Durham, NC – 40 people marched here, Nov. 12, from Occupy Durham's rallying place in downtown Durham to a Wells Fargo branch two miles away, to protest big banks like Wells Fargo, Citibank, Bank of America and others. Protesters chanted, “Hey hey Wells Fargo, foreclosures have got to go!” and “Banks got bailed out, we got sold out!” After arriving at the bank, ten people withdrew their money and closed down their accounts with Wells Fargo. Outside the bank, protesters held signs and denounced foreclosures and exploitative lending practices – under the watchful eye of three Durham police squad cars and another police officer on foot.

The protest was part of the national “Move your money” campaign, which has seen [650,000 open up accounts at local credit unions](http://thinkprogress.org/special/2011/11/03/360804/650000-americans-credit-unions/) in October 2011 – more than all of 2010 combined. That campaign has itself gained steam based on the Occupy Wall Street movement that is sweeping across the country, with hundreds of encampments and protests against the wealthy and elite taking place every week.

Organizer Alex Chassanoff with [Occupy Durham](http://www.occupydurham.org) commented, “We're against the big banks' predatory lending, illegal foreclosure practices, extremely high interest rates and hidden fees. We want people to invest in the local community, not with the banks that represent the interests of the 1%.”

#DurhamNC #OccupyWallStreet #OccupyDurham #MoveYourMoney

Durham, NC – Over 60 protesters marched on Durham City Hall here, Nov. 2, where the Public Utilities Commission was holding a hearing about Duke Energy's proposed 18% rate hike. After rallying outside, 200 people packed the two-hour hearing in City Hall to speak out against the rate hike.

The march kicked off at the newly-renamed People's Plaza, where [Occupy Durham](http://www.occupydurham.org) has had an encampment over the last several weeks. 40 people rallied before marching through downtown Durham, chanting “No hike, No way! Duke Energy, we won't pay!” and “Money for jobs and education, not for greedy corporations!”

Outside the Public Utilities Commission hearing, a press conference organized by North Carolina WARN (Waste Awareness & Reduction Network) brought together speakers from numerous community organizations and businesses in the area. Rafael Estrada, speaking as a member of the Occupy Durham movement at the press conference, stated, “We want to point out how obscene it is for a corporation that had record profits of $1.3 billion in 2010 to ask for a rate increase of 17% in 2011. This increase means a hard blow to all residents in the state and it would be especially harmful to those that are mostly affected by corporate greed: those below and near the poverty line, the unemployed and the undocumented.”

Duke Energy claims the rate hike is necessary to “begin recovering $4.8 billion in investments made since 2009 to modernize our electric system and comply with state and federal emissions regulations.” But according to their own statements, [75% of the increase would go to capital investments](http://www.duke-energy.com/north-carolina/nc-rate-change.asp). This means the public is footing the bill for the foundation of future profits for Duke Energy. Duke Energy's profits went up [23% in 2010 alone, to $1.3 billion](http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2011/02/18/2071433/duke-earnings-up-23-in-2010.html).

Alissa Ellis is an unemployed mother who is active with Occupy Durham and helped lead the rally outside the hearing. Ellis told Fight Back!, “It is important to educate people about what big greedy corporations are doing because most of the public is in the dark.”

Ellis continued, “It is important for the city of Durham to show to the commission that we don't support this increase. We are a broad coalition of people, we are the 99%, and the 1% shouldn't be allowed to push us around anymore and take our money.”

Duke Energy is also facing heat due to a planned merger with Progress Energy. The merger would result in the country's largest utility – an enormously powerful monopoly – valued at $65 billion.

#DurhamNC #OccupyWallStreet #OccupyDurham #DukeEnergy #NCWARN

Durham, NC – A spirited march of 35 people weaved its way through downtown Durham at noon on Nov. 2, making stops at the Durham Police Station, the Court House and the jail before rallying at People's Plaza.

Commenting on the purpose of the demonstration, Adam Pyburn of Occupy Durham said, “We're standing in solidarity with the city of Oakland and their decision to hold a general strike, their fight back against police and government repression. And we stand in solidarity with the people of Durham who have to fight that fight every day.”

The city of Oakland was the scene of a violent police crackdown last week on Occupy Oakland that left an Iraq war veteran critically wounded and resulted in scores of arrests. In response, Occupy Oakland issued a call for a general strike and solidarity marches on Nov. 2. Occupy Durham heeded the call.

The protesters handed out fliers and received enthusiastic support from passersby. Some people joined in as the march passed through downtown, chanting, “Fired up, can't take it no more!” and holding signs against police brutality.

At the closing rally at People's Plaza, speakers spoke about Oakland, Occupy Wall Street, Occupy Durham and FBI repression.

Justine Johnson, a speaker at the rally, told *Fight Back!*, “Barely two years after transit police murdered Oscar Grant, sparking widespread street protests in Oakland, the courageous people of Oakland are proving again the transformative power of masses of people taking to the streets. Today, the whole world is watching Oakland. As a participant of Occupy Durham, I supported today's march and rally. I marched to show solidarity with Oakland, to oppose police harassment and brutality in all communities and to fight for a new system that will liberate us all.”

Joan Walsh, with the Triangle Committee to Stop FBI Repression, said, “The repression against the Occupy movement, the 2000 arrests in the last month, is political repression - just like the FBI repression that antiwar and solidarity activists are facing. It's repression used by the 1% against the 99% and those working for social change.”

#DurhamNC #PoliceBrutality #CommitteeToStopFBIRepression #OccupyWallStreet #OccupyDurham #OccupyOakland

Kosta Harlan, an organizer with the Occupy Durham movement said, “Working people did not cause this crisis, but we pay for it every day while the 1% get richer and richer. The 1% tell us there is no money for people's needs – healthcare, education, jobs – yet they find the money for two wars, endless bank bailouts, and tax breaks for the wealthy and corporations. Enough is enough!”

The Occupy Raleigh movement [applied for a permit](http://www.scribd.com/doc/68766221/Occupy-Raleigh-Permit) to camp out at the Capitol grounds until November 5, but the permit was denied on Oct. 12 by North Carolina Department of Administration. A spokesperson for the department, Jill Lucas, [cited budget cuts to the State Capitol Police force](http://pulse.ncpolicywatch.org/2011/10/14/occupying-raleigh-for-at-least-a-few-hours-2/) as a primary reason for denying the permit. This sets the stage for the State Capitol police and Raleigh police to attempt to shut down the demonstration when the permit expires at 3 p.m. tomorrow.

Youth organizer Monserrat Alvarez with NC HEAT (Heroes Emerging Among Teens) told *Fight Back!*, “It's important to mobilize for this event because students and workers are some of the people that are greatly affected by the capitalist government. Student's education is put last in the capitalist agenda because they understand that if we receive an education we will break out of this cycle of oppression.”

Alvarez continued, “By cutting funding they guarantee that only high income students receive an education, make it difficult for working class students to receive an education, students graduate with high amounts of debt from raising tuition, and are not able to get a job in this capitalist society.”

*Read more [Fight Back! coverage of Occupy Wall street](http://www.fightbacknews.org/news/special-coverage/occupy-wall-street) and follow [@fightbacknews](https://twitter.com/#!/fightbacknews) for live updates from #OccupyWallStreet protests around the country.*

#RaleighNC #OccupyWallStreet #OccupyRaleigh #NCHEAT #OccupyDurham