The protesters who've pitched tents in D.C.'s Freedom Plaza since October have been issued a permit to extend their stay through the end of February.
National Park Service spokeswoman Carol Johnson said the group, originally known as Stop The Machine, filed an application for a new permit that runs from Jan. 1 through Feb. 28, and the application was granted.
The group now calls itself Occupy Washington D.C. They are protesting corporate greed and the continued presence of U.S. troops in Afghanistan, and their current permit expires Dec. 30. There's a similar, larger protest encampment a few blocks away in McPherson Square called Occupy D.C.
Johnson says a permit has also been issued to the National Center for Public Policy Research for a counter-protest from Feb. 12-March 15.
