Police/Merchant Crack-Down Downtown: Resistance Meetings Saturday and Sunday

Middle-class supporters of gay rights (i.e. human rights) who are gathering this morning in front of the courthouse need to remember that others outside not only are being denied their right to marry if they are gay, but are having their very survival rights threatened.

The SCPD in its drive to "cleanse" the downtown of "undeisrable"-looking elements has reportedly:

*** ticketed and driven away religious food providers for homeless people in front of Borders on Thursday afternoon. Coral, a foodserver with SAFE (Society for Artistic Freedom and Expression), was surrounded, harassed, and threatened for feeding people later that night in front of New Leaf Market. Both such feedings have happened regularly on a weekly basis in the past.

*** three-times tasered a man Wednesday night in front of Borders in an incident that shocked three employees of a neighboring store.

*** have repeatedly ticketed and driven away homeless sleepers in front of the Greek Orthodox Church across the street from the main library in spite of the fact that sleepers report they were given permission to sleep there. In Santa Cruz it is a $97 offense to sleep on any public property or in your vehicle--even though there is no shelter for 90% of the homeless community.

*** have massively increased ticketed for "sitting near a panhandler", "being within 50' of a change-making machine while seated", "performing music while sitting on the lip of a planter",
"spitting on the sidewalk" in the rain, biking "the wrong way" on Pacific Ave., and going through Stop signs on a bike when no traffic was coming in either direction--among other harassment stops being made by police, sometimes sweeping the sidewalk four abreast.

*** been backed up by reported hate speech by merchants--such as that reported in the Wednesday Santa Cruz Sentinel (http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/localnews/ci_10962547 )

*** supported a false arrest at the Metro Bus Station on Security Guard complaint on an activist, talking with homeless people there, who drew the station's attention to religious radio propaganda (KSCO) being broadcast live over the loudspeakers there.

*** are reportedly harassing poor people of color downtown repeatedly in response to Mayor Ryan Coonerty's new call to "clean up" Santa Cruz

*** have stepped up the war on marijuana downtown--again against the poor--in spite of community consensus that this is a corrupting costly and abusive activity.

*** retains on active duty Sgt. Christian Le Moss, who assaulted and broke the arm of Donna Deiss on May 9th. Deiss is an elderly disabled woman who lives in her van. LeMoss and Officer Winston, also accused of violent behavior towards the poor, recently false arrested and roughed up one of Deiss's support persons on Pacific Ave. Deiss is still charged with the catchall "resisting arrest' charge and facing trial in January.

*** has backed off of its assault on the Wednesday Drum Circle next to the Farmer's Market, where on September 17th it created a near-riot with its attempt to "discourage" those assembling there. Under Mayor Coonerty's "no public assembly or loitering" in public parking lots, all traditional Santa Cruz activities other than parking and walking through have been categorically outlawed. Food Not Bombs worker Jack Russ and Free Skool activist Wes Modes face misdemeanor charges for protesting police harassment there. Meanwhile the city continues to put up green mesh fencing around the trees to criminalize public assembly--and the community continues to take down the fencing and assemble.

*** is apparently backing up Chief Ranger John Wallace's mandated shredding of tents and survival gear of homeless campers in the Pogonip--who have no legal place to sleep as winter approaches. Tonight there will be space for less than 80 of the City's 1500-2000 homeless.

*** refuses to release public records that might document the extent (or absence) of problems at the Drum Circle. An activist's two attempts to pick up records at the SCPD station after being told they were available were refused when he pointed out he was in fact tape recording the interaction. Police officials doing public business, he pointed out, have no expectation of privacy. Police department "rules" supposedly prohibit the public's recording their transactions, though police regularly make such video records.

The HUMAN RIGHTS ORGANIZATION[HRO] meets today (as it does each week) at 2 PM at the Tacqueria Vallarta at Cathcart and Pacific to discuss criminalization of the homeless and its recent appeals to the ACLU.

HRO and HUFF (Homeless United for Friendship & Freedom) will be meeting, tabling, and protesting the Coonerty Crackdown in front of his Bookshop Santa Cruz Sunday November 15th at 2 PM. Under discussion: Know Your Rights on the Street forums, Copwatch Trainings, and an extended replay of last year's Homies for the Homeless Sleep-In at City Hall.

More info: call 831-423-4833. Or tune in to Free Radio Saturday 2-4 PM, Sunday 9:30 AM - 1 PM (call in to the shows at 427-3772).