Alex Darocy Photography

Santa Cruz police initiated a raid at City Hall on November 23 at 3:30 am, shortly after it stopped raining that evening, to clear from the area approximately two dozen individuals who had been sleeping and sheltering themselves from the weather under the eaves of the buildings in the complex. Officers issued citations to individuals, and made one arrest. City Hall property is closed to the public between the hours of 10 pm and 6 am. Many of those sleeping at City Hall were participating in the weekly Freedom Sleepers sleep protest, while others were simply sheltering themselves from the wet weather temporarily with the group. SCPD officers wake up individuals sleeping at Santa Cruz City Hall to avoid the rain on November 23. The evening of November 22-23 marked the 72nd community sleepout organized by the Freedom Sleepers, a coalition of unhoused and housed activists who have been sleeping at Santa Cruz City Hall since July 4, 2015 to protest local laws that criminalize homele...

On November 8, the 70th Freedom Sleepers community sleepout was held at Santa Cruz City Hall, with about three dozen individuals participating and making it through the night. There have been periods of wet weather recently, but Tuesday nights have been dry in Santa Cruz, and attendance at the sleepouts has remained consistently high since August of this year. The Freedom Sleepers are a coalition of unhoused and housed activists who have gathered to sleep at City Hall one night a week since July of 2015 to protest local laws that criminalize homelessness. Many of the Freedom Sleepers are also active as volunteers with Santa Cruz Food Not Bombs, which shares food at the sleepouts and operates a "free market." By sleeping at City Hall, the Freedom Sleepers are engaging in a civil disobedience protest that directly violates the city's camping ban, which outlaws sleeping anywhere in public between the hours of 11 pm and 8:30 am. Despite intense pressure from the ...

A group of students from Santa Cruz High School marched downtown on Pacific Avenue today, November 14, as part of a walk-out to protest the naming of Donald Trump as president. Their chants of "Not My President" could be heard a block away from Front Street, and one student carried a protest sign that read "Fuck Trump."

A third Anti-Donald Trump march was organized by students from UCSC on Friday, November 11, with participation from the greater Santa Cruz community. Anti-Trump demonstrators hold a short general assembly on Front Street to decide where to march next. Students first started gathering mid-afternoon on Friday at Quarry Plaza to create protest signs. They then marched from UCSC to Mission Plaza, where community members had formed a giant circle in order to host an open mic. More speakers were heard when the students arrived, and a march through the downtown was held, which attracted many onlookers as participants. The energy was high. Individuals chanted as group "Not My President!" and "No Walls, No KKK, No Fascist USA!" As the march made its way down Front Street, demonstrators held a short general assembly at Cooper Street, which determined the march would move onward through local neighborhoods, eventually passing through the Beach Flats and arriving a...