Coming up Monday and Tuesday: Bill of Rights Hearings in Sacto

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NORSE’S NOTES:  Anyone in Santa Cruz interested in caravanning up to this event?  Come to the Keith McHenry presentation on Saturday April 20th at the Sub Rosa, and we can organize one.   Or give me a call at 831-423-4833.


State-wide Coalition converges on the Capitol on April 22 and 23 before Homeless Bill of Rights Hearing
Homeless communities, grassroots organizations, and advocates across the state join together to ensure the passage of the Homeless Person’s Bill of Rights and Fairness Act (AB 5) 
CONTACT:    Paula Lomazzi, SHOC Director   shoc_1@yahoo.com    916.862.8649                                                    
EVENTS:
Rally – North Steps of Capitol, April 22, 2:30 – 6 PM
Press Conference – North Steps Capitol, April 23, 7:30 or 8:15 AM
APRIL 12, 2013—Momentum for the Homeless Person’s Bill of Rights and Fairness Act is building steadily, with critical revisions to the proposed bill now complete and Judiciary Committee hearings scheduled for April 23rd.  Hundreds of homeless rights activists from across California will rally in Sacramento on April 22nd  
Assembly Bill 5 was introduced by Assemblymember Tom Ammiano (D-San Francisco). “This bill,” he says, “is really about basic justice. People who are Homeless not only have to struggle with life on the street, they often have the indignity of being treated like criminals because they have nowhere to eat, sit, or sleep except in public. My bill is not about privilege. It’s about making sure they are treated equally before the law. I’m proud to be standing with, and for, anyone seeking justice.”
In a Western Regional Advocacy Project (WRAP) survey of 1,267 homeless people, 81% of participants reported that they were harassed by police for sleeping. In addition, 78% reported experiencing police harassment for sitting. Six hundred of these respondents were in California. Tickets for “status offenses” like sleeping or sitting often result in the arrest and imprisonment of homeless people.
 
With shelters filled to capacity and thousands of people on waiting lists for housing around the state, homeless people have no choice but to sleep, rest and eat in public places.Paula Lomazzi from Sacramento Homeless Organizing Committee said, “These are basic rights that allow all people to stay alive—things most of us get to take for granted, but which remain a daily challenge for many of the poorest members of our communities.”
 
“Laws that segregate, that make criminals of people based on their status rather than their behavior, or that prohibit certain people’s right to be in public spaces are not just sad relics from the past, ” says Paul Boden, Organizing Director of the Western Regional Advocacy Project (WRAP). “The California Homeless Bill of Rights is a response that will protect homeless people from discrimination and ensure their right to exist. This is not about special rights – this is about equal rights.”
Last year, Rhode Island became the first state to pass a statewide homeless people’s bill of rights. Building on the community organizing that led to this success, social justiceorganizations around the country have been working on bills that aim to protect the rights of homeless people. While the states of Vermont, Oregon, Connecticut and Missouri have already had bills introduced, California’s Bill – co-sponsored by the Western Regional Advocacy Project, Western Center on Law and Poverty, JERICHO: A Voice for Justice, and the East Bay Community law Center – is the first bill since Rhode Island’s to be heard in the state legislature. Judith Larson of Jericho said, “This is the essence of what Jericho was 
 
Sacramento Homeless Organizing Committee
P.O. Box 952, Sacramento, CA 95812
Phone and Fax: (916)442-2156
www.sacshoc.org – http://homeward.wikispaces.com/

Six Ticketed in Continuing Santa Cruz Sleep-Out

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http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2013/04/18/18735455.php?show_comments=1#18735481

by Robert Norse

Friday Apr 19th, 2013 11:39 AM

SIX TICKETED FOR SURVIVAL SLEEPING IN A VISIBLE SPOT
Zack, one of six people who, he says, slept at the post office steps area last night called in with a report a few minutes ago. They all received “camping” tickets for survival sleeping in a visible area. I call them the Visible Sleepers.He says some of the folks from the previous night left for the North, but they intend to continue their protest tonight and in the nights that follow.

COPS VIOLATING THE LAW?
He said several police arrived around 6 AM and did ask them if they had Homeless (Lack of) Service Center receipts, but ticketed them anyway with the Camping Ordinance MC 6.36. (subsection 6.36.010).

