Wall St. Protesters March Through Bank Buildings

(AP)  Updated at 6:04 p.m. ET

Thousands of workers and union members angry over lost jobs and the taxpayer-funded bailout of banks are marching on Wall Street.

Thursday's rally was organized by the AFL-CIO and an association of community groups. The protesters included people hurt by the mortgage crisis and held up signs saying "Wall Street Overdrafted Our Economy" and "Reclaim America."

Noisy protesters with signs took over two bank building lobbies on Thursday in a prelude to a Wall Street rally by workers and union leaders angry over lost jobs, the taxpayer-funded bailout of financial institutions and questionable lending practices by big banks.

2 Weeks of Debate on Wall St. Reform Ahead
Obama Slams GOP Obstructionism
GOP Lifts Block of Financial Reform Debate
Special Section: Wall Street Under Fire

Hours before the scheduled rally, more than 100 people entered a midtown Manhattan building housing JPMorgan Chase offices. They handed a bank executive a letter requesting a meeting with the CEO, and chanted "Bust up! Big banks!" and "People power!"

A half-hour later, they were calmly escorted outside by officers, who remained expressionless as the protesters chanted, "The police need a raise."

They then walked a few blocks up Park Avenue and crowded into the lobby of the Seagram Building, where Wells Fargo and the bank it merged with in 2008, Wachovia, have offices.

The protesters held up signs reading, "Save Our Jobs" and "Save Our Homes." One included a Great Depression-era photograph. Police arrived on horseback as curious office workers watched the scene unfold from their windows.

"We're here today to stop the corporate greed that is ruining our neighborhoods," said Andrea Goldman, 59, of Springfield, Mass., who's part of a group called Alliance to Develop Power.

The banks did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Thousands of workers and union members were expected at the rally, organized by the AFL-CIO and an association of community groups.

The Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association, which includes many Wall Street financial institutions, declined to comment.

[SilverTemples]

If this was two dozen teabaggers, it would be a story CBS would cover.

[longtree-2009]

protests have to be massive in numbers to get any attention. these protests should be targeting congress, the white house. wall street, bankers and et al will conduct their business as usual within the law and all of its loopholes sometimes laws are broken. massive protests aren't going to happen like the civil rights protests or the vietnam war protests.

[overyou1]

As usual cbs, abc nbc does not "cover" this event only half a&& reporting. If you "really" want to know what this is about go watch Dylan Ratigan who "COVERED" this. However I doubt many will.
It's not truth they want to know it's over the top emotionalism they crave. Teabaggers scream "No Big Gov" Yet where the heck are they on AZ...no where. SO you are SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO full of Chit, but the main media loves that. The majority knows they are full of it, media want you to believe different.LOLOLOLOL.
Main Media likes feed the mentally deranged for which tells me a lot about main media.
At least CBS had a write up . So far nbc abc I have found nothing.

[jscottelwood-2009]

All we have to do to get these greedy bsstds attention is to withdraw all of our money from the Big Banks and put it in our local credit unions. THAT they will listen to!

[gorgeousm]

ALLOWANCE LAWS PROPOSED FOR COMMON PEOPLE TO TAKE WHAT THEY NEED

If compared to the massive frauds and massive amounts in terms of dollars that have been swindled, conned and yes, STOLEN from investors, it should be considered a non-event when a needy person takes an item that s/he needs.

What these parasitic investment banker/financiers have done to individuals, and to this country, are not to be categorized as just civil offenses. These intentionally planned and calculated acts of bringing massive financial ruin to others, are indeed criminal acts.

It is being considered within various circles to classify such DELIBERATE, PLANNED, massive frauds which result in bringing an entire nation down, as TREASONOUS and eligible for capital punishment, and of course to seize assets, monies, properties from these criminal nation-wreckers and accordingly, from their family members who often benefit from such frauds.

[askagain]

Has anyone else noticed that comments have become increasing more conservative in nature over the last year. There seems to be a sea change in attitudes. Perhaps this is due to the way the Obama administration shoved half baked health care reforms down our throats, the stimulus package we oppose, created even more divisiveness among the American people, and refuses to enforce our immigration laws. Perhaps Americans are finally waking up to the fact they made a mistake by electing such an inexperienced left wing person to the presidency.

[kbbpll]

Loud and stupid does not make a "sea change". All I've noticed so far is louder and stupider.

[tiredofeverything]

'Sea of change' based on a few loud mouths on a bbs LOL yeah ok

[picchip]

check out Fchase.com

[wtcmedicdidntforget]

the unions just realized that jobs have been going overseas? How many DECADES has it been? I was a kid in NH when a place that made dolls stitched by local housewives moved to CHINA! thats in the early 80's. About time the UNIONS WOKE THE F UP! Also ever think of why jobs went away? UNIONS KILLED THE COMPANY OWNERS. Move the company and make 6 times the income. WOW, rocket science.... They killed the Goose that laid thier golden eggs. Unions time has come to an end, long time ago.... Kill the unions, cut corperate taxes and perhaps we can have work again HERE!

[bonnie1010p]

The unions had nothing to do with the companies going overseas. Do you remember Congress passing a law called NAFTA? This allowed companies to go to other countries to escape high US taxes and give jobs to the people in those countries. The other places fared better at the US's expense. We lost all those jobs to that helped our economy. Hillary Clinton made the comment later that she wished she hadn't voted for that bill. Evidently there was a majority vote. UUHHH, DUUHHH. Bye, bye jobs!!!!!

[RatPackSixGun]

Someone tried to draw a parallel between this and the French Revolution.

French Bourgeoisie parallel congress...not private banks. French mobs were disenfranchised because they were entirely disempowered state subjects that were ignored by their own ruling elite. It has nothing to do with private enterprise in France (or lack thereof). In fact, if France had been more liberal and empowered private enterprise opportunity, the masses wouldn't have been standing in the town square starving, sick, freezing and looking for blood... revolution may not have needed to occur at all.

One would do well to understand that human history is about unbridled suppression of human dignity and outright barbaric atrocity by the state...Not the JP Morgan Chase's of the world.

The chief historical difference of citizen versus subject is the degree of unfettered personal empowerment, primarily through private enterprise. It's true in the west, and it's true in the most squalid corners of the world. Take a look at kiva.org if you think you want to debate this.

In the past decade, congress first pushed to allow insanely irrational high risk loans be made. They then balked at tightening up and closely regulating this ARTIFICIAL market that they created before it melted down. And now they all want to scurry like rats and blame it on the banks, and grossly misguided folks like we read about here today are more than willing to do their bidding.

Smells like we need to clean out Washington, not Wall Street.

[indiethink]

I hate to be in agreement with blowhards.

[packratlaser]

Ratpack said, "One would do well to understand that human history is about unbridled suppression of human dignity and outright barbaric atrocity by the state...Not the JP Morgan Chase's of the world."

What, you never heard of slavery? What about honor killings? Or priests molesting children?

[RatPackSixGun]

""We're here today to stop the corporate greed that is ruining our neighborhoods," said Andrea Goldman, 59, of Springfield, Mass., who's part of a group called Alliance to Develop Power. "

It's not corporate greed ruining neighborhoods in Springfield, MA. It's entitlement mentality of residents unwilling to evolve from factory floor skillset to services in an information economy, usurous tax rates and regulations that prohibit businesses from seeking space in Springfield and MA in general at this point..And that's before you talk about the drug and violence problems on their streets.

Unless some publicly traded company has gotten into the illicit trafficking and sex trade business in Springfield, I don't think that corporate greed is the kind of greed that these grossly misguided and myopic dingbats need to have addressed.

And they are right; the police are underpaid.