Summer Heat Against The Sleeping Ban--Protest at Bunny's Shoes

PROTEST RESUMES

Back to the blacktop in front of Bunny's Shoes to urge stores
to post and support the Pledge for Human Rights and Harmony. THIS PROTEST IS SCHEDULED REGULARLY EVERY SATURDAY.

The pledge reads: "This business does not discriminate. We support Human Rights for the homeless community. In particular, the right to sleep at night--not anywhere and everywhere--but somewhere." [See http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2009/06/12/18601539.php ]

HUFF (Homeless United for Friendship & Freedom) and HRO (Human Rights Organization) in concert with independent activists continue our picketing and protest, which we began a month ago.


POLICE CRACKDOWN INTENSIFIES

The police crackdown against the poor was stepped up last week. Two musicians reported a violent incident by Officer Winston in front of Union Grove Music on Wednesday night.

The new out-of-town Proxy-Police Ambassadors group replaces the Downtown Hosts on July 1st. [See http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/ci_12669248?IADID=Search-www.santacruzsentinel.com-www.santacruzsentinel.com]

More benches are disappearing from downtown and Parks and Recreation boss Dannettee Shoemaker stonewalls Public Records Act requests to specify why benches are being removed and under pressure from whom.


STORES THAT STAND UP FOR HUMAN RIGHTS

Some of the stores that have posted the Pledge, which we urge the community to spend at:

Tacqueria Vallarta 1101A Pacific
Streetlight Records 939 Pacific
Santa Cruz City Soccer 717 Pacific
Starbucks 1335 Pacific
The Perfumer's Apprentice 1319A-B Pacific


SLEEPING BAN HARASSMENT ONGOING

Police continue to harass sleepers outside without shelter under the City's medieval MC 6.36.010a (the homeless Sleeping Ban) even though there is no legal shelter for them.

Please report such incidents to 423-4833; ask the officer who demands you move if he has a legal place for you to go specifically then and there.


WHY BUNNY'S?

Bunny's Shoes, Property managers at Borders and the Palomar, and Manthri Srinath, owner of Lulu Carpenters) all contributed to a discriminatory court Injunction, granted last month by Judge Paul Burdick against two homeless musicians, Anna Richardson and Miguel deLeon

This injunction bans Richardson and deLeon from sleeping anywhere in a park or on the sidewalk in the downtown area on pain of jail. City law additionally bans them from sleeping anywhere on public property in Santa Cruz after 11 PM.

It has nothing to do with any kind of real criminal conduct or nuisance behavior like littering, trespassing, disturbing the peace, urinating, defecating, etc. Simply sleeping outside downtown has become an immediate jailing offense for these two. So far police have not arrested them.

The impact of the decision expands far beyond these two performers, since there are 1500-2000 homeless in Santa Cruz of whom less than 10% have shelter throughout the summer.

Homeless people face $97 citations, police harassment, theft and destruction of their property, and discrimination.

It is piling absurdity upon cruelty to ban sleeping downtown on pain of jail, yet allow no legal place for homeless people to sleep. MC 6.36.010 makes all nighttime sleeping illegal outside on public property already; the Injunction adds a jail penalty to the downtown area for this homeless couple.

Activists will continue presenting their Pledge on Human Rights and Harmony for merchants to display in their windows or in their stores in soldarity if they choose. So far about about 1/2 of the businesses downtown have been approached.

Mediators have approached Bunny's asking them to post the Pledge and support a policy of non-discrimination. Bunny's is one of four stores signing Declarations used by the City Attorney to secure the Injunction against Richardson and deLeon.

While we respect the right of Bunny's to manage its own property, when it supports police action on public property against those that have no choice, it needs to hear from the community--as does every business that supports this kind of "get-out-of-town" bigotry.


SUPPORT HUMAN RIGHTS LOCALLY WITH YOUR DOLLARS

In essence we ask downtown businesses to advise the community and their customers that they no longer favor--whatever position they may have taken in the past--turning homeless people into criminals for sleeping--something over which they have no control.

Businesses that have the clarity and courage to do this should be rewarded and those that don't should be questioned.


FLYERS

Flyers are downloadable at:
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2009/06/12/18601539.php

More info on this situation at
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2009/06/15/18601786.php

http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2009/06/09/18601111.php

http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2009/06/02/18599901.php
and

http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2009/05/28/18598906.php