A key paragraph of 6.36.055(a), a key subsection of MC 6.36, reads
(a) A person shall not be in violation of this chapter [the Camping Ordinance] if, at the time of his or her citation for a violation of this chapter, either: the winter shelter at the Santa Cruz National Guard Armory is filled to capacity; or the person is currently on the waiting list for shelter service through one of the shelter programs offered by the Homeless Services Center or the River Street Shelter in Santa Cruz.”

The officers gave citations anyway in apparent violation of the law. They suggested the citations “might be dismissed in court.” Zack said the group explained they had nowhere to go, were told the shelters were full, were given a receipt by Christine Younger of the HLOSC so asserting (that is, they were put on the Waiting List), and had no legal place to sleep. Police then left, and they went back to sleep, Zack continued.

SIGNS OF THE TIMES
Some of the signs they were displaying read, according to Zack, “If every life has value, then why is our life illegal?”
“If safety is a priority in this community, why do we have to fight for a safe place to sleep?” “When you privatize public space, you silence the voice of the very community it was designed for.” “Any law against sleep is unjust.” And other signs as well. They can be viewed again tonight, presumably, when the protest is slated to resume.

Some locals suggested that to avoid tickets they could leave early in the morning, but Zack noted he told them that the point is we shouldn’t have to move since there is no legal place and we’re not doing anything illegal. First Alarm “security” thugs arrived after 8 AM and told them they’d have to lie outside their sleeping bags or be ticketed. Freedom initially declined, saying it was cold, but when another woman came up with a problem for First Alarm, she complied in order to facilitate First Alarm’s helping with that other problem.

DEFENDING FIRST ALARM THUGS
A police officer advised the group that First Alarm was “just doing their job; they are the middle men between business and the people.”

Zack concluded, “We’re not trying to incite any anger against us by the police. They spent a lot of time trying to justify what they were doing. They could have been out arresting violent criminals instead of explaining…cause we’re peaceful, and we need a place to sleep.”

Camping citations carry a potential fine of $100-200. As mentioned in a prior posting, interviews from last night’s Free Radio Santa Cruz show with Freedom, Andrew, and Cody are archived at http://www.radiolibre.org/brb/brb130418.mp3.

There will be a workshop tomorrow led by Food Not Bombs co-founder Keith McHenry around broader issues of homeless civil rights (the California Homeless Bill of Rights) and deeper issues of housing (foreclosures and occupying vacant buildings as Homes Not Jails does). At the Sub Rosa Cafe at 703 Pacific Ave. as mentioned above and described at http://www.indybay.org/uploads/2013/04/15/arm_the_homeless.pdf .

Four Flyers for Homeless Self-Defense in Santa Cruz

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http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2013/04/15/18735243.php

Four Flyers For Homeless Self-Defense
by Robert Norse ( rnorse3 [at] hotmail.com )
Monday Apr 15th, 2013 8:55 PM

The flyers are largely self-explanatory and suggest a number of avenues for self-defense for homeless people in Santa Cruz. Now that even the much-criticized and fractional Armory Winter Shelter program has ended. homeless people face not only police harassment during the day in parks, on the beaches, and downtown, but also at night under the city’s Sleeping Ban and possibly the state code 647e. HUFF (Homeless United for Friendship & Freedom) meets Wednesday at the regular time to continue discussing immediate survival camp prospects, copwatch, and thugwatch.

(Click on the link above for the flyers).

[SCPEL] Homelessness forum April 24 please come

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Santa Cruz Forums on Community Safety & Compassion
 
 

 

2nd Forum:  Homelessness and our Home Town
When:  Wednesday, April 24 at 7 PM
What:  Speakers and opportunity for Q&A
*Rev. Steve Defields-Gambrel, The Circle Church
*Susan Brutschy, President, Applied Survey Research, Homeless Census
*Christine Sippl, Program Manager, Homeless Persons Health Project
*Felipe Ponce, personal story
*Danny Contreras, personal story
Where:  Santa Cruz High School Theater
415 Walnut Ave., Santa Cruz
 
