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More protesters are joining the occupation at City Hall Park

By
Social Links for Reuven Fenton and
Social Links for Natalie Musumeci
Published June 25, 2020
Updated June 26, 2020, 9:25 a.m. ET

The occupation of City Hall Park by activists has been growing — as 400 demonstrators slept there overnight Wednesday into Thursday, organizers said.

That’s roughly four times the number of people there on Tuesday night.

Many go home after the “sleepover,” but on Thursday afternoon, there were still about 250 “Occupy City Hall” protesters — some in lawn chairs and sleeping bags, surrounded by a myriad of cardboard signs reading “Defund Police,” “Black Lives Matter” and “I Can’t Breathe” — at City Hall Park and on the adjacent sidewalks throughout the day.

The activists have vowed to camp out through June 30, the day before the City Council’s deadline to approve the 2021 fiscal-year budget.

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Hundreds occupy City Hall Park to call for defunding the NYPD, many are camping out setting up sleeping areas, food, and distributing supplies similar to Occupy Wall Street.
Hundreds occupy City Hall Park to call for defunding the NYPD. Many are camping out, setting up sleeping areas, food, and distributing supplies, similar to Occupy Wall Street.Stephen Yang
Hundreds occupy City Hall Park to call for defunding the NYPD, many are camping out setting up sleeping areas, food, and distributing supplies similar to Occupy Wall Street.
Hundreds occupy City Hall Park to call for defunding the NYPD. Many are camping out, setting up sleeping areas, food, and distributing supplies, similar to Occupy Wall Street.Stephen Yang
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Hundreds occupy City Hall Park to call for defunding the NYPD, many are camping out setting up sleeping areas, food, and distributing supplies similar to Occupy Wall Street.
Hundreds occupy City Hall Park to call for defunding the NYPD. Many are camping out, setting up sleeping areas, food, and distributing supplies, similar to Occupy Wall Street.Stephen Yang
Hundreds occupy City Hall Park to call for defunding the NYPD, many are camping out setting up sleeping areas, food, and distributing supplies similar to Occupy Wall Street.
Hundreds occupy City Hall Park to call for defunding the NYPD. Many are camping out, setting up sleeping areas, food, and distributing supplies, similar to Occupy Wall Street.Stephen Yang
Hundreds occupy City Hall Park to call for defunding the NYPD, many are camping out setting up sleeping areas, food, and distributing supplies similar to Occupy Wall Street.
Hundreds occupy City Hall Park to call for defunding the NYPD. Many are camping out, setting up sleeping areas, food, and distributing supplies, similar to Occupy Wall Street.Stephen Yang
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A sign that reads 'Defund NYPD' is projected onto a curthouse on Chambers Street as protestors gather at a new occupy encampment near City Hall Park in downtown
A sign that reads "Defund NYPD" is projected onto a courthouse on Chambers Street.Stefan Jeremiah
A sign that reads 'City Hall Autonomous Zone' as protestors gather at a new occupy encampment near City Hall Park in downtown, Manhattan
A sign that reads "City Hall Autonomous Zone"Stefan Jeremiah
Protestors gather at a new occupy encampment near City Hall Park in downtown, Manhattan
Protesters gather at a new occupy encampment near City Hall Park.Stefan Jeremiah
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An open letter to Mayor De Blasio written on a sheet
An open letter to Mayor Bill de Blasio written on a sheetStefan Jeremiah
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“We’re determined to fight and not to give up,” said one demonstrator, Winsome Pendergrass, 62, of Brownsville, Brooklyn, explaining that she’s “here for the long haul until we get what we’re demanding.”

“The billion dollars we are calling for, it can be shared equally between housing and education and health care — and for the people in the gay community who are being marginalized and used and discarded by society,” Pendergrass said.

Brooklyn resident Megan Candolfi, 28, added, “Everyone is here to make sure that the momentum keeps going. The goal in the end is complete abolition of the Police Department in general. Everyone wants to invest in community.”

Speaker Corey Johnson and other City Council leaders embraced the “Defund Police” movement this month, calling for $1 billion in cuts.

Mayor Bill de Blasio has said that an unspecified amount of funding would be shifted from the NYPD to various youth groups and social services.

Hizzoner said the protesters are welcome to stay in the park as long as they don’t erect permanent structures.

A medical tent was disassembled by cops on Wednesday.