Politics & Government

Occupy Harrisburg Protesters Have Separate Goals

A Harrisburg group wants to see changes in capitalism and politics.

By Stacy Brown | PA Independent

At 18, Nick Koziatek, an unemployed construction worker, said he is anti-corporate America, anti-prisons and anti-formal education.

"I believe there should be no system of government whatsoever. My means of fighting such is not getting involved at all. I don't believe we should work for any corporations. We should live as human beings," said the Harrisburg resident, who added that he is tired of a system that restricts people to working for a living and incarcerates those convicted of most nonviolent crimes. 

Find out what's happening in Hellertown-Lower Sauconwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Koziatek and his girlfriend, Katie Goodyear, who plans to pursue a master’s degree, have been participating in Occupy Harrisburg. Protesters have camped at the bottom steps of the Capitol, while others have set up tents and slept in nearby RiverFront Park. 

Last week--with unseasonably warm temperatures hovering in the low 60s--five protesters held signs near the Capitol about the "99 percent" and waved as passing motorists, including a U.S. Postal Service truck driver, honked their horns to show support for the movement.

Find out what's happening in Hellertown-Lower Sauconwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

A small gaggle of tables that adorn the protest site contained neatly arranged leaflets about Occupy as well as food supplies. A tent to protect the protesters from the elements sat on the ground on the sun-filled morning. 

Occupy Harrisburg is an offshoot of Occupy Wall Street, or OWS, which began in September in New York City’s Zuccotti Park in the city's financial district. The OWS battle cry is that the one percent of the nation's wealthy receive an abundance of favors from the government, such as tax breaks, as opposed to the 99 percent, who are forced to carry the financial load. 

Several hundred OWS protesters began decrying the social and economic system in United States, which they say contains mass inequity, corruption, corporate greed and corporations with strong influence over government and government officials. 

Goodyear, 19, points to what he perceives as the irreparable harm corporate greed has caused everyone worldwide. 

"We agree with the 99 percent who want change," said the Harrisburg-based college freshman. "There should not be capitalism and, right now, any change would be a good change."

Koziatek said he supports everyone having the freedom to live without having to be concerned with earning a living and paying bills and taxes. 

"As soon as (Goodyear) is finished with her master's, we are just going to hit the rails, travel the tracks, squat in abandoned buildings and have some fun, I guess," Koziatek said.

Pat Regina said she too won’t rest until change occurs. The former certified nursing assistant who lives in Harrisburg said everyone should be treated equally, with Americans earning a fair wage for their work and high-income earners being taxed accordingly. 

"I will be here as long as it takes to show what democracy looks like," said Regina, 43, at the protest site. 

Regina said she left her full-time job because buses and other public transportation did not run on time, and the cost of a taxi--about a $15 ride to work each way--was too prohibitive. 

Anywhere from 20 to 100 people have sat in rotating shifts at the state Capitol footsteps each day. At about 7 p.m. daily, the group holds what it calls a general assembly. A moderator is chosen to head each meeting, where protesters address issues affecting the group. One General Assembly meeting last month was attended by lawyers from the Pennsylvania American Civil Liberties Union who informed the protesters about their right to demonstrate.

With violence erupting out of some Occupy movements, such as in Oakland, Calif., the visit from the ACLU was welcome, Regina said.

"I think what happened in Oakland, while it was not a positive thing, there were positive things that came out of the violence. It let the media know that the movement is not a bunch of young kids with nothing to do with their lives, but it's about people who are demonstrating for a change," she said.

Capitol and Harrisburg police said the protesters have adhered to the one restriction authorities have placed on them, said Troy Thompson, spokesman with the Pennsylvania Department of General Services, which manages Capitol Police and all state buildings and facilities.

"After 8 p.m., they cannot be on Commonwealth property, but we told them they are fine at the bottom steps of the Capitol as long as they don't prohibit any movement on the sidewalks," Thompson said. "We haven't had any problems with Occupy, but there have been individuals who have approached them, and Occupy has alerted us to them," he said, referring to people who have harassed or shouted obscenities at the group.

Like Occupy Wall Street, which has spread to cities throughout the nation and the world, most Occupy Harrisburg participants said they want to rid the globe of powerful corporations and take politics out of government.

"I really want to get injustices that are going on to be on everybody's lips instead of people sitting down and watching their television shows," said Dylan Kleine, 20, of Harrisburg and a freshman at Harrisburg Area Community College. Kleine also works nights for a whole food distributor in Harrisburg.

"This (protest) isn't against all corporations. They have the same 99 percent to one percent ratio, and there are corporations who are abusing their powers they have with government in that they can pay to get things done as opposed to us voting to get things done," he said.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here