————————————————————————————————————————————————————
All Welcome!   Admission free.  
Donations welcome for hall rental.  FMI or childcare: contact 831-423-1626
 
 
Cosponsored by:

Resource Center for Nonviolence, NAACP Santa Cruz Branch, United Way of Santa Cruz County, Charter for Compassion, Santa Cruz Community Counseling Center, Homeless Services Center, Women’s Health Center, Community Action Board, The Circle Church, First Congregational Church of Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz Friends Meeting, Peoples’ Democratic Club, Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom

State-wide Coalition Converges on the Capitol 4/22 and 4/23 for Homeless Bill of Rights hearing

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NOTE BY NORSE:  Santa Cruz really needs some constitutional counteraction against its own Downtown Ordinances.  For a toxic selection of these nasty ordinances see “Deadly Downtown Ordinances–Updated” at http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2010/08/29/18657087.php.

As homeless people are increasingly caught up in a bogus “Public Security” crackdown involving private security thugs harassing the homeless around city hall, the library, the levee, and in the Pogonip, documenting these abuses with video and audio–and posting the accounts becomes increasingly important.  A good place to post is www.indybay.org/santacruz .  Plus you-tube, of course.

A reminder to HUFF members and other interested folks that Keith McHenry, co-founder of Food Not Bombs, will be returning to Santa Cruz on Saturday to give a workshop/forum on the California Homeless Bill of Rights, creating a Homes Not Jails locally,  and other activist civil rights issues impacting those outside.  See http://www.indybay.org/uploads/2013/04/15/arm_the_homeless.pdf .

Date: Thu, 18 Apr 2013 08:59:35 -0700
From: shoc_1@yahoo.com
Subject: State-wide Coalition Converges on the Capitol 4/22 and 4/23 for Homeless Bill of Rights hearing
To: shoc_1@yahoo.com
CC: pboden@wraphome.org

State-wide Coalition converges on the Capitol on April 22 and 23 before Homeless Bill of Rights Hearing
 
Homeless communities, grassroots organizations, and advocates across the state join together to ensure the passage of the Homeless Person’s Bill of Rights and Fairness Act (AB 5) 
 
CONTACT:                                                   
Paula Lomazzi, SHOC Director
shoc_1@yahoo.com                                         
916.862.8649                                                    
EVENTS:
Rally – North Steps of Capitol, April 22, 2:30 – 6 PM
Press Conference – North Steps Capitol, April 23, 7:30 or 8:15 AM

APRIL 12, 2013—Momentum for the Homeless Person’s Bill of Rights and Fairness Act is building steadily, with critical revisions to the proposed bill now complete and Judiciary Committee hearings scheduled for April 23rd.  Hundreds of homeless rights activists from across California will rally in Sacramento on April 22nd
Assembly Bill 5 was introduced by Assemblymember Tom Ammiano (D-San Francisco). “This bill,” he says, “is really about basic justice. People who are Homeless not only have to struggle with life on the street, they often have the indignity of being treated like criminals because they have nowhere to eat, sit, or sleep except in public. My bill is not about privilege. It’s about making sure they are treated equally before the law. I’m proud to be standing with, and for, anyone seeking justice.”
In a Western Regional Advocacy Project (WRAP) survey of 1,267 homeless people, 81% of participants reported that they were harassed by police for sleeping. In addition, 78% reported experiencing police harassment for sitting. Six hundred of these respondents were in California. Tickets for “status offenses” like sleeping or sitting often result in the arrest and imprisonment of homeless people.
With shelters filled to capacity and thousands of people on waiting lists for housing around the state, homeless people have no choice but to sleep, rest and eat in public places. Paula Lomazzi from Sacramento Homeless Organizing Committee said, “These are basic rights that allow all people to stay alive—things most of us get to take for granted, but which remain a daily challenge for many of the poorest members of our communities.”
“Laws that segregate, that make criminals of people based on their status rather than their behavior, or that prohibit certain people’s right to be in public spaces are not just sad relics from the past, ” says Paul Boden, Organizing Director of the Western Regional Advocacy Project (WRAP). “The California Homeless Bill of Rights is a response that will protect homeless people from discrimination and ensure their right to exist. This is not about special rights – this is about equal rights.”

