Powerful. Listen to what they have to say. You may be surprised. I think the Council was. At least, it got their attention for a change. I’ve heard a lot of testimony in my lifetime, this might be some of the best.
The people who are about to speak are at the Madison City Council meeting because of a resolution, sponsored by Alder Marsha Rummel, thanking Occupy Madison for the work they have done since last October housing the homeless. And because as of April 30th, the Mayor is making them leave their current site, for no apparent or stated reason. Listen to what they have to say.
R. P. McMurphy a.k.a. Lyle Siefert (sp?). He says his real name is Lyle Siefert, but he used R.P. McMurphy because he is a hero of his from One Flew Over the Coo Coos Nest and if you live down in Occupy, there is a little bit of One Flew Over the Coo Coo’s Nest. I’ve been recently displaced from my home, I am a working poor. I am a flooring installer and this season has been as dry as dry can be. And I had no where to go, short of a shelter and I’m living in my truck currently. Work, sounds like next week, is going to come around and I’ll be on my way, but its a safe place for me to be. They have their problems but with all the trouble and problems of living with that many people in an uncontrolled environment I found a lot of good hearted people. I was will the other week and a lot of people came to my truck, made sure I had water and food. It may not be part of the recall Walker thing, but right now, its part of my life. And there is a lot of really good people out there and we’re all displaced. It’s not like we want to be there. I would love to go back to my apartment and curl up in front of my tv. I don’t have that option right now. If I continue to work and strive to get more work, I’m part of the homeless working community and there is a large part of this people don’t see. And there has been problems down there, I”m the first to admit it. There is stuff I don’t want to see and I don’t want to be part of. But there are also acts of human kindness that you would not believe.
Clapping. Mayor explains that they can’t have displays of support or opposition. That applies to the council members as well as the speakers.
Dave Peters. He says he currently lives at Occupy Madison, he came her a little over a year ago, not knowing what to expect. He got off a bus about half past midnight and there isn’t even a place to relieve myself. Welcome to Madison. During the last year it has been interesting to say the least. He has been involved in a group called We Are Wisconsin and we did help resign a couple senators who were very corrupt and took the rest and stopped the mine thanks to one Republican, but that is not why I am here. When I saw people living in doorways and alleys . . . that’s just not going to go. I start rounding up people, first friends of mine and then people I didn’t know to give them a place to stay. A tent isn’t the most comfortable place, but there is something a lot worse, being out in nowhere. That is what Occupy has done, given these people a chance to have to time to get a job, to get money in the bank, to get themselves on their feet. A lot of Occupy Madison, about a hundred people, yes, a hundred people and it is growing have no where to go. And we have had our share of problems, we have developed a good neighbor policy, we have discouraged racism, sexism, every type of evilism you can think of. We’ve tried to make that part of our constitution, not entirely successful. Madison has drunks, punks and perverts, so do we. And we’re trying to do something about it and doing it collectively. We try to discourage people from calling the police, we try to handle things internally as possible, whenever possible. And we are trying to make a life for some of the people that otherwise have very difficult circumstances. I don’t know what the answer is. I’m only one individual, but I do know that we are part of a social experiment. A very broad experiment, that needs a chance to function and we need time and if this place closes we don’t have any time. We won’t have a chance to prove anything and we’ve already done quite a lot. We’ve taken care of these people, we’ve housed them. We’ve clothed them. We’ve fed them. With no cost to the city. And if you don’t want to provide a site for monetary reasons, do it for selfish reasons. Think of this, what is going to happen to these people if they go back to the streets. They’re going to have to find a way to live, even it that means breaking laws, and who do you think takes care of these laws? The police. And who do you think pays these people. You do. So, if you don’t want to do it for us, do it for yourselves. Give us a chance to help these people which we are doing now.
