Upcoming Protest of the American Psychiatric Association’s 2013 annual conference– an Occupy Psychiatry Event.

NOTE BY NORSE;  A segment of the homeless population has their status dismissed and demeaned by describing them as “mentally ill” and there are currently bills pending in the state legislature to strip rights from Continue reading

City Council’s “Public Safety” Committee Meets Wednesday 5-1 at 6 PM

The “Public Safety” Update below is from the Public Safety Task Force staff, not from the Public Safety Committee.  The Public Safety Committeewhich meets Wednesday at 6 PM is a standing Committee of City Council whose meetings are required to  be open to the public and agendaized 72 hours in advance.It’s not clear whether the Task Force, recently Continue reading

Come Chow Down and Speak Up Tuesday 6:45 PM at Santa Cruz Homelessness “Study” Session

The Santa Cruz City Council has scheduled a Special “Study” Session on Homelessness for 7 PM at 809 Center St. (City Council Chambers) for Tuesday, March 30th.  Only one day short of April Fools day.This is the Council that recently voted an Continue reading

Poverty Crime in Ohio…and Santa Cruz

NOTE BY  NORSE:   Walter Lilly called me from jail several times in the last day, and whose account I’ll be broadcasting tomorrow at 10 AM on Free Radio Santa Cruz (101.3 FM http://tunein.com/radio/FRSC-s47254/)   His “crime” was failing to pay Sleeping Ban infractions and then being jailed under a Continue reading

Redding Website for Homeless Rights on the California Bill of Rights and Fairness Act

NOTE BY NORSE:  Activists may already be aware of AB 5, Assemblyman Tom Ammiano’s Homeless Bill of Rights.  Here it is briefly mentioned, but I am forwarding this Redding posting, because it also gives the blog site for some homeless activists up there.  I’d like to see all Continue reading

Texan Starve-Out?

Kitchen closed: Catholic worker house shut down

SAN ANTONIO — A city code inspector slapped the Catholic Worker House with a violation for serving food to the homeless without the proper permit.

Some people consider the Catholic Worker House a threat to neighborhood safety and property values, and they are relieved the place is temporarily shut down and unable to serve meals to its homeless clientele.

The Director of the Catholic Worker House, Chris Plauche, said an inspector with Code Compliance notified her about the violation last Friday.

“These crock pots are the problem,” stated Plauche.

We’re told she doesn’t have the right permit to serve food from the remodeled home on the East Side.

“We feel Jesus always looked out for the neediest and cared for the neediest,” Plauche told us.

They shut down immediately.

“For years, volunteers have served hot food to the chronically homeless,” said Plauche.

Out back, a wooden deck with plenty of seating overlooks a garden which serves as an example of how the place has grown over the years. During that time, a lot of controversy has cropped up too.

“I know they are doing a good deed, but it’s scary,” insisted Charlene Handy.

She hopes hopes the Catholic Worker House remains closed. A sign on the front door directs the homeless to other places for food. Handy is fed up with people hanging out, publicly urinating and littering.

“It’s scary having guys and even women walking up and down the street,” Handy added.

She said someone recently broke into her home, and she points a finger down the street, toward the Catholic Worker House.

Plauche is a fighter who has weathered problems before.

“Every time they’ve closed our doors, we’ve come back stronger and with more community support,” she told us.

Some homeowners believe her doors should stay open, if volunteers can do more to control problems. Homeowners said the place has raised concerns about crime and and lowered property values on the East Side.

Another Hate Crime in Santa Cruz

http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2013/04/26/18735861.php

Gabriel Jumped by Homeless Haters near Cabrillo College Wednesday
by Robert Norse
Friday Apr 26th, 2013 11:50 AM

I received a phone call yesterday from a formerly homeless man, now a Cabrillo student named Gabriel. He gave the following report of being beaten Wednesday 4-24 near Cabrillo College as he headed for class. Subsequently he checked in with the Cabrillo Health Clinic, but was reluctant to contact the police, having heard from other formerly homeless people that police declined to investigate such incidents. He mentioned the case of a guy named Zack, whose picture was prominently posted on Facebook & rather than investigate, cops told Zack: he’d “better avoid areas where he’s likely to be found.”

INJURIES FROM THE ASSAULT
Gabriel reported he can barely see out of one of his eye and was kicked in a previously injured leg so badly, it’s now oozing puss. He continues to feel whoozey a day later. The incident happened around 12:30 PM Wednesday. There was little pedestrian traffic and tree cover, so no witnesses nearby that he noticed.

The four assailants got out of their car and were apparently cruising around looking for people to beat up. They demanded to know where he was from. When he told them he was a student, they became skeptical and demanded to look inside his backpack. He refused and they then accused him of having something to hide. They then beat him up, but he was able to get away and get to class and ultimately to a Cabrillo medical clinic.

He didn’t call the cops, he said, because of past experiences when homeless about police indifference or hostility.

A day later blood continues to run out of his injured eyes; his hand is fractured (from punching back), and the nine months in healing leg injury has been torn apart again.

He says he took photos of his injuries which he’ll later post. He hasn’t been homeless for three years and is now both a student and employed.

THE THUGS
He says the attackers got out of a gray 4-door pick-up truck. Some of them wore checkered shirts, jeans, baseball hats. One had blonde hair, another had black hair; most of them had short hair “buzz cuts”. One had a 5-day stubble; the rest were generally clean-shaven. Between the ages of 18 and 30, he estimates. He noted their socks were pulled way up. He suggested they were “East side local” affiliated…

He says he’s still in touch with old homeless friends and followed reports of the recent assaults of Sam-I-Am and Zack on Facebook and through other friends. The situation has escalated significantly since the massive officially orchestrated ceremonies and endless Sentinel police-boosting the Butler-Baker deaths.

TRASHING AND THREATS DOWNTOWN
Gabriel also said he spoke with 4 hitchhikers leaving town in a group at the Ocean St. entrance to Highway 1 South. He said it was unusual to see such a large group hitching together (since that makes getting a ride harder). They told him they’d been stopped on Pacific Avenue by thugs who knocked off their hats. The thugs then opened their backpacks, spilled the contents on the ground and announced “It’s all garbage and belongs in the garbage.”

The encounter continues, Gabriel reports, with “Hey, do you know what? You’re all garbage and that’s where you belong. You have twelve hours to get out of town before you’re put in the trash.”.

Gabriel concludes, “They seemed pretty freaked out. Their main objective seemed to be clearing out of Santa Cruz.”

“A ‘criminal’ who is on the side of the police doing the dirty jobs the cops want to do but can’t. They have to be recast somehow by showing the real literal damage they’re inflicting on innocent people.”

Homeless people, or those who look homeless, Gabriel concludes, or even those with backpacks should travel in groups, to provide witnesses if not greater safety.

His final words are even more sobering:

“How long before they surround a female homeless and decide to ‘teach her a lesson’? I’m sure what this “lesson” would be doesn’t need to be stated outright, but it’s more than likely to occur the more they feel that their actions are backed by the police and by the community. Homeless folks are starting to arm themselves and you know how that’s going to go down. The first time some lug gets stabbed or seriously hurt in the process of vigilante work it’s gonna be a hey-day excuse to get rid of the homeless altogether.”

Gabriel may be posting some photos soon.