Last year, Rhode Island became the first state to pass a statewide homeless people’s bill of rights. Building on the community organizing that led to this success, social justice organizations around the country have been working on bills that aim to protect the rights of homeless people. While the states of Vermont, Oregon, Connecticut and Missouri have already had bills introduced, California’s Bill – co-sponsored by the Western Regional Advocacy Project, Western Center on Law and Poverty, JERICHO: A Voice for Justice, and the East Bay Community law Center – is the first bill since Rhode Island’s to be heard in the state legislature. Judith Larson of Jericho said, “This is the essence of what Jericho was

Sacramento Homeless Organizing Committee
P.O. Box 952, Sacramento, CA 95812
Phone and Fax: (916)442-2156
www.sacshoc.org – http://homeward.wikispaces.com

Updates from Santa Cruz Sleeper Struggle

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The following notes are from a thread on what I term the Visible Sleepers protest which happened in front of the post office last night.

by Robert Norse

Thursday Apr 18th, 2013 8:26 AM

According to Sonny in a phone conversation, the group spent the night peacefully, moved from the steps so they could be swept by a postal official, and had a polite encounter with three cops who neither ticketed them nor asked them to move from their new spot on the sidewalk. Reportedly, they plan to continue their protest through the day with signs educating the community about the Sleeping Ban.

Brent Adams has created a great video (see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tBWhgjXrKaY) pressing for a Sanctuary Camp. My own conversations with local homeless people on Pacific Avenue last night indicated that they were generally supportive of the Visible Sleepers, though not willing to risk harassment, citation, or arrest themselves.

I was also glad to see Food Not Bombs activists there supporting the Sleepers. The issues involved are basic and important ones in a city with no shelter for 95% of its homeless.

I’ll be playing interviews tonight on Free Radio Santa Cruz from 6-8 PM at 101.3 FM (streams at http://tunein.com/radio/FRSC-s47254/). Feel free to call in with your thoughts at 831-427-3772.

I encourage all homeless people to sign up for the Waiting List at the Paul Lee Loft at 115 Coral St. so that their camping tickets will be dismissed under MC 6.36.055.

MC 6.36.055 reads
(a) A person shall not be in violation of this chapter [the Camping Ordinance] if, at the time of his or her citation for a violation of this chapter, either: the winter shelter at the Santa Cruz National Guard Armory is filled to capacity; or the person is currently on the waiting list for shelter service through one of the shelter programs offered by the Homeless Services Center or the River Street Shelter in Santa Cruz.
(b) Any citation issued for a violation of this chapter shall be dismissed by the city attorney in the interest of justice if, at the time of citation issuance, the winter shelter at the Santa Cruz National Guard Armory is filled to capacity or the recipient of the citation demonstrates that on the date of the citation he or she was currently on the waiting list for shelter service through one of the shelter programs offered by the Homeless Services Center or the River Street Shelter in Santa Cruz.

A discussion of the California Homeless Bill of Rights will be held at 2 PM Saturday at the Sub Rosa Cafe with Keith McHenry a featured speaker. See http://www.indybay.org/uploads/2013/04/15/arm_the_homeless.pdf.

I encourage folks to support the protesters with blankets, food, dialogue, and calls to City Hall demanding lifting the police harassment and Sleeping Ban citations and/or providing a safe place to sleep as an emergency measure whether in a parking garage, a campground, or somewhere else. Call 831-420-5020. E-mail them at citycouncil [at] cityofsantacruz.com . But don’t hold your breath.

The following entry is from Gary Johnson, whom I term “Ground Zero” Gary, sentenced to two years suspended sentence for sleeping three nights on a bench in front of the County building with a “sleep is not a crime” sign.  His point was the First Amendment right to be present in peaceful protest outside the County Building after the County had declared a “protesters-and-homeless-begone”  7 PM – 7 AM curfew (which is still in effect).

Conflicted.

by G

Thursday Apr 18th, 2013 12:26 PM

It’s sad to hear that HUFF isn’t active in Oakland, or some other #TentCity (although that initiative seems to have fallen flat, maybe the AdBusters crowd ain’t what it used to be), and is using others to make legal challenges. Can’t help but wonder about yet more hug trolling.