Allen Barkoff. He seconds everything that has been said so far. I agree 100% with all of it. Occupy Madison represents a different kind of model for dealing with homelessness. Porchlight, the Porchlight model has been doing a really good job for a certain segment of the homeless population, but there is another segment of the homeless population, for whatever reason, doesn’t really fit into that model. Occupy Madison represents an alternative model or a supplementary model that I think would be good to try. And it is being tried, and it is working, even tho there have been many obstacles, not all the fault of the people on the site. If on April 30th, the people decide not to leave the site, it won’t be because they don’t want to leave, it will be because they have no place to go. Right now the city is pursuing development on East Washington on S. Park St. and he read recently there will be efforts to develop parts of the area around the square. I think this is all good, but he knows of no thought being given to the homeless, the city’s efforts for the homeless have been good as far as it goes, but as far as he can tell, it has not been what is required. And this is evidenced by the number of people at the East Washington site. We should all remember that the quality of a city is determined not just by the number of parks, not just by convention centers and not just by the number of bike paths, as much as I like to ride my bike, its my favorite activity, as important as these amenities are, a city is judged by the way it treats the homeless. Not just a certain segment of the homeless population, but all the homeless. Madison is a great city, and it has an opportunity to be a great city for all, including the most vulnerable and disadvantaged. The city has proclaimed housing as a human right, I think now is the time to follow this proclamation with action. For all the homeless, not just a segment that are being served nicely, not so according to some, but, they are being served, and in closing, we really would appreciate a meeting with Mayor Soglin as soon as possible.
Donna Asif. She is the director of the Madison Homelessness Initiative. She is here to encourage you to establish a policy, a policy in your documents, a policy within your hearts and minds, a policy within your capacity, to support grassroots initiatives. Grassroots initiatives rise up when there is a need. Sometimes and very often they can only be seen by people who are outside of the system, who are walking within the gaps, within the need. I am not homeless, I have never been homeless, but I stepped out in Jamuary 2007 to learn about the issues that I saw my neighbors living, the issues of homelessness. And the other neighbors, the business people, the heads of agencies, the heads of banks, everyone that I could meet to hear how homelessness was impacting them. Always negatively, always with a great deal of emotion, emotion best lived without, fear, dispair, bewilderment, disgust, and I’m here to encourage you to build the capacity for grassroots support, because it is indeed a capacity which is quite different from those you have needed until now. Grassroots initiatives grow, most likely, organically and it doesn’t have the clean format or the cleaner format that the agencies have, that know specifically what they are after a year or two or five in advance. They build a budget towards that. The grassroots rise up when the need appears. And sometimes the order of that appearance is most unusual and surprising. As we become informed, enlightened. My initiative, for example, when I went out to learn from others, when I sat at the feet of those who are the experts, I came to realize that access to showers and to getting laundry done and clean clothes, and to walk with dignity and to look in the mirror and remember who you are to smile without wondering what your teeth look like because there is no access to the simple supplies that are needed. Nail clippers, or clean clothes. In the last few years, the Madison Homelessness Initiative has established Project Bubbles, and Shower Power to meet these needs and we are on track to serve 5000 people yearly, 5000 visits.
Mayor cuts her off.
She says, support grassroots efforts.
Mayor asks that when he calls two names in a row people get ready so there is not a long transition period, it is going to be a very long meeting. (It was done around 11:00, the mayor apparently has an odd definition of “very long”)
Bill Keys. Says we know that the Occupy movement began in Cairo and was imported to Madison with our own Occupy movement. We enlarged the crowds and the songs and the testimonies and we created imagery, forged bonds and changed discussion and the purposes of the Occupation indeed, Mayor Paul Soglin joined part of that. Most of you saw the interconnectedness of these protests and unifying moments until they led to recall elections, two of them within the next two months. Our Occupy movement expanded across the state and country where young and old alike took their stands at risk of discomfort, injury and death, they grew and evolved as needed and they kept the faith, they insisted that all have dignity and a place to shape events. The formal Occupy movement spread to Madison, to the green next to the Breese Stevens Stadium, then to the concrete of the old Don Miller facility. Our Occupy movement has expanded its meaning, and function, what was once a protest against something to bring change, has morphed into a place of safety, and inclusiveness for the most vulnerable in our community. And that means change for all. Occupy Madison has joined many organizations in the city that have long successful programs for the homeless and we thank them all. I have heard the hateful and uninformed and self-serving critics of the homeless who blame them for their situation, but Occupy Madison is unconditional in its acceptance. Occupy Madison recognizes that we are lucky or unlucky through nothing we did, we are products of different families, environments, experiences and dreams and we stand on the shoulders of others. I ask you to recognize your humanity and all that you see. I ask that you visit the Occupy village on East Washington Ave. I ask you to talk to the people, walk its streets and be lucky as I was to meet one of its residents who was introduced to me as an activist. She is homeless, but she has a story to tell and she is an activist just like all of you. Lets share that activism, involve them in you decisions and statements. The time and spaces and encouragement to us all, lets continue our work for our grand Occupation of this earth.
