On Friday, November 23, Occupy Long Beach protested in front of the Walmart store located in Downtown Long Beach in support of Walmart employees. The protesters demanded higher wages, health care benefits, and better hours for Walmart employees. None of the Walmart employees joined the strike, and a couple workers reported that they were threatened to be fired on the spot if they joined the strike or engaged in a conversation with any members of the Occupy group.
The demonstration was peaceful until the police saw nineteen year old Honor O'Kane drawing on the cement. O'Kane was taken aside while the members of Occupy group were trying to persuade the police that drawing on the ground with chalk was not illegal and cannot be confused with a graffiti created by spray paint. As a result, Vivian Price, a professor of labor studies at CSUDH was arrested on a charge resisting arrest and obstruction of justice. Price was handcuffed and taken to the Long Beach Police Department.
Report and photos: Occupy Long Beach Strikes at Walmart on Black Friday, November 23, 2012 by Natasha Petrosova