On December 23rd, homeless people and supporters took to the streets of Sacramento to protest oppressive laws and discrimination. Marching through the cold streets of Sacramento they demanded safe ground, the right to live without being arrested, fined, and their property being confiscated. In Sacramento there are more then twelve hundred people who go to sleep under the skies every night.

Sacramento lacks affordable housing and places to rent often require high deposits and credit checks. There are not enough shelters, and a "anti-camping" ordinance is used to harass the homeless, despite the fact that they have nowhere to sleep. This law allows the police to arrest and fine people who are sleeping in the streets and to seize their personal belongings (blankets, personal documents, camping gear) making their survival even harder. A leaflet distributed by the Sacramento Homeless Organizing Committee at the demonstration reads "the powers that be have ordained that rich and poor alike are forbidden to sleep under a bridge. The problem is that only the poor need a bridge to sleep under on a rainy night."

The march started on 12th street and ended at Cesar Chavez Park. Homeless people spoke about the condition they face everyday, the difficulties of overcoming social barriers and their demand for a safe ground. At the end of the event the names of homeless people who died last year in Sacramento were read. This coincided with National Homeless Persons' Memorial Day, a day dedicated to raising awareness of the homeless people who die every year.

Photos: 1 | 2 | Sacramento Loaves & Fishes | Francis House of Sacramento | National Coalition for the Homeless | Sacramento housing alliance | Relocalize Sacramento! | Sacramento Food Not Bombs | His Streets Ministries