William Gruber. I am among many others at Occupy who need and have benefited from the Occupy movement here in Madison. From . . . uh, sorry, I’m not used to speaking, this is odd, I’m used to going to court here, so this is really great. Uh . . . uh . . . sorry. While some of us spend a majority of our time protesting, a lot of us are spending our time just going through the maze you find yourself in when you are homeless. Um, I came here a year ago last February, thinking we would grab hold of the governor’s ear, and rip him out of the wonderful building here (points) and move on to helping out the people of the world, because we all know they are jerking us all around, excuse me, this is nothing like what I was going to say (holds up piece of paper) The Occupy movement came along and helped me, after I was already occupying here for a few months. Wondering if anyone else thought along the same lines as me. We occupied the capital for a while, we started occupying different spaces in the park, we’ve been down here for months, I think we are doing a great service for the community. I think the people that are really taking a close look at us know us and I think the end of this month is way too soon to think that it is time to stop because the problem is solved. I didn’t read anything that is on here. We can’t let this Occupy end, and I can’t wait to see you when we have a chance to meet, Mayor. Thank you.
Marcus Robinson. Well, I’ve never been to court here, so I’m alright. I work for Wisconsin environment, WISPIRG, I’ve done ACLU, I went to college, right now I”m going for my MBA, I”m a student at MATC currently and I”m working on a 4 year liberal arts transfer program to go to UW. That is my goal, I want to feel smart, I want to do something that is worth something. I’m homeless. Just, I failed. What I do, there just wasn’t a lot of work coming in, and so, I ended up rock bottom, a few mishaps, bad times and here I am, this is my story. I”m a working man. I work with my hands, I work with my body, my soul, my heart, and yet I am homeless. I’m not a waste to anybody. I haven’t done anyone any harm or wrong. But yet, coming to the Occupy, I’ve noticed that we are self-sufficient, I never had that hope in ever saying that, I always thought that the city or the state government or someone would have to always fund us, but the fact is, we are self sustainable. There is a pantry there, there is a water source, there is a heating source, and very little electricity is used, and what is used is not costing the city or taxpayers of Madison. We are very self-sufficient if given the opportunity.Occupy is here for a number of reasons, the homeless are losing hope, we are losing hope, me myself I’m going to fight forever, but there are some that are not like me. And they are losing hope, they are losing their identity. They are losing their sense of purpose. We are Wisconsiners, need I remind you, we are Madisonians. I wasn’t born here, but I got here as soon as I could. And I love this city, I love this state, I pay taxes here. For my tickets, they took all my state taxes, which is fine, but I love this city, this is my city. And the only thing is, I don’t need a red cent, I just need a chance and Occupy is giving me that chance. Its keeping my head up when there are so many reasons to put it down. I get looked at everywhere I go cuz I got my backpack on shoulder trying to look like a student, but all the time that is not possible. People shouldn’t be, because of my situation, but I’m not a bad person. Each of you would love me if you ever got to know me. These two people here (points to Lisa Subeck and Brian Solomon) can speak about it. We worked in the same building, I know Brian from Allied. You know, we are often, and I know I am short on time, we are often misrepresented by the 1%, the ones that want to sit in your doorways and urinate in your front lawn and drop their ???, and cuss and scream. I understand you got your legitimate reasons to say no, but for that 99% I ask you to say yes.
