Leftist Malcontents and Homeless "Occupy Nashville."

Counting myself, there were almost as many media members as protesters.

I got my Moveon.org marching orders this morning in an email urging me to go to the State Capitol at 12 noon to occupy Nashville. I rushed down on my lunch break and got there at about 12:20. There were, maybe, a total of about 20 people either on the street holding signs or scattered about the Plaza. There were about three to five news crews covering the event. Here are my pictures.

They had lots of already made signs.

Wade Steven Gordon and Michael Covington, homeless counter protesters (sort of)

I spoke to two people camping out on the plaza and just assumed they were part of the protest and they were, sort of.  Wade Gordon and Michael Covington are two homeless men. They are not victims of the recent economic downturn however.  Mr. Gordon, 55 years of age, said he has been homeless for the last 30 years. Mr. Covington, 48 years of age, said he had been homeless for the last 15 years.  They both spent last night camping out on the Plaza with a hand full of the other protesters. 

When asked why they were participating in the protest, Mr. Covington said, “I am just fed up.” 

"Things are just not right,” said Mr. Gordon. "The government is not doing all it should to help people. The government wants to keep the rich man stay rich and the poor man stay poor.”

However, Mr. Gordon and Mr. Covington have their disagreements with the other protesters but they had a hard time articulating their point of disagreement.  "I don't agree with all their values," said Covington. They said the protesters are no more representative of the majority of the people than are the 1% who are the wealthy, that is if I understood them correctly.  Also, they seemed to have a disdain that the other protesters were insufficiently committed. “I was up at 4:30 this morning,” said Mr. Gordon. “And where were they? Sound asleep.” 

Mr. Gordon did not tell me what he thought the other protesters should have been doing at 4:30 in the morning. “If you are going to protest, you need to stand up,” said Gordon.  “I understand, some people have to work,” he said, “but if you are serious about this, you don’t protest for a little while then go home to Momma and Daddy.”

I asked them if they were being paid to participate in the protest and they said they were not.

My Moveon.org marching orders.(I belong to MoveOn so you don't have to.)

Make Wall Street pay in Nashville on Monday

Monday, October 10, 2011 10:19 AM

From:"Christine B."  

To:"Rod Williams"

Make Wall Street Pay: Jobs Not Cuts Monday in Nashville Host: Christine B., MoveOn member Where: State Capitol (in Nashville) When: Monday, Oct. 10, at 12:00 PM Can you come? Click below for more details and to RSVP: I can come. Sorry, I can't make it this time, but keep me updated on the campaign. What: The media is finally starting to pay attention to the tens of thousands of people demanding Wall Street pay to create jobs, not cuts. This is our chance to push for policies that work for the 99% of us who can't afford lobbyists. Whether protesting banks not paying their fair share, rallying for jobs, or standing in solidarity with Occupy Wall Street, we'll amplify our message for politicians: jobs now--make Wall Street pay!  And don't worry, this email was sent through the MoveOn system, so your personal contact info is kept private.

---

Top Stories