Al Jazeera has been meeting families across the world as part of a series about how ordinary people have been affected by some of the biggest events of 2011.

September marked the start of the grassroots Occupy Wall Street protests, which focused attention on the economic struggles facing most Americans.

The movement is helping a family in Minneapolis, Minnesota, hold on to their home. Monique White fell behind on her mortgage payments and the bank foreclosed on her despite efforts to renegotiate the loan.

Al Jazeera's John Terrett reports on how activists are occupying White's house in a bid to prevent the foreclosure.