SF Reclaim the Streets April 2

Proposed MUNI Fare Hike Sparks Street Party Mutiny

Saturday, April 2nd
12pm Convergence at Dolores Park
1 pm March and Street Party

A motley crew of four hundred will respond to a "Reclaim
the Streets" (RTS) callout with a colorful street party on Saturday afternoon. Dubbed a "community mutiny" by the organizers, the event is billed as a protest against the proposed fare hikes and service cuts on MUNI, and urging increased public control over shared community resources such as the city streets and the public transportation system. The event was organized by a local RTS organizing group, and supported by the newly formed Coalition for Transit Justice, a united front of community-based organizations, unions, and political representatives that have come together to push for policies that ultimately benefit MUNI riders and workers. The theme of the event was captured in a single slogan, prominently displayed on many of the colorful banners and signs: "Public Space * Public Transit * Public Control".

Both groups acknowledge that MUNI has a budget crunch, but stress that fare hikes and service cuts are the wrong solution to the problem. "We worry that MUNI is setting a precedent that the solution to financial shortfalls in public transportation is reducing services and increasing costs to riders," argues Emma Goldman of the Coalition for Transit Justice, "Instead, MUNI is a community resource that must be subsidized and expanded to serve as many people as possible". The Coalition has earned the endorsement of several San Francisco Supervisors, some of which have proposed several specific alternative solutions to MUNI's financial difficulties: raising the registration fee for car owners, raising parking rates, or even creating a special transit tax district that applies to businesses in downtown San Francisco's commercial area.

Though political, the RTS event will not have the feel of a typical protest.

At noon, the costumed revelers will meet at Dolores Park at noon, where they will enjoy live music and soak up the sun for about an hour before moving onto the street and marching leisurely up to an "undisclosed party location".

Reclaim the Streets is a global decentralized direct action movement that began in the UK in the 1990s, and has spawned hundreds of politically-themed street parties in cities all over Europe, Australia, North America, and Africa. Recent RTS actions in San Francisco have highlighted local and community issues with the goal of inspiring, empowering, and motivating participants to find appropriate community-based solutions to the issues that affect them most.