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Occupy Protesters To Try To Shut Down Ports

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

NPR's business news starts with Occupy Wall Street and West Coast ports.

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INSKEEP: Occupy protesters in cities up and down the West Coast are attempting to paralyze some of the nation's busiest ports today. Organizers say they expect thousands of demonstrators to turn out for what they're calling Wall Street on the Waterfront.

Occupy Protesters in Oakland successfully shut down the port there last month, and they're looking to do it again. Protests are set for cities including Los Angeles, Long Beach and Seattle, and demonstrators are also planning a blockade in the Canadian city of Vancouver.

Organizers say they want to show solidarity with longshoreman and port truckers who say they're being exploited. But the International Longshore and Warehouse Union is distancing itself from today's protests. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.