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ATLANTA -- The Occupy Atlanta movement protested in major retail stores on Black Friday and later held its own "really, really free market" in Woodruff Park.
As shoppers lined up around midnight outside of stores, protesters used the "people's mic" to extort them to reconsider their choices.
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"Today in our global economy, the only vote that counts is the vote we make with our dollars. Every dollar we spend is an opportunity to vote in our values that are important to us," the protesters shouted in a video. They targeted Best Buy, Walmart and Target, also asking store employees rhetorical questions, such as the location of "universal healthcare" and "Barack Obama's hope and change."
Later in the afternoon, around 50 people gathered in Woodruff Park in downtown Atlanta, which the movement has renamed Troy Davis Park, for the Georgian man who was executed in September following a controversial trial. Organizers handed out free food, while participants donated and picked out items in the grass, with no money exchanged.
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"There's a rising tide of dissatisfaction -- even anger," said Rich Breyer, who was holding a sign that read, "Think Globally, Act Locally, Occupy It All." Breyer, who donated toys that his daughter had outgrown, noted that the area had massive chain stores and a number of malls, with very little resistance from residents.
Dean Saddeth, who works in a union job that manufactures plexiglass, added that while he was dissatisfied with Obama's policies, it was too early to channel the movement towards a particular political candidate. Breyer said he might support someone like Ron Paul or Michael Bloomberg.
Occupy Atlanta began shortly after the original movement in New York, congregating by Woodruff Park in a series of General Assemblies. Protesters were initially allowed to camp at the park through an executive order from Atlanta mayor Kasim Reed, but the order was later revoked after conditions were said to be unsafe. Dozens were arrested in the last month, although there was no sign of police on Friday.
"This is a peaceful movement," said Michael Collier, one of the organizers.
Tim Frazen, a spolesman for Occupy Atlanta, said he believed the movement was the beginning of a 10 to 20-year struggle.
"It's changing the conversation," he said. "It's bringing up topics that people aren't talking about."
Franzen said that conditions in Atlanta make it an appropriate battle ground. He said it was the most unequal city in the country -- U.S. Census data reports that it is the third-most unequal cities by income, with the top 5 percent earning 28.5 percent of total income. Atlanta also has one of the highest foreclosure rates in the country, acording to RealtyTrac.
Franzen said Occupy Atlanta plans to occupy two foreclosed houses on Dec. 6, and have civil rights leader Joseph Lowery speak. The group plans to educate local residents about credit unions and move consumers away from banks in January.
"We have to stop every foreclosure in its tracks," said Franzen.
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