The arrests were mostly peaceful and came as somewhat of a contrast to earlier demonstrations, where protesters took care to follow laws in order to continue protesting Wall Street's role in the financial crisis and other grievances about economic injustice. The arrests came after a day of protests in cities around the world where tens of thousands gathered to rally against what they see as corporate greed.
At least one protest overseas grew violent. In Rome, rioters hijacked what had been a peaceful gathering and smashed windows, tore up sidewalks and torched vehicles. Repair costs were estimated at $1.4 million, the mayor said Sunday.
US cities large and small were "occupied" over the weekend: Washington, DC, Fairbanks, Alaska, Burlington, Vermont, Rapid City, South Dakota, and Cheyenne, Wyoming, were just a few. In Cincinnati, protesters moved their demonstration out of a park after hearing that a couple was getting their wedding photos taken there _ but the bride and groom ended up seeking them out for pictures.
In addition to the arrests in Chicago, more than 70 New York protesters were arrested Saturday, including at least 40 in Times Square. There were about 100 arrests in Arizona _ 53 in Tucson and 46 in Phoenix _ after protesters refused police orders to disperse from parks. About two dozen people were arrested in Denver.
In Sacramento, California, anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan, whose son was killed in the Iraq War, was among about 20 people arrested early Sunday after failing to follow police orders to disperse.
In Washington, author, commentator, civil rights activist and Princeton University professor Cornel West was arrested while protesting on the steps of the Supreme Court about corporate influence in politics, a legal adviser to the protesters said. A Supreme Court spokeswoman said 19 people were arrested Sunday afternoon after they refused to leave the grounds of the court.
In Chicago, about 500 people had set up camp at the entrance to Grant Park on Saturday evening after a protest earlier in the day involving about 2,000. Police said they gave protesters repeated warnings after the park closed at 11pm and began making arrests when they refused to leave.
Officers also asked protesters to take down their tents before beginning to cut them down to clear the area, police said. Protesters were released Sunday and face court dates.
The decision to stay in the park "was very much a choice and calculated," said Randy Powell, a 27-year-old student at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago who was among those arrested. "I feel like I had to."
The tactic to occupy a city park has been used in other places with local officials often working to accommodate them. For example, protesters in Iowa reached a deal with Des Moines' mayor to move from the state Capitol to a city park, avoiding arrests. Plans to temporarily evict New York protesters from the park where the Occupy Wall Street protest began weeks ago so the grounds could be power-washed were postponed at the request of political leaders Friday.
But Chicago protesters said they've come up short. Some organizers said conversations with city officials weren't encouraging, but they also have yet to apply for permits. A message left Sunday for Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel's office wasn't immediately returned.
And in Minneapolis, sheriff's deputies tore down makeshift tents at a county government plaza but made no arrests, Minnesota Public Radio reported. Though the protesters are allowed to stay on the plaza all night, tents are banned.
Throughout the US, from several dozen people in Jackson, Mississippi, to some 2,000 each in Pittsburgh and Chicago, the protest movement gained momentum.
Nearly 1,500 gathered for a march on Saturday past banks in downtown Orlando, Florida. Hundreds marched on a Key Bank branch in Anchorage, Alaska, and declared it should be foreclosed.
In Colorado, about 1,000 people rallied in downtown Denver to support Occupy Wall Street and at least two dozen were arrested.
Rallies drew young and old, laborers and retirees. In Pittsburgh, marchers included parents with children in strollers. The peaceful crowd stretched for two or three blocks.
"I see our members losing jobs. People are angry," said Janet Hill, 49, who works for the United Steelworkers labor union, which she said hosted a sign-making event before the march.
Retired teacher Albert Siemsen said at a demonstration in Milwaukee that he'd grown angry watching school funding get cut at the same time banks and corporations gained more influence in government. The 81-year-old wants to see tighter Wall Street regulation.
Around him, protesters held signs reading: "Keep your corporate hands off my government," and "Mr. Obama, Tear Down That Wall Street."
In Canada, demonstrators gathered Saturday in cities across the country from Halifax, Nova Scotia, to Vancouver, British Columbia, with hundreds of people protesting in the heart of Toronto's financial district. Some protesters spent the night at parks in Toronto and several other cities.
Overseas, tens of thousands nicknamed "the indignant" marched in cities across Europe, as the protests that began in New York linked up with long-running demonstrations against government cost-cutting and failed financial policies in Europe. Protesters also turned out in Australia, Asia and South Africa.
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