By Niraj Warikoo
Detroit Free Press Staff Writer
Occupy Detroit protesters are planning a series of rallies today in several Detroit locations.
They planned to begin at noon at Clark Park in southwest Detroit and then walk to schools, a bus station, and the McNamara Federal Building in downtown Detroit before ending at Grand Circus Park, the site of the group's encampment last year, at about 3:45 p.m., organizers said.
Organizers say as part of today's protest, they will call for a single-day strike, urging people not to work or purchase anything for an entire day.
The Occupy protesters are part of a national movement dedicated to fighting income inequality and exposing what they say is an excessive influence of Wall Street and corporations.
While police have arrested Occupy protesters in other cities, there have been no reported confrontations with police or arrests made in Detroit.
Today's protests coincide with others planned across the country and are being staged on May 1, a day that traditionally has seen demonstrations by labor or immigrant groups. The May 1 rallies are rooted in an incident in Chicago in 1886 called the Haymarket affair, which saw clashes between labor activists and police.
Contact Niraj Warikoo: nwarikoo at freepress.com or 313-223-4792