It is nice to hear about the sanctuary camp. I think that is desperately needed. When sound governance doesn’t exist, replace it, at all scales. Hopefully the sanctuary will be inclusive, although their ‘taint’ framing in the other article here makes me wonder about their agenda, smells kinda like TBSC.

It is nice to hear that this sleep protest has a legal strategy. Getting paperwork from the ‘shelter’ could be effective in court, neutering yet another bogus ‘coulda shoulda’ persecutorial attack on the necessity defense. I wonder if making officers aware, daily, via photocopies of the ‘shelter is full’ notes would help others that might be ticketed on any given evening. If officers won’t receive the paperwork, as is often the case (they seem to be afraid of the legal implications of being given written notice), perhaps a trip to their office would help.

I wish I could be there. If I was there, I would be sleeping there. Sadly, until the existing cases are resolved, ANY accusations (real or made up) could reactivate my 2 years suspended sentence (for peacefully protesting the criminalization of sleep and the criminalization of protest itself). Not that I am afraid of doing the time (the next time around I would try to emulate @rabite’s media presence); it just seems wasteful, at least until redress has been exhausted.

Some advice. Record every encounter with law enforcement, document everything immediately (multiple online sources), avoid a 24 hour presence (neuter yet another time/place/manner persecutorial attack), keep the area clean, don’t antagonize pedestrians or postal staff, expect a rapid response (if I recall correctly, there was an 8 month protest there until the Postmaster signed over enforcement to non-federal gangsters), have relocation plans ready, be prepared to do jail support, avoid hugging Norse.

http://PeaceCamp2010insider.blogspot.com/

Since the Homeless (Lack of) Services doesn’t have them…

by Robert Norse

Thursday Apr 18th, 2013 3:05 PM

…here’s the HUFF receipt! We thoughtfully provided it to HLOSC yesterday to document the fact that the group we brought over to Coral St. to register was on the Waiting List. Hence their camping tickets, if they were given any, would be dismissed prior to court (even without having to mount a Necessity Defense).

Activists and homeless sleepers should note that police can still charge people under PC 647e, the state “anti-lodging”” law (actually being used by sheriff and police as an anti-protest or anti-loitering law in the last few years). However, the documentation that one is on the Waiting List is also a good basis for mounting an affirmative Necessity Defense if D.A. Bob Lee wants to take any such charges through to jury trial.

Hopefully such trials would have a better outcome than those of the Peace Camp 2010 activists, who got screwed thanks to testimony from Executive Director Monica Martinez and others that there were a few spare beds (for the 1000+ homeless outside). The Jones decision–which I’m told by San Luis Obispo attorney Stu Jenkins is still federal legal precedent in spite of being depublished–held in L.A. that one doesn’t have to establish there were no beds that night or that one even tried to get one, if it was common knowledge that finding such a bed was highly unlikely given the chronic shelter emergency.

I should add I don’t recommend these programs or shelters, as Razor Ray seems to imply. Rather I suggest this Waiting List approach as both a protest strategy and to protect yourself legally as a homeless person who has to sleep at night who’s completely uninvolved in protest. Given the legal system the way it is, this approach is my suggestion.

I suggest bringing a copy of the receipt template with you to the HLOSC, and then making a second copy for yourself (so that you can give one to the cop). The cop may not (and probably will not) initially stop ticketing, but in future legal action it will become clear that police ticketing in the face of these receipts is a form of harassment since tickets are to be automatically dismissed under MC 6.36.055.

More of this thread (some of it contentious) can be found at http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2013/04/17/18735380.php?show_comments=1#18735440 .

Sleep Protest Continues Into the Day in Downtown Santa Cruz

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http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2013/04/17/18735380.php?show_comments=1#18735398

by Robert Norse

Thursday Apr 18th, 2013 8:26 AM

According to Sonny in a phone conversation, the group spent the night peacefully, moved from the steps so they could be swept by a postal official, and had a polite encounter with three cops who neither ticketed them nor asked them to move from their new spot on the sidewalk. Reportedly, they plan to continue their protest through the day with signs educating the community about the Sleeping Ban.

