Occupy Wall Street and has since spread to various locations throughout the United States and around the world.

Last week Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel spoke with Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy and according to the Chicago Tribune he said he wanted the law department to talk with protesters “to see if we can find a way to go forward so they can continue to express themselves …”

Do you think the protesters should have been allowed to stay in Grant Park or should they have listened to police and simply moved over to the public sidewalks located next to the park?