Occupy DC said 12 of its members were arrested Wednesday while protesting outside the offices of agriculture giant Monsanto as part of a national day to “shut down the corporations.”

The group was protesting in solidarity with Occupy Portland, which called for a national day of action to shut down corporations with ties to the American Legislative Exchange Council. According to Occupy Portland’s Call to Action statement, ALEC “is a prime example of the way corporations buy off legislators and craft legislation that serves the interests of corporations and not people.”