Broad Street Works Well for Athens Occupy Wall Street Protesters

Hey, you.

You there in the car stopped at the Broad Street light near The Arch.

You there, hurrying downtown to your job at Starbucks. Or pushing that baby stroller.

You're part of the 99 percent of people in the United States getting leftovers while the 1 percent who control most of the country's wealth are living high on the hog. But you, you have a voice, and you can use it.

Join us, the folks waving signs under The Arch. We've been here since 8 a.m. and we won't be leaving until January, at the earliest. We're in it for the long haul.

That's the message of Occupy Wall Street Athens, a group--including students, mothers, lawn care workers, small business owners, restaurant servers and UGA employees, among others--who are joining in spirit with the protesters in New York, Los Angeles and other cities.

They're calling for everyone to pay his or her fair share of taxes and showing that the Far Right isn't the only group who can get noticed.

"Progressives have a voice, too," said Cory Buxton. He's a professor in the UGA College of Education who was there with his wife, Jean-Marie Buxton, and their rescued Greyhound, Cerveaux. "There needs to be a public presence. The Left has something to say."

Jean-Marie Buxton has run a business for 12 years, making and selling soap. She wants the country's tax structure to be changed so that it doesn't benefit just large corporations, like General Electric and Bank of America. The way the tax code operates now "is criminal," she said. "It needs to be equitable."

The couple left The Arch mid-morning to go to their jobs, but said they plan to return later with their three children--all of whom are anxious to accompany them. Protesters said people would come and go during the day and into the night.

Liz Ladd, 28, followed her partner to Athens from Bloomington, Indiana. He's an adjunct political science professor who's constantly looking--fruitlessly--for a tenure track job.

"It's a given that when you're an academic, you move wherever there are jobs," she said. "Now, though, there are no jobs to move to."

She works at . While she likes being in the service industry, she said she realizes there are "extremely overqualified" people waiting tables. "I'm just glad I'm not having to support a child on what I make."

Carter Adams, 28, works and studies at UGA and was instrumental in getting things organized, like the group's electronic presence. He has been quoted as one of the organizers of Occupy Wall Street Athens, but he said that the group is "leaderless. We do everything by consensus." 

Adams said more than 40 people came to a planning meeting Wednesday evening. In attendance were mothers, Libertarians, long-time activists and experienced protesters. They plan to have people at The Arch almost around the clock for the next several weeks. 

He said he sent emails to other Occupy groups but hasn't heard anything as yet.