“Occupy the Hood” Joins Wall Street Protests

After several weeks of intense marches, in which thousands of labor union workers have recently joined in, the Occupy Wall Street movement shows no signs of letting up. In fact, protesters will have to make room for a new group on the block, Occupy the Hood.

Queens resident Malik Rhasaan started the group because he was curious about the protests, but didn’t see many people of color represented. “I noticed there isn't a strong Black and Latino presence, or a strong Asian presence for that matter," Rhasaan told the Village Voice. "I realized a lot of people just don't know about it." He recruited friend Ife Johari Uhuru of Detroit, and the two have spread their message on their Twitter page over the past two weeks. The page already has more than 4,500 followers. On the Occupy the Hood Facebook page, the following message is posted:

“The neighborHOODs is where the hearts of the people are. Our homes, our parks, our selves. It is in our best interest to have all abled voices heard to bring forth a peaceful solution in this world we have been given. There are millions of people that are effected by the Wall Street crisis. The questionable, unethical activities downtown Manhattan ... and in corporate America directly affects our economic struggles and the future of all business and personal endeavors.”

The group says it doesn’t want to separate itself from the Occupy Wall Street movement. However, they feel issues concerning minorities are often underrepresented. "I see Occupy Wall Street putting forth demands and a lot of times those demands don't speak to the 99% that we all claim to be," Uhuru said to the newspaper. "Some people can't speak for certain people.”