The Lone Ranger of Zuccotti Park

By Harrison Golden

While over 7,000 Occupy Wall Street protesters marched across New York City on Tuesday, Anam Farooqui returned to where the movement began nearly eight months ago.

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Farooqui, 25, spends most of his nights working at a FedEx store in Queens. But instead of spending his afternoon getting some pre-shift shuteye, he skipped around Zuccotti Park, waving a sign that read “Occupy the World” and listening to Aretha Franklin on his iPod. For most of the afternoon, Farooqui was the only OWS demonstrator stationed inside the park. But he still demanded respect.

"We're gonna re-occupy the park,” he said. “It's always been about the park."

Farooqui lived at the former “Liberty Square” during the first five weeks of last fall’s occupation. He slept on a yoga mat and snuck into the nearby Burger King whenever he had to use the restroom. The experience, he recalled, built a community that he had never seen before.

"Yeah, of course I still keep in touch with the other occupiers,” he added. “We're like a family."

But when he texted his friends, asking if they would join him at the park, he got no responses. The majority of the New York’s demonstrators instead decided to spread the city’s role in the Occupy movement past its Zuccotti Park roots.

Activists called for a general strike -- no work, no school, no shopping, no banking – and worked to hold 99 pickets in front of 99 New York City-based corporate offices, such as those of Bank of America, News Corporation, and Chase. At parks like Bryant Park and Union Square, a majority of the day’s demonstrators held rallies protesting corporate greed. As the day passed, most of them marched down Broadway to Wall Street, passing by Zuccotti Park with little hesitation.

In between skips, Farooqui continued checking his phone for possible replies, muttering to himself in the process.

“It’s no big deal,” he said. “I’ve never been one to care about numbers.”

As sundown approached, Farooqui continued his demonstration, fearing that the history of the Occupy movement was in danger.

“If I stop now, then the entire movement is over,” he added. “Who cares if I’m late to work? I gotta keep moving.”

Cheryl Smith, a single mother of two who participated in September’s demonstrations, got off work early and decided to visit the former protest hub. She sat on a bench for five minutes, watching Farooqui – and no one else – hopping around the park’s east end. She furrowed her brow.

“Is he on drugs?” Smith asked, looking at her watch. "Oh well. I'm thinking maybe I should go home and cook."