Photo of the Day: Occupy Black Friday November 25 2011
Several Occupy Atlanta protesters visited local shopping venues to raise awareness about retail holiday
- Dustin Chambers
- Tim Franzen asks an H&M employee on what aisle he can find universal health care.
This afternoon, several groups of Occupy Atlanta protesters visited local shopping venues in an attempt to “raise awareness” about Black Friday. Thirteen Occupy Atlanta activists visited Atlantic Station.
Occupy Atlanta spokesperson Tim Franzen said that the group’s Black Friday plans shifted when they found out that stores were actually opening late on Thanksgiving, instead of Friday morning.
“We showed up at Best Buy and brought Thanksgiving dinner for folks waiting in line,” Franzen said. “We actually had homeless people with us that were feeding the people that were in line to buy stuff — basically people were there giving up their family Thanksgiving night to get a deal on something, which exemplifies the sad state of things.”
Despite having done their good deeds last night, Occupy Atlanta members were back at it again today at Atlantic Station where they visited cheap-chic megastore H&M. Inside three Occupy members handed out flyers and discreetly stuck faux price tags on in-store items that read things like “FREE,” “buy nothing,” and “made at the cost of human dignity.” After the stickers had been dispersed, Franzen patiently waited in the customer service line, and when it was his turn to be helped, “I asked her in the most friendly voice, with a nice smile, if she knew what aisle I could find universal healthcare on, if they carried it in stock, and she said they were out. And then I asked if she had any of Barack Obama’s hope and change that’s been promised since 2008, I’d be willing to wait or whatever and she said they also did not have that in stock. Then I told her happy holidays and shook her hand.”
After H&M, the Occupy groups antics were cut short en route to Old Navy when a squad of security buggies rolled up and asked the group to leave the grounds of Atlantic Station, saying that they were on private property and not allowed to hand out fliers. The Occupy Atlanta group left peacefully.
Later in the afternoon Occupy Atlanta participants reconvened at Woodruff Park to put on a free market at which “Purchasing and bargaining is absolutely not allowed, we’re just giving away food, toys, clothing, stuff like that,” Franzen explained.
“I’ve shopped on Black Friday in my life,” said Franzen. “This certainly isn’t about antagonizing people, because they’re working class people just trying to get a good deal. We’re hoping to create a conversation about consumerism and our spending habits.”