About 300 Occupy Wall Street protesters marched on Goldman Sachs' New York headquarters at 200 West Street Monday morning, carrying and wearing giant squid outfits.
The "squidding" was inspired by Rolling Stone writer Matt Taibbi's description of Goldman Sachs as "a great vampire squid wrapped around the face of humanity, relentlessly jamming its blood funnel into anything that smells like money."
"We're standing in solidarity against an investment firm that was highly responsible for the economic crisis," demonstrator Rick McAllister, 22, told The New York Daily News. "My message is: 'For us to survive, you have to go.'"
And Jackie Sheeler, a 54-year-old teacher from West Harlem, told the News she was protesting to end money's influence over politics.
"Goldman Sachs defrauds people ruthlessly. Money has been louder than the voice of the people, but that has to change," she said.
The protest was held in solidarity with Occupy events Monday in Oakland, Cal., Portland, Ore. and Longview, Wash.--where protesters attempted to block ports operated by SSA Marine and grain exporter EGT. Goldman Sachs owns a major stake in SSA Marine.
About 200 protesters also headed to the public atrium at the World Financial Center, owned by Brookefield Properties-- the same company that owns Zuccotti Park.
"We thought we would come over and give Brookfield a direct message," Bill Dobbs, an Occupy Wall Street organizer, told The New York Times.
Police herded the protesters down a staircase and out the atrium door. At least 17 protesters were arrested, the NYPD confirms.
Cops prevented a credentialed photographer (New York Times' Robert Stolarik?) from documenting the arrests: