Central Coast May Day #s, etc.

Salinas - 13,000 (KSBW from cops) - 15,000+ (KION)
- many East Salinas businesses closed
- largest marches in decades say cops, havn't seen anything like this since Cesar Chavez marches in the 1970's (KSBW)

Bakersfield - 15,000+ (Christina, FRSC caller)
http://www.indybay.org/news/2006/05/1819301.php
- cops prevented marchers from leaving the park, arrested peaceful protesters (?)
- 4,000 students missing from school (14%) (KGET)
- closed businesses

Watsonville - 6,000 (Sentinel) – 10,000 (Vinny)
http://www.indybay.org/news/2006/05/1819398.php
- Pajaro Valley High School shut down to prevent student walkouts (KSBW)
- Half of PVUSD students didn’t go to school (KSBW)
- 'Closed signs were visible at nearly every business in downtown Watsonville." (KSBW)

Santa Cruz - 3,000 (first march only, Sentinel) - 5,000+ (my estimate for both)
- two seperate marches, one started at Beach Flats, other at UCSC - met up at clock tower and marched together to San Lorenzo Valley Park
- UCSC entrance(s) shut down in morning by students/workers
- some closed businesses (Saturn Cafe, Soif, Taqueria Vallarta)

Seaside - 1,000 (KSBW) - 2,000 (KION)


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"Produce fields across the Central Coast were empty Monday. The United Farm Workers Union estimated that 60,000 farm workers should have been in the field in Monterey, Santa Cruz and San Benito counties." (KSBW)

There is also reports of a "sharp increase in calls on Sunday and Monday from parents who needed a last-minute nanny or baby sitter" (KION)