US | Occupy Wall Street 'Occupy Maine' Protesters Make Art to Appease Police Protest signs count as art, right? By Kevin Spak Posted Oct 4, 2011 1:26 PM CDT Copied Benjamin Hider, of Portland, Maine, center, of Portland, Maine,wears a mask and holds up a sign during a protest in Portland, Maine, on Monday, Oct. 3, 2011. (AP Photo/Pat Wellenbach) The Portland, Maine, wing of the “Occupy Wall Street” movement had to get creative to keep their protest legal—literally. On Sunday, police told the would-be occupiers that they didn’t have a permit to erect a tent in Portland’s Monument Square, but the next day police came up with a solution: Each protester could claim four square feet of space to “make or sell artwork”—in this case painted protest signs, the Bangor Daily News reports. The protesters say they plan on sticking around for the long haul, and intend to bring food and medical supplies to the site. “This isn’t just a protest, this is an occupation,” said one protester, a student from the University of Southern Maine. So far it is not a large group—only around 100 showed up Saturday afternoon—but protesters aren’t discouraged. “We had more people at our first general assembly than they did on Wall Street,” one said. Read These Next Locals are furious about the planned demolition of a landmark bridge. The latest mass shooting in the US took place from a boat. US to pull Colombian president's visa over protest. Stampede kills 36 at rally for Indian actor-politician. Report an error