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Til Kettling Nets Do They Part: OWS Protesters Get Hitched!
By
Christopher Robbins
Published Nov 13, 2011
Modified Nov 13, 2011
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By
Christopher Robbins
Published Nov 13, 2011
Modified Nov 13, 2011
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Zuccotti Park has already seen a proposal, but today a couple who met six weeks ago at the Occupy Wall Street protests got married in a traditional Muslim ceremony officiated by a NYU chaplain. 24-year-old Emery Abdel-Latif and 19-year old Micha Balon were wed at around 11 a.m. "Neither of us believed in love before we came here, and now that we found each other, we believe it exists," Abdel-Latif tells the Daily News.
The groom was living at home in Westchester, preparing to apply to law schools when he decided to live in Zuccotti, while the bride is a Middle Eastern studies major at Hunter College and is originally from Staten Island. After meeting in the park, their courtship consisted of dates in Lower Manhattan, where they talked about the issues of the movement and their Muslim faith. "Activism is the one thing that drew us together. We're both very passionate about the same things," Abdel-Latif says.
The couple has been staying in separate tents and haven't decided whether to move into one, but they do plan to keep protesting in the park. Normally we'd make the requisite "if the tent is a-rockin don't come a-knocking" joke, but this is just too damn sweet.
Tagged
hunter college
marriage
NYU
occupy marriage
occupy my life
occupy wall street
romance
Zuccotti Park
Christopher Robbins
Christopher Robbins is a New York City reporter covering transportation, affordable housing, local politics, and criminal justice. His work has also appeared in New York Magazine, The Village Voice and The New York Times. Chris is a graduate of Patrick Henry High School in Roanoke, Virginia, and enjoys biking to Fort Tilden in the summertime.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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