|
Prince said about $350,000 has been donated by credit card through the movement's website, while the rest was given by mail or in person. The alliance takes 7 percent of each credit card donation. That gets split between the credit card companies' fees and the salary of the alliance's accountant, Kaufman said. Prince said volunteers were working to have Occupy Wall Street's financial records posted online as soon as the end of the week. The amorphous group has no clear plans yet on how to spend much of the money. For now, the fund doles out $100 a day to each of the dozen "working groups" that keep the month-long protest going
-- from sanitation and medical to finance and media. Any other expenditures -- extra laptops, for instance -- are voted on by the "general assembly" of protesters that meets daily, voting "thumbs up" or "thumbs down" on larger items after discussing the pros and cons. The long-term picture for the movement includes surviving the imminent New York winter. "A lot of people say we need to get an indoor space" -- in addition to the outdoor encampment, Prince said. Activists also are working with legal experts to identify alternate sites where the risk of getting kicked out would be relatively low. Last week, the company that owns Zuccotti Park threatened to bar campers from the property, but quickly backed off. Daniel Levine, 26, a musician from Brooklyn, agreed the movement "needs to winterize." He said the fund could be used to help buy frost-proof clothing and other equipment to keep protesters warm. "I'm flabbergasted there's this much money, but in a way, I'm not surprised, considering the sentiments that we all share now
-- of being disenfranchised," said Levine. Prince also hopes the movement's money could be used for financial training in what he calls "the model for change"
-- defined in myriad ways by protesters, but one "that doesn't look like the Wall Street model." Protester Megan Blackburn, of Brooklyn, had more immediate ideas for the money as she cleaned the park pavement with a broom and dustpan Tuesday. She hoped the fund will buy her "a new broom that really sweeps." When asked if she might buy one herself, she said, "Are you kidding? These things are expensive in Manhattan!"
[Associated
Press;
Copyright 2011 The Associated
Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
News | Sports | Business | Rural Review | Teaching & Learning | Home and Family | Tourism | Obituaries
Community |
Perspectives
|
Law & Courts |
Leisure Time
|
Spiritual Life |
Health & Fitness |
Teen Scene
Calendar
|
Letters to the Editor