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Did the mayor's homeless feeding regulations just bring Occupy Philly out of hibernation?
Occupy's spring has apparently come: and piping its tune, like some kind of (inadvertent) mayoral Pan, is Mayor Michael Nutter
Did the mayor's homeless feeding regulations just bring Occupy Philly out of hibernation?
I should note first: Occupy Philly has not, in fact, been entirely dormant this winter: Occupiers have staged protests, cleaned vacant lots, held marches, stood trial, beaten charges, and even fed the hungry.
That said, it's been relatively quiet for the past few months — though many have anticipated that there would be fresh energy in the movement this spring.
Well: Occupy's spring has apparently come; and piping its tune, like some kind of (inadvertent) mayoral Pan, is Mayor Michael Nutter with a series of measures he's proposed or supported that would regulate the feeding of homeless persons in city parks (parks like the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, which happens to be preparing for the Barnes Foundation museum to open).
No, Occupiers aren't the only ones opposed to this rule by a long shot, nor to another proposed by the city Board of Health, which would regulate "outdoor feeding" everywhere in the city — as proven by the diversity of voices in yesterday's hearing on that proposal.
But the hundred-plus crowd that appeared at the Municipal Services Building to speak at hearing; the Mic Check held outside when police blocked the doors and prevented more than 40 people from entering the building at once; and the student arrested after a confrontation with police — it's sure reminiscent of the heady days last fall when Occupy Philly commandeered so much public attention.
There was even a mic check inside the Board of Health hearing. Food Not Bombs activist Caroline Steinberg interrupted the meeting (after delivering a statement from Food Not Bombs saying their work feeding people "doesn't cost you a dime,") to announce that protesters were being held back by police outside.
"Mic Check!" she announced loudly between speakers and — to this reporter's surprise, a good handful of people thundered "Mic Check!" right back at her. It hadn't looked, I thought, like that kind of crowd — which shows how much I know.
Did Mayor Nutter's proposal help awaken the sleeping dragon of Occupy? We'll see: but if Occupy is once again rallying around the homeless, they've picked a timely cause: proposed cuts in the state budget could rip millions out of the city's already threadbare shelter system; and while the mayor has proposed an additional million dollars for the Office of Supportive Housing, that money is earmarked for preserving beds elsewhere as the city's largest shelter goes offline and will hardly replace the possible cuts coming down the line.
And then, of course, there's the healthy class warefare angle shaping up around this debate: The mayor hasn't said so, but nearly everyone — including Sister Mary Scullion of Project Home, who appeared alongside the mayor when he announced his proposed regulation — believes the sudden rush to implement these rules has less to do with a sudden public health emergency than the imminent opening of the Barnes Foundation on the Parkway — and a larger dream of making that area the tourist destination it's always supposed to have been.
(It hasn't gotten much attention — yet — but the Mayor proposed, in his recent budget address, a major revamping of Love Park, the last major site at which homeless congregate downtown after Dilworth Plaza and the Parkway)
Meanwhile, the mayor's proposal to ban "outdoor feeding" in city parks came with an invitation for those who do distribute food to do so at City Hall, where the city will provide port-o-potties and hand-washing stations — and when's the last time we saw people handing out free food at City Hall? Hmmm?
Follow inadvertent Pan Isaiah Thompson on twitter.
Just like a healthy dose of X-lax, this brought out that which has become to be known as "Occupy".— turkytom- get a job you lazy bums and don't tell me there aren't any because there are plenty of jobs— SpeakPhilly.com
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