Robert Jones. I had to write this down because I do a lot of talking and I had to try to make it brief. The first time I became homeless I was in Los Angeles, California. I lived on skid row homeless for two years. I became a cook at one of the missions down there for 6 years, so I know about the homeless situation. I’m here to speak about Occupy Madison, how important it is to the homeless people who live here and the ones that have come from other states. The homeless problem will not go away, we are people who for one reason or another have become homeless. Occupy gives us a cause, self-respect and also gives us pride in what we do to help each other. If there was not an Occupy, there would be 50 – 60 people walking around downtown right now. People in Occupy are getting jobs, they are getting apartments, they are moving to other states getting jobs. We’re not just sitting around doing nothing. There have been times when people have wandered in to Occupy at 2:30 in the morning, hungry, they had no where to go. We give them a place to sleep, we give them hot food, at 2:30 in the morning. I cook there, I did it. At Occupy Madison we turn no one away, we know that people say, we understand, but until you have really been homeless, you don’t know how we are being treated. I was in Brittingham Park, sleeping one night, about 12:30, I had just gotten off work from Labor Ready, all the shelters were closed, I had no where else to go. We are not sharks, we have to sleep somewhere. A police came through on a bicycle and said what are you doing here. I said I’m homeless I have no where to go. He said why don’t you go to the shelter. I said my days are up. But I had no problem respecting authority. He said I tell you what, go over here somewhere in the trees where I can’t see you, then you can sleep in the park. I’m a human being. I’m human. I’m human. I had no problems, so I left. I go downtown and get into a storeway and sleep. IBM patrol comes by, its pouring down rain, and he says, you can’t be here. I say sir, its pouring down rain outside, he said its not his problem. So, I got up and I left, I’m walking the streets at 2:30 in the morning, I bumped into a guy, and he said, have you heard about Occupy Madison. Thank God for Occupy Madison. I went there and they took me in, and I have been there ever since. Buzzer goes off.
Jen Thompson. She has been involved in Occupy since the planning stages, she has witnessed all the changes that Occupy has gone through and has been very involved in it. One of the things that has struck her and why she has been so involved in it is because it is people coming together as people. We call ourselves a leaderless movement, and that doesn’t mean it is easy, its a big challenge, and we serve anyone who comes, and so we are in the space we are in right now. I learned a lot. I have a house. I have a job. I won’t forget the time at the fire where someone was saying, people don’t know what homelessness is like, they don’t know what it is like when you are going to freeze to death, and you are riding your bike at 2:00 in the morning, and you just keep going and going and going because if you stop, you might die. Its a potent statement. And I think that one of the problems that all cities have, and all communities have, is that homelessness is invisible to the regular reality world that most of us walk in. We don’t understand. I stayed two nights in the winter. I couldn’t think straight. I had no idea how to do anything except find the porta-potty that was really cold. And that was easy. People prefer Occupy to the shelters, some of them. They certainly prefer it to being on the streets. So, it has been a big learning experience and personally, I believe that we have to reboot our society and rebuild it, and this is one aspect of that. Of learning about where different people are. Homelessness is not something that is inherent within a person, its a condition they are in, but that condition puts in so many barriers that are implemented by the city and circumstances and by their environment and I think that Occupy Madison has shown a different way of doing things. It’s not comfortable sometimes, its really uncomfortable, not just physically being out there in the cold, but realizing what some people are going through. Yeah, I think that is it. It’s an opportunity, we need to all learn that people are people. Not with different hats on, we have to get to know each other and learn how to work together, what does that mean, its really convoluted. Its really challenging, to work together without having a hierarchy that is already in place and the system is broken and I think this is one piece that certainly changed me and I hope it can continue in one form or the other and possibly meeting with our Mayor Soglin for further discussion. Thank you very much for the proposal, the way it came through was beautiful.