Brent Adams has created a great video (see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tBWhgjXrKaY) pressing for a Sanctuary Camp. My own conversations with local homeless people on Pacific Avenue last night indicated that they were generally supportive of the Visible Sleepers, though not willing to risk harassment, citation, or arrest themselves.

I was also glad to see Food Not Bombs activists there supporting the Sleepers. The issues involved are basic and important ones in a city with no shelter for 95% of its homeless.

I’ll be playing interviews tonight on Free Radio Santa Cruz from 6-8 PM at 101.3 FM (streams at http://tunein.com/radio/FRSC-s47254/). Feel free to call in with your thoughts at 831-427-3772.

I encourage all homeless people to sign up for the Waiting List at the Paul Lee Loft at 115 Coral St. so that their camping tickets will be dismissed under MC 6.36.055.

MC 6.36.055 reads
(a) A person shall not be in violation of this chapter [the Camping Ordinance] if, at the time of his or her citation for a violation of this chapter, either: the winter shelter at the Santa Cruz National Guard Armory is filled to capacity; or the person is currently on the waiting list for shelter service through one of the shelter programs offered by the Homeless Services Center or the River Street Shelter in Santa Cruz.
(b) Any citation issued for a violation of this chapter shall be dismissed by the city attorney in the interest of justice if, at the time of citation issuance, the winter shelter at the Santa Cruz National Guard Armory is filled to capacity or the recipient of the citation demonstrates that on the date of the citation he or she was currently on the waiting list for shelter service through one of the shelter programs offered by the Homeless Services Center or the River Street Shelter in Santa Cruz.

A discussion of the California Homeless Bill of Rights will be held at 2 PM Saturday at the Sub Rosa Cafe with Keith McHenry a featured speaker. See http://www.indybay.org/uploads/2013/04/15/arm_the_homeless.pdf.

I encourage folks to support the protesters with blankets, food, dialogue, and calls to City Hall demanding lifting the police harassment and Sleeping Ban citations and/or providing a safe place to sleep as an emergency measure whether in a parking garage, a campground, or somewhere else. Call 831-420-5020. E-mail them at citycouncil [at] cityofsantacruz.com . But don’t hold your breath.

Homeless Activists Ask Community to Join Them 9 PM Tonight in Front of Santa Cruz Post Office

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6-9 homeless people carried forward their plan to document the lack of shelter in Santa Cruz and then educate the public through direct action tonight. I am told they plan to rally on the sidewalk outside the main post office in downtown Santa Cruz at the intersection of Water and Pacific Avenue at 9 PM. Anyone who wished to is invited to attend. I was asked to pass on this and the following information.

PILGRIMAGE TO CORAL  STREET
As planned a week before, the group of people went to the Homeless (Lack of) Services Center at 115 Coral St. earlier this afternoon and requested to be put on the Waiting List for  the Paul Lee Loft.  They were advised by Charles, a worker there, that the shelters were full but that they’d be put on the Waiting List after filling out an application.  When asked if they could get a receipt or some documentation for their Waiting List status, Charles said no, nor would he give them any written statement about the shelter being full.

Other asked Charles the same question and told him that Executive Director Monica Martinez had publicly stated that on request, the HLOSC would provide receipts that one was on the Waiting List.  Christine, another worker, and he then agreed to do so.  He acknowledged he’d not done so before in the last year.

Since they had no receipts available, HUFF workers provided their own version of a receipt which they’d created, anticipating that the HLOSC wouldn’t have any handy.   Christine and the  HLOSC staff helpfully copied, filled out, and signed them for the 8 or so clients applying, documenting that each person was on the Waiting List for the Paul Lee Loft.

THE IMPORTANCE OF WAITING LIST STATUS
Waiting List status means that camping tickets will automatically be dismissed by the City Attorney’s office prior to court, as stipulated by MC 6.36.055.   It might also persuade the police of the futility and even impropriety of giving out camping tickets at all, since all such tickets are supposed to be automatically dismissed.

We also interviewed a few workers out there who confirmed that there were no spaces available on the Paul Lee Loft–suggesting that anyone cited for the more serious offense of “illegal lodging” (PC 647e) would have a “necessity” defense in court.

