OLYMPIA, Wash. – Occupy Olympia has until midnight Thursday night to clear out of Heritage Park on Washington's Capitol Campus. Governor Chris Gregoire Thursday issued a cease-and-desist notice. Her move comes more than a month after the state asked for the voluntary removal of tents and two months to the day after the camp was established.
"We have allowed people to express their First Amendment rights unfettered," Gregoire says. "We have been as patient as we could. And now it's time for them to go home."
For those who are homeless, Gregoire says help is available to find other shelter. The Occupy Olympia camp includes about 60 tents and several wooden structures.
Thursday afternoon several residents were heeding the eviction notice and packing up. Bruce Wilkinson is an Occupy Olympia organizer. He agrees it's time to go.
"Conditions were deteriorating, people are leaving town, people have holiday stuff so a lot of the effort that went into supporting the camp has fallen back a lot," Wilkinson says.
Wilkinson hopes the Occupy Olympia movement will regroup and channel its energy into other actions. However, he expects some people will defy the eviction notice and are prepared to go to jail.
It's not clear if or when the State Patrol will move in.
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Copyright 2011 Northwest News Network
Copyright 2011 Northwest News Network