Occupy Easton Plans to Gather at Scott Park Saturday

After seeing , Rob Heckman wondered how much interest there would be in an "Occupy Easton" group.

So he did what a lot of people might do: .

A week later, the Occupy Easton group has 155 members -- as of this writing, anyway -- and some of them are planning on holding their first public demonstration Saturday at noon at Scott Park.

"I really didn't expect it to swell so fast, but here we are," Heckman said Friday.

Like the Allentown group, this one is a mix of people from different ideologies, Heckman said. "You have self-proclaimed Socialists, some Libertarians, full-on Tea Party people."

Heckman can't speak for the entire group, but says he was motivated by the financial collapse a few years ago. "No one's ever been held accountable," he said. He's also concerned about the influence of corporate money on politics.

"Occupy" groups have begun forming around the country in response to the Occupy Wall Street movement in New York City. There's been debate as well; even our brief news item announcing the has gotten close to 350 comments.

There are demonstrations planned all over the world Saturday in 951 cities.

It's not clear how many people will attend Saturday's gathering in Easton. Heckman said the dozen or so people who've said they'd be there have also indicated they'd bring others. It won't be an extended protest.

"It's not going to be tents and tarps," Heckman said.

The group plans to meet with Easton police next week to discuss future events. They've also scheduled an orgnaizational meeting for Scott Park Sunday at 1 p.m. According to the Occupy Easton Facebook page, the group will also collect non-perishable food items for .