OWS is evicted

Early on Wednesday morning, New York Police officers raided Zucotti Park, evicting the occupiers who had camped there for almost two months. James Downie bemoans the eviction as an affront to free speech:

At 1 a.m. this morning, in the heart of New York City, protesters exercising their constitutional rights to free speech and assembly were swept away by the state, while that state also did all it could to preventmedia coverage. No matter what one may think of the occupiers or their cause, nothing they’ve done justifies blockading the press or ignoring court orders. Mayor Bloomberg, Police Commissioner Ray Kelly and other New York leaders who ordered the eviction should take a long, hard look at their handling of the occupation. This morning’s action may not be what a police state looks like, but it’s certainly how one begins.

Of course, the question remains as to whether Bloomberg has really solved the problem, or actually just given the protesters a greater sense of purpose. I think Matthew Yglesias might be right:

OWS was either going to end with the cops clearing the park, or else it was going to end with the protestors losing interest. It would be totally human and understandable for the protestors to end up fading away as the weather gets colder, but that would be demoralizing to everyone who’s come to look at the various Occupations as a key signal of popular discontent with rampant inequality. Instead, by ordering the protestors to be removed the Bloomberg administration has ensured continued relevance for the issue.

(Image: "Zuccotti Park was empty on Tuesday morning." Angel Franco/The New York Times)