Freedom Sleepers Continue to Face Harsh Weather

The Freedom Sleepers are a coalition of unhoused and housed activists who have been sleeping weekly at Santa Cruz City Hall since July 4, 2015. They use sleep as an act of civil disobedience, and the primary demand of their protest is for the city to repeal its camping ban ordinance, which prohibits sleeping anywhere in public between the hours of 11 pm and 8:30 am.

Additionally, sleeping anywhere on the grounds of Santa Cruz City Hall at night is against the law. The entire property is closed to the public between the hours of 10 pm and 6 am, and is subject to the parks trespass law.

The Freedom Sleepers generally sleep on the sidewalk in front of city hall, where they receive less attention from police. The Santa Cruz Police Department has raided the community sleepouts many times. On November 23, police cleared a group of about two dozen sleepers who were sheltering themselves from rainy weather under the eaves of city hall. Some were participating in the protest and some not.

Attendance at the sleepouts has varied during the wet weather and recent dip in temperatures. Even though the temperature was in the 30s at the sleepout held on the evening of November 29-30, several dozen people made it through the night. In contrast, the last two sleepouts have seen a reduction in participation.


The Freedom Sleepers gather at Santa Cruz City Hall every Tuesday night.

For more information, see:

http://freedomsleepers.org/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/freedomsleepers/


For previous coverage of the community sleepouts, see:

After Rain, Santa Cruz Police Eject Homeless Individuals Sleeping at City Hall and Make One Arrest
https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2016/11/26/18794159.php

Attendance at City Hall Sleepouts Remains High
https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2016/11/14/18793590.php

Getting a Good Night's Sleep at City Hall with the Freedom Sleepers
https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2016/09/19/18791433.php

Freedom Sleepers Anniversary: One Year of Protesting the Sleeping Ban at City Hall
https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2016/07/09/18788832.php


Alex Darocy
http://alexdarocy.blogspot.com/