Two Arrested Near Farmer’s Market, But the Beats Continued On

Published on September 17, 2008 in Arts & Creation, Community Building, Police

On September 17th, two people were arrested in Parking Lot #4 alongside the Santa Cruz Farmer’s Market. Police lined Cathcart Street displaying batons and a riot control gun, but quickly drove away, while seditious beats emanated from the drum circle below the trees. People continued to play music, share food and enjoy their time in Parking Lot #4 without further disturbance from the police or fencing. Read More and View Photos

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Keeping Santa Cruz Weird: Is Drumming a Crime?

Published on September 10, 2008 in Arts & Creation, Community Building, Police

On September 10th, the City of Santa Cruz took measures trying to prevent the weekly gathering and drum circle in Parking Lot #4 alongside the Farmer’s Market. New mesh fences and several police officers were not enough to prevent Raging Grannies and other free-thinkers from singing, playing instruments, sharing food and reclaiming an important community space under the trees. Police took surveillance photographs, passed out information, and harassed some people, but the drum beats and musical notes continued on for another week. Read More and View Photos

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Reclaiming Sacred Dakota Land at Camp Coldwater

Published on September 2, 2008 in Community Building, Government, Police

On September 2nd, members of the Oceti Sakowin (Seven Council Fires) of the Dakota Oyate reoccupied Coldwater Spring and the surrounding land in Minnesota. The Coldwater Spring site is an abandoned property of the United States Department of the Interior’s defunct Bureau of Mines. Dakota people consider the spring as essential to their spiritual lifeway and the surrounding land as a part of their homeland of B’Dote. Dakota people believe that they will be better stewards of the land than either the United States or the State of Minnesota has been. This is evidenced in the fact that the site is littered with dilapidated structures and the soil is polluted from the former Bureau of Mines.

The reclamation of this sacred site was launched with four days of ceremonies to celebrate the seasonal transition from summer to fall. While the Dakota did not ask for a permit for the four days, the property manager has provided one. Despite the permit and the ceremonies that are happening on site, there continues to be heavy surveillance by Homeland Security, Hennepin County Sheriffs, and riot-police from various police agencies. Read More and View Photos

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Plainclothes Police at the March for Our Lives in St. Paul

Published on September 2, 2008 in Community Building, Government, Police

On September 2nd in St. Paul, the Poor People’s Economic Human Rights Campaign (PPEHRC) brought together poor and homeless people of every race, background and age, students, social workers, union members, lawyers, religious leaders, artists and others who stand for social and economic justice. The PPEHRC raised their voices in the “March for Our Lives” to demand “Money for Health Care and Housing, Not for War!”

The rally held at Mears Park and the march that followed were heavily infiltrated by plainclothes law enforcement officers. Read More and View Photos

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March for Our Lives at the RNC in St. Paul

Published on September 2, 2008 in Community Building, Government, Police

On September 2nd in St. Paul, the Poor People’s Economic Human Rights Campaign (PPEHRC) brought together poor and homeless people of every race, background and age, students, social workers, union members, lawyers, religious leaders, artists and others who stand for social and economic justice. The PPEHRC raised their voices in the “March for Our Lives” to demand “Money for Health Care and Housing, Not for War!”

Health care and housing should never be luxuries – not in the United States, not anywhere. Toward this end, the PPEHRC called for protestors to fill the streets of St. Paul, Minnesota in a powerful, peaceful demonstration for the right to healthcare, housing and all economic human rights. As poverty, hunger, unemployment and homelessness grow throughout the United States, political leaders from both major parties have abandoned the common people.

The PPEHRC states, “We cannot afford to be silent. We cannot afford to be disappeared from the public eye and the political debates as our families suffer.” Read More and View Photos | More Photos

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Ripple Effect at RNC in Minnesota: War Isn’t Nice

Published on September 2, 2008 in Arts & Creation, Government

On September 2nd, thousands of people gathered at the state capitol lawn in St. Paul, Minnesota to engage in trainings, educational workshops, community building activities, music, and art in the name of positive social and environmental change. Featured artists and speakers included Michael Franti, Anti-Flag, Dead Prez, Winona LaDuke, and Medea Benjamin.

Organized by a local nonprofit led by three motivated young progressives, Ripple Effect was Substance’s (the organization behind the event) first step in a series of efforts to manifest a united intergenerational front. These events are aimed at embracing the core values of the environmental and social justice movements, with a collective understanding that the solutions to these problems will require us to break down issue and generational barriers.

Ripple Effect – a daylong festival propelling a new wave of progressive action outside the RNC – went beyond the convention and beyond partisanship to empower and unite a diverse range of people with varying backgrounds and interests. Read More and View Photos

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