I hope this procedure will be followed by every homeless person so that they can more safely sleep in groups, well-lighted areas, and closer to police protection–given the increased risks homeless people face outside from violence.   The procedure again is to go to the HLOSC M-F around noon, sign up for the Paul Lee Loft Waiting List, and get a receipt indicating you are on the list.  You then have to check in once a week or your name will be removed from the list.

TONIGHT OUTSIDE ON THE SIDEWALK  NEAR THE MAIN POST OFFICE
This group of homeless people claims to have repeatedly been harassed by police and/or rangers for simply being on public property, to say nothing of sleeping.  In response, it is my understanding they intend to exercise their right to be on the sidewalk (perhaps another group might call it “Positive Loitering”), even to sleep there, since they have no legal place to sleep.

Two  of those involved–Freedom and Andrew–were arrested yesterday and apparently face misdemeanor charges involving something like “disobeying an officer”.  (See “ALERT: Two Arrested For “Being” in the Pogonip” at http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2013/04/16/18735297.php) with trial slated for May 14th.)

Sleeping During the Day–Now a Crime in Santa Cruz?

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http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2013/04/16/18735297.php

ALERT: Two Arrested For “Being” in the Pogonip
by Robert Norse
Tuesday Apr 16th, 2013 5:07 PM

I received the following information by phone a few minutes ago. The charges against the two arrested were not clear, though they may be something like “camping” (i.e. survival sleeping during the day–which is not illegal).

I just received a preliminary report from two of six people who were accosted by authorities in the Pogonip about an hour or two ago. Two others in the group–Freedom of Occupy Santa Cruz and Andrew–were arrested for failing to leave (the charge was unclear). Since it was during the day, the Pogonip was open. One of those I spoke with, Baba, told me that when he asked what their crime was and why they were being told to leave, one of the three officers (a ranger, a SCPD officer, and a sheriff) told him “what if a family with some children came down and saw you here?”

Baba noted that he first found this offensive with the implication that they were “unsightly” because of their appearance (youthful traveling alternative culture folks). Then on reflection he was even more deeply troubled because the officer’s comments implied that the area was open to families but not to “his kind”.

Baba noted that the officers did not confiscate any property, gave them time to move their stuff (including two dogs), and told them they could “go to some other city”. It was still not clear what Freedom and Andrew were arrested for, but I hope to learn more soon.

Freedom had widely announced her interest in convening a meeting to deal with safe and secure sleeping space for the 100 people denied shelter when the Winter Armory Shelter had its last night on April 14th-15th.

The weekly HUFF meeting, as described at http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2013/04/15/18735243.php tomorrow at 10 AM will discuss the situation. All are invited.

I’m attaching a history of criminalization of the homeless from WRAP (Western Regional Advocacy Project), a group of West Coast organizations fighting for the civil rights of those outside.

Pam Kinkaid–Fighter for the Fresno Homeless

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NOTE BY NORSE:  Fresno has numerous survival camps–none of them funded by the City or legal.  They developed and retain a certain existence through the work of independent activists gathering funds for portapotties, garbage pick-up’s, and oother supplies.  Much of their support came from the  homeless victory in the famous Kinkaid lawsuit of 2007, when the City of Fresno and Cal-Trans had to pay $2 million+ to the  Fresno homeless and their attorneys for seizing and destroying property (sound familiar?).    Mike Rhodes, long-time activist and Community Alliance newspaper editor, gives some of the background in this video:

A fresno activist writes:

Please share the campaign link with your family, friends and network…
Unfortunately, since 2 weeks have passed and I haven’t raised the minimum $500, the campaign is no longer found on the ‘browse’ section of Indiegogo’s website.  It can only be found through direct link.  Those are part of Indiegogo’s merit-based policies to give all campaigns a chance.  Currently, there are $130 in funds raised, so an additional $370 is needed to be featured on the website again for the remaining 40 days. 
Spread the word and donate if you can.  Any amount of money can be donated, including $1 dollar.  You only need to donate a minimum of $15 dollars if you want to receive any contribution ‘perks.’
Remember, 100% of proceeds go directly to the non-profit Eco Village Project of Fresno.
On my part, I will contact several organizations this week, join several blogs and as many homeless & human rights groups as I can to get the word out.
-Mario