top
East Bay
East Bay
Indybay
Indybay
Indybay
Regions
Indybay Regions North Coast Central Valley North Bay East Bay South Bay San Francisco Peninsula Santa Cruz IMC - Independent Media Center for the Monterey Bay Area North Coast Central Valley North Bay East Bay South Bay San Francisco Peninsula Santa Cruz IMC - Independent Media Center for the Monterey Bay Area California United States International Americas Haiti Iraq Palestine Afghanistan
Topics
Newswire
Features
From the Open-Publishing Calendar
From the Open-Publishing Newswire
Indybay Feature

Residents and Allies Challenge Sierra Club’s Bulb Eviction Plan

by Share The Bulb (sharethebulb [at] gmail.com)
On Monday, January 27th, at 7p.m. Albany Bulb residents and activists will attend the Executive Committee meeting of the Northern Alameda County (NAC) group of the Sierra Club to voice concerns about the NAC's support of the eviction of more than 50 residents of the Albany Bulb. The NAC supports the eviction as part of an effort to transform the Bulb into a "passive recreation zone".
Press release
Share the Bulb
January 27, 2014


Press Contacts:
Amber Whitson (Bulb resident)
(510)978-8850
phlamber.the.bull [at] gmail.com

Residents and Allies Challenge Sierra Club’s Eviction Plan

BERKELEY, CA -- On Monday, January 27th, at 7p.m. Albany Bulb residents and activists will attend the Executive Committee meeting of the Northern Alameda County (NAC) group of the Sierra Club to voice concerns about the NAC's support of the eviction of more than 50 residents of the Albany Bulb. The NAC supports the eviction as part of an effort to transform the Bulb into a "passive recreation zone".

Residents and activists believe the NAC's position, supporting the eviction of more than 50 people and the demolition of their homes, violates the Sierra Club's environmental justice policy, which states:

"...no community should bear disproportionate risks of harm because of their demographic characteristics or economic condition."

"Laws, policies, rules, regulations, and evaluation criteria should be applied in a nondiscriminatory manner. Laws, policies, regulations, or criteria that result in disproportionate impact are discriminatory, whether or not such a result was intended, and should be corrected."

"People have the right to participate in the development of rules, regulations, plans, and evaluation criteria and at every level of decision-making. Environmental decision-making must include the full range of alternatives to a proposed action or plan, including rejection of the proposed action or plan. Barriers to participation (cultural, linguistic, geographic, economic, other) should be addressed."

Bulb resident and NAC member Amber Whitson will speak to the Executive Committee, arguing that Bulb residents are bearing disproportionate harm due to economic condition and disabilities, that the policy in question is discriminatory, and that residents of the Bulb have not been invited to participate in the decision-making process at all.

The Bulb is a unique space for public art and community involvement. It is also a safe home for its low-income residents, many of whom are elderly or disabled. The Albany Bulb has been home to hundreds of otherwise homeless individuals over several decades.

The land was originally a solid waste landfill, but the hard work and artistic contributions of the Bulb residents and allied community members has turned the place into one of the most physically and psychologically safe places for otherwise homeless, low- and no-income people to call home in the Bay Area, as well as a much-loved hub for art and alternative culture.

For more information please visit http://sharethebulb.org.

###
Add Your Comments
We are 100% volunteer and depend on your participation to sustain our efforts!

Donate

$110.00 donated
in the past month

Get Involved

If you'd like to help with maintaining or developing the website, contact us.

Publish

Publish your stories and upcoming events on Indybay.

IMC Network