20 Arrested in Chicago Protest of Farm Prices
CHICAGO — More than 20 farmers from throughout the Midwest were arrested today as they tried to enter the Chicago Mercantile Exchange in a second day of protests against low farm prices.
Police said about 100 farmers representing the American Agriculture Movement demonstrated at the Mercantile Exchange, where cattle, hogs and pork bellies are traded. Twelve farmers were arrested Monday outside the Chicago Board of Trade for trying to disrupt trading in the grain markets.
In a prepared statement, the Chicago Board of Trade said high interest rates and the strength of the U.S. dollar were responsible for low grain prices.
But one of the protesters arrested Monday, AAM leader Wayne Cryts, returned to the picket line today and said he believes the trading practices at the Board of Trade are responsible for farm prices that don’t cover the cost of production.
“It’s just a gambling casino . . . a Las Vegas in there,” Cryts said.
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