On Wall Street, a Protest Matures – NYTimes.com

ANDREW ROSS SORKIN, who gets phone calls from Wall Street CEOs went down to Zuccotti Park to check out the protest.

“Is this Occupy Wall Street thing a big deal?” the C.E.O. asked me. I didn’t have an answer. “We’re trying to figure out how much we should be worried about all of this,” he continued, clearly concerned. “Is this going to turn into a personal safety problem?”

A personal safety issue? No. But . . .

… the underlying message of Occupy Wall Street — which spread to Boston, Chicago and Los Angeles on Monday — is something the big banks and corporate America may finally have to grapple with before it actually does become dangerous.

What’s the message?

At times it can be hard to discern, but, at least to me, the message was clear: the demonstrators are seeking accountability for Wall Street and corporate America for the financial crisis and the growing economic inequality gap.

And that message is a warning shot about the kind of civil unrest that may emerge — as we’ve seen in some European countries — if our economy continues to struggle.

via On Wall Street, a Protest Matures – NYTimes.com.

Tags: banks, occupy wall street, occupywallstreet, protest