On Jan. 6, activists from Homeless United for Friendship and Freedom stood outside of Bookshop Santa Cruz to protest the law preventing homeless people from sleeping downtown. They handed out fliers to passersby and soup to the homeless. And they sang. In fact, they had a whole repertoire of songs, from Woody Guthrie’s “This Land Is Your Land” to John Lennon’s “Give Peace a Chance” to Petula Clark’s “Downtown” (lyrics altered to reflect the occasion). It was around noon, but some of the neighbors considered them a nuisance. One of them, Sean Reilly, even called the police.
On Jan. 6, activists from Homeless United for Friendship and Freedom stood outside of Bookshop Santa Cruz to protest the law preventing homeless people from sleeping downtown. They handed out fliers to passersby and soup to the homeless. And they sang. In fact, they had a whole repertoire of songs, from Woody Guthrie’s “This Land Is Your Land” to John Lennon’s “Give Peace a Chance” to Petula Clark’s “Downtown” (lyrics altered to reflect the occasion). It was around noon, but some of the neighbors considered them a nuisance. One of them, Sean Reilly, even called the police.
Last Friday a judge sentenced Becky Johnson to either pay a $250 fine or perform 35 hours of community service
Jackson’s attorney claims that the problem was the lyrics of the song “Downtown,” which had been altered. City Attorney John Barisone denied that and said that the participants had kept Sean Reilly, who works the nightshift, from falling asleep. Jackson claims that she was singing in her normal voice, and that there is no ordinance against singing in the street. Read more at Santa Cruz Sentinel.
