Labor groups, immigration advocates, Occupy Wall Street protesters and other activists are staging marches and other events in Manhattan with the aim of bringing daily business to a standstill on International Workers Day, or May Day, today.
About 200 people gathered at Bryant Park by about 9 a.m., carrying signs that said "Go on Strike" and chanting as a heavy police presence stood watch. A few blocks away at Grand Central, police followed behind an Occupy marching band as it weaved along the sidewalk.
There were scattered arrests.
Leaders of the now-global movement plan events including picketing, marches and other "creative disruptions against the corporations who rule our city," according to a website maintained by Occupy activists.
Click here for a schedule of planned Occupy events.
On foot and bicycles, through streets and across bridges, Occupy activists are aiming to block urban arteries to slow the city's economic engine — from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., according to pamphlets and organizers' word-of-mouth communications.
The biggest known plan has the support of thousands of union members.
Organizers say Bryant Park is being used as a staging area for picket lines fanning out across midtown to spots where labor organizations have ongoing disputes.
Michael Belt, an organizer for 99 Picket Lines, said his group will target a range of locations, including banks like Wells Fargo and JP Morgan Chase.
The Occupy movement in the city has relied on demonstrations and marches around the city since Nov. 15, when police ousted hundreds of protesters from their base in Zuccotti Park near Wall Street, where they had camped since Sept. 17.
Paul Browne, the police department's chief spokesman, said recently that his department is "experienced at accommodating lawful protests and responding appropriately to anyone who engages in unlawful activity, and we're prepared to do both."
Events and disruptions are planned in cities across the United States and the world on Tuesday as well.
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Copyright Associated Press / NBC New York
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