LONDON - A British court on Wednesday approved the eviction of anti-capitalist Occupy protesters from outside London's St. Paul's Cathedral.

Judge Keith Lindblom backed local authorities trying to remove the encampment, which has been outside the 300-year-old church since mid-October.

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The Occupy London protest against capitalist excess was inspired by New York's Occupy Wall Street movement.

 

Local authority the City of London Corporation has argued that the right to protest does not justify a semi-permanent campsite affecting the rights of worshippers.

The cathedral is also a popular tourist site.

• Rev. Jesse Jackson to London protesters: 'Jesus was an Occupier'

Occupy responds
Supporters of the anti-capitalist movement quickly responded to the ruling.

FromTheSham tweeted: Saddened by the judgement. Waiting outside Royal Courts #occupylsx have announced they will appeal.

Dorian Smith was less-than-complimentary: #occupylsx "You can't evict an idea" - helps if you could decide on an idea first though.

The Associated Press and msnbc.com staff contributed to this report.

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LONDON -- Veteran activist the Rev. Jesse Jackson compared the global anti-capitalist movement to the U.S. civil rights struggle, the battle against apartheid in South Africa and the fight for Indian independence during a visit to an Occupy camp in London on Thursday.

"Jesus was an Occupier, born under a death warrant, a Jew by religion, born in poverty under Roman occupation," the two-time candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination told a crowd near Saint Paul’s Cathedral. "Gandhi was an Occupier, Martin Luther King was an Occupier, (Nelson) Mandela was an Occupier."

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A man dressed in a well-tailored dark wool jacket and crisp checked shirt – not your stereotypical Occupy protester – cried as he watched Jackson. "He is my hero," he said.

While the crowd enthusiastically joined Jackson for a chant, not everybody was supportive and a few heckles punctuated his speech. 

One man who shouted that the Occupy movement wasn't addressing the needs of the homeless was detained before he reached the podium where Jackson was standing.

Another Occupier, who said he's been camped out since the protest began on Oct. 15, said he welcomed Jackson. However, he remained skeptical.

"I have mixed feelings – someone told me he's quite a wealthy person," said John, 34, who declined to give a last name. "You don't know his agenda."

F. Brinley Bruton is a senior writer for msnbc.com based in London

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