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SEQUENCE:18910643
CREATED:20160301T232900Z
DESCRIPTION:The City Council agenda hasn't been announced for March 8th. After many 
 delays, the word is that there will finally be a proposal on the agenda to 
 modify the Camping Ordinance.  \n\nSteve Pleich has advised me that Don 
 Lane's proposed changes in the Camping Ordinance is to remove the words 
 \n"sleeping" but keeping in place the Blanket Ban.   The ordinance change 
 may include the right to sleep in one's own vehicle legally parked.  
 \n\nProponents of the change suggest that however limited this first step, 
 it does apparently remove a fundamental human rights violation--denying 
 those with no shelter the right to sleep at night. The Department of 
 Justice has aligned itself against Sleeping Bans in the Boise v. Bell case 
 in Idaho.  HUD has declared continued criminalizing the homeless may be the 
 basis for withholding funding from bigoted city governments.  \n\nCities 
 like Huntington Beach and Vancouver, WA have already changed their laws or 
 suspended enforcement of their camping bans at night.  There has not been a 
 noted huge increase in homeless folks attributable to these changes, 
 according to Pleich's research.\n\nLane's proposal was developed behind 
 closed doors with no input from long-term homeless activists.  Many of 
 these activists (Becky Johnson, Laura Tucker, Linda Lemaster) worked 
 extensively with City Council and its appointees to thoroughly research the 
 Camping Ordinance and consider relevant reforms.  Lane has declined to 
 include these folks.\n\nIn order to include them, Micah Posner has agreed 
 at my urging, to have a last-minute meeting which--finally--is open to all. 
 \n \nIronically, Posner's regular meeting with Lane and the select group of 
 activists that Lane has regularly invited will take place at noon.  This is 
 immediately after the open meeting which Posner has agreed to at 11 AM.   
 Lane has still not included any of the long-term activists whom he 
 disfavors.\n\nThere are real questions as to whether a reactionary City 
 Council will pass even Lane's barebones proposal.  Even so, some activists 
 emphasize, with park curfews, RV parking bans, and permit parking night 
 prohibitions--there will be real questions afterwards: what will be our 
 next step?\n\nWhat next? is the key issue, I think, to be discussed at this 
 meeting.  In addition, Micah will "pass on" our views to his closed meeting 
 with Lane's select group at noon.  And we can certainly bring our views to 
 City Council on March 8th and to the community and the streets in the days 
 that follow in direct actions, if we organize to do so.\n\nI'll be there.\n 
 https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2016/03/01/18783539.php
SUMMARY:Last Minute Meeting on the Camping Ban Reforms
LOCATION:City Council Offices at a room booked by Councilmember Micah Posner
URL:https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2016/03/01/18783539.php
DTSTART:20160303T190000Z
DTEND:20160303T200000Z
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