Sunday, September 12, 2010

Item #28 to alter Sleeping Ban on City Council Agenda

Costing $100 a night, noisy, and spewing exhaust fumes, the SCPD placed these bright klieg lights up every night for weeks in order to disperse the demonstration against the Sleeping Ban claiming they were necessary for "safety reasons." -- Photo by Becky Johnson Aug 18, 2010



by Becky Johnson
Sept 12, 2010

Santa Cruz, Ca.-- In what clearly is a victory for Peace Camp 2010, without any notice or press, Mayor Mike Rotkin has placed an item on the afternoon agenda this coming Tuesday, Sept. 14th which will change language in the Sleeping Ban for the first time in eight years. And during an election cycle too!




A homeless man sleeps legally at City Hall during the daytime. Sleeping is illegal in the City of Santa Cruz at night despite a thrice-declared shelter emergency. Photo by Becky Johnson



Plucky Peace Camp 2010 participants, Ed Frey, Collette Donally, "Scum", Todd Hill, Vamp, Robert "Blindbear" Facer, Sara, Jackie, Leigh no-last-name, and the irrepresible, Gary Johnson have been unshaken in their determination to violate the Sleeping Ban (MC 6.36.010 section a) each and every night literally on the Mayor's front lawn.




The City has responded with Sleeping ban citations, blanket ban citations, statewide "anti-lodging" misdemeanor law citations, new "trespass" laws at both City Hall, the Central Library, Klieg Lights, private security guards and smear campaigns in the press. Yet the motley crew persist. Now an item on the agenda.

Is there a crack in the shell?






"No trespassing" on public property signs were posted without notice, public hearings, or discussion at City Hall making City Hall off-limits to the public for the first time in over 150 years of existence. The first people cited under the new "trespass" law were members of Peace Camp 2010. Photo by Becky Johnson August 21, 2010
Posted by at
Labels: , , ,

2 comments:

  1. Robert NorseSeptember 13, 2010 at 4:24 PM

    Thanks for the story, Becky.

    See also :Sleeping Ban at Council: Trade Your Constitutional Rights for a Place on Our Waiting List?" at http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2010/09/13/18658618.php

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousSeptember 16, 2010 at 11:11 AM

    you know what would be great, is if we could get city council to be in a perpetual meeting somehow, then it would always be legal!

    ReplyDelete

Thank-you for taking the time to express your point of view. The editor reserves the right to delete libelous or offensive comments. Please stay on topic and avoid personal attacks.

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)