Christian Hanson. Thank you for the opportunity and we all certainly appreciate it. In the spirit of Madison Community Cooperative, sparkle that. Occupy Madison has, and always will be, a community for the health of the community. The level of organization brought from Walkerville, learned form Occupy Wall Street, and brought in from the surrounding community, was that Occupy Madison both strengthened and maintained, despite numerous obstacles, including the freezing cold of Wisconsin winter. Occupy Madison’s level of coordination and cooperation with the City of Madison and Dane County, both met and exceeded a level of respect that can only be described as exemplary. The skills be taught and learned at Occupy Madison are both valuable to the community as well as the individual. These life skills include and will never be limited to community organizing, meeting facilitation, event organizing and promotion, in short, the very tools for direct participation in our democracy. How can anyone put a time limit on a peaceful, democratic participation. Moreover, how can anyone put a price tag on the freedom of speech. All these necessities, as well as food, water and shelter have been provided not only to those interested in shaping their futures, but these necessities have and will continue to be provided to those who need these the most. To those who stand to benefit the most. To our homeless brothers and sisters. We cannot be swayed by arguments of cost, til we forget the prices already paid, so we may sit in this very room. We cannot be swayed by arguments of timing, lest we forget the time already spent to give back to the community. We cannot be swayed in our belief that Housing is a Human Right, we cannot be swayed in our believe in a democratic education, that will serve this community for years to come. I would call the fruits of Occupy Madison a great wealth. Allow our efforts to continue and know this wealth. I ask you, do you wish to live in a community that cannot allow such wealth?
Sophia Martinez. My name is Sophia and I am going to talk from the heart. I am not homeless, I am houseless, because I come home to a fantastic community. I swear to you people, they welcomed me as nobody ever did. And this concept of community, we don’t want to be labeled as misfits, or people with no jobs, because I do have a job. But I am just not in a house system right now. And this concept, it is just unbelievable. As a city, and Madison is a fantastic city, it doesn’t cost you guys much to keep this idea going as a tent city. People can come and take their hat off, they have food, they have a shoulder, they have a hug. They have something that a lot of the systems, or a lot of the Army Salvation or whatever, that I ran from it, I went there for a meal and I didn’t like the vibe and I go with my gut feeling. And that was just horrible to be honest with you. And these people are funded millions of dollars a year. And we are not asking that much. The only thing we are asking is a site, or the same site, that we can still go on with the little things we have in our lives so we can support each other, because we have a huge support network. You guys should probably, you know, go there and meet all of us and get to know us by name. It would be a different approach in life, believe me, we are really good people with some issues, we all do you know, we just don’t, you know, we are more honest about it. And we take it as it goes. But the only thing I am asking is for the City of Madison to consider it, to give us an extension or open up another site for us, because it doesn’t cost much and we helped thousands of people since October of last year. The helped a lot of people, a lot. They give food, shelter, blankets, you know, I’m mean, its . . . that’s all I have to say. I hope you guys help us.
Jeremy. He’s been working as a volunteer at Bethel Lutheran Church for the last three years in the Homeless Services office. Before that he worked for Dell and AMD as a IT engineer. I voluntarily stay over at Occupy since January, since the very coldest weather, seven degrees. He’d like to thank the city for giving us the site, and the police in how very nice they have been to us, they have been way and above beyond the call. I have had friends of mine, December 23rd a very good friend of mine died over here on Monona Terrace, his name was Billy Briggs, it was a very big blow. It shook me out of my apartment and I said hey, I have to do something, something hands on. I’ve got a lot of training, I was also in the military, I was also in the army for three years as a chaplain’s assistant. Faith based stuff all the time. I love Occupy Madison for the most part, sometimes better than others, some of the activities are not as good as they can be but they, uh, none of the people got frost bite, we had two guys come in with frost bite. We occasionally have people, the one guy was saying two people at 2:30 in the morning, I think it is every night 2 or 3 people in the morning coming in trying to find a place, the hardest part is trying to find blankets and everything for them all and a place for them to go. Right now we have a hoop house which is probably a quarter of the size of this room and we have 15 people sitting in one of those. We have about 35 tents about 2 people in them and we also have about 15 vehicles that have 2 or 3 people in there also. We have a lot of people in there, we struