Protesters march with 70-foot 'Occupy Octopus.' (KTLA-TV) |
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PASADENA, Calif. (KTLA) -- Spectators along Colorado Boulevard for the 2012 Tournament of Roses Parade saw something unusual come down the parade route after the floats.
Thousands of 'Occupy' activists marched down the parade route, waving signs and chanting slogans.
The demonstrators gathered at 7 a.m. at Singer Park and began marching down the route near the parade's end at 9:30 a.m.
The protesters did not have a permit to be an official parade entry, but they had the right -- just like anyone else -- to follow the police cars that bring up the parade's tail end.
The main attractions were a giant 250-foot recreation of the U.S. Constitution and a 70-foot "Occupy Octopus."
The so-called "Octupy Rose Parade" float was made entirely of recycled plastic bags and powered by 36 humans, with tens of people carrying the arms and a smaller group of people holding up the central body.
"It will represent Wall Street, the financial sectors [as] vampires, [with a] squidlike stranglehold," one organizer said.
Several trucks filled with L.A. County sheriff's deputies followed behind the protesters, but no problems were reported.
The protesters received a mixed reaction from parade-goers. Some of them booed, while others waved at the demonstrators.
"We're calling it 'The People's Parade' to contrast against the corporate parade that the Rose Parade has become," an organizer said.
"We have so much support," activist Mark Lipman said, adding that the event was well-publicized through Facebook groups and media attention.
Thousands of 'Occupy' activists marched down the parade route, waving signs and chanting slogans.
The demonstrators gathered at 7 a.m. at Singer Park and began marching down the route near the parade's end at 9:30 a.m.
The protesters did not have a permit to be an official parade entry, but they had the right -- just like anyone else -- to follow the police cars that bring up the parade's tail end.
The main attractions were a giant 250-foot recreation of the U.S. Constitution and a 70-foot "Occupy Octopus."
The so-called "Octupy Rose Parade" float was made entirely of recycled plastic bags and powered by 36 humans, with tens of people carrying the arms and a smaller group of people holding up the central body.
"It will represent Wall Street, the financial sectors [as] vampires, [with a] squidlike stranglehold," one organizer said.
Several trucks filled with L.A. County sheriff's deputies followed behind the protesters, but no problems were reported.
The protesters received a mixed reaction from parade-goers. Some of them booed, while others waved at the demonstrators.
"We're calling it 'The People's Parade' to contrast against the corporate parade that the Rose Parade has become," an organizer said.
"We have so much support," activist Mark Lipman said, adding that the event was well-publicized through Facebook groups and media attention.
