Sunday afternoon in Lower Manhattan, I ran into Salman Rushdie, who was walking nonchalantly through Zuccotti Park with his son. The renowned author's presence went largely unnoticed by the thousands of protesters, media, and tourists crowding the park observing the Occupation demonstration.
On his way out of the park, Rushdie graciously took a few moments to talk with me about what he'd just witnessed. It was his first visit to the demonstrations and he was clearly moved by what he saw.
Last week, Rushdie -- along with 100 other authors including Jeff Sharlet, Neil Gaiman, Margaret Atwood, and Alice Walker -- declared their support for the Occupation in an online petition, which read:
We, the undersigned writers and all who will join us, support Occupy Wall Street and the Occupy Movement around the world.
Read more about how Rushdie, Sharlet and the others came to express their support for the Occupation HERE.
Cathleen Falsani is Web Editor and Director of New Media for Sojourners. Her latest book, BELIEBER!: Fame, Faith and the Heart of Justin Bieber, was released last month.
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