Occupiers protest as Pitt students return to campus

The protesters want to make one thing clear: Occupy Pittsburgh is still occupying.

About 10… The protesters want to make one thing clear: Occupy Pittsburgh is still occupying.

About 10 Occupy Pittsburgh members came to Oakland Tuesday afternoon to reach out to students and speak out at Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald’s inauguration ceremony at Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hall.

Occupiers rallied earlier on the corner of Forbes Avenue and Bigelow Boulevard with cardboard signs, trying to attract the attention of returning Pitt students.

Will Flynn, 25, of East End, said the protesters chose Oakland today partly because they wanted students to be aware of Chancellor Mark Nordenberg’s position on the Board of Directors for BNY Mellon.

Occupy Pittsburgh, which started Oct. 15 with a march and rally Downtown, is an offshoot of the Occupy Wall Street movement that started in Zuccotti Park in New York on Sept. 17. The protesters in Pittsburgh set up camp on Mellon Green, BNY Mellon’s park.

Flynn said that students should ask that Nordenberg ensure that BNY Mellon continues to maintain ethical standards.

BNY Mellon is currently facing charges of allegedly charging state and local pension funds for foreign exchange. Virginia, Florida, New York and the Department of Justice have all sued the bank. But the bank has refuted the lawsuits.

The Occupiers then moved to Fitzgerald’s inauguration ceremony at Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hall. As attendees prepared for the ceremony to begin, six Occupiers shouted a mic check, consequently ushering forth about five police officers. Before the Occupiers could get their message out, the police grabbed hold of the Occupiers. They pushed one to the ground before the protesters were sent outside the building.

“They’re just doing what they’re told to do,” said Quinn Elliott, 20, of East Liberty, once the police escorted the protesters back onto the sidewalk.

Jan Kiefer, 52, of Scottdale, Pa., travels about an hour to Pittsburgh to attend Occupy Pittsburgh events. He said it’s the few people who show up to voice their concerns despite the bad weather and lack of interest who show dedication to the cause. But the protesters are generally lacking a certain group of people.

“Students don’t come, and the question is why?” he said.

Flynn said the Arab Spring was primarily dominated by people under the age of 30 who demanded change. He said Occupy Pittsburgh’s message is mainly about people speaking up for what they feel is wrong.

“You can’t be dismissed from school for disagreeing with the chancellor,” he said. “You’ve really got to take it up a notch,” Kiefer said about students.