Occupy Wall Street Protests Property Auction at DeKalb Courthouse

Occupy Wall Street protesters chanted and sang songs Tuesday morning as foreclosed homes and other properties were put up for sale at the monthly auction on the courthouse steps.

Steve Tolle of the Occupy movement said protests also were held Tuesday at the Fulton and Gwinnett courthouses. He said protesters will return to Decatur when the next auction occurs on the first Tuesday of the month.

The protest proceeded peacefully, with about a dozen protesters standing in a group about 20 feet from the courthouse steps. While they chanted "Restructure loans! Don't Foreclose!" lawyers read legal papers aloud and went through the formalities of auctioning properties on the courthouse porch.

Paul Hayes of Decatur said he was protesting because the foreclosure system was unfair. Banks got bailed out when they faced a crisis but wouldn't restructure loans for homeowners in trouble, Hayes said.

Darlene Corra of Kirkwood said she's tired of seeing people lose their homes to foreclosure. "It just makes no sense," she said.

The 50 or so people who showed up to check out foreclosed homes didn't have much to say to the protesters.

One citizen, at the courthouse on unrelated business, said he understood the protesters' frustration.

"They've got a valid point based on what I hear," said William Recktor of Decatur. "The system is broke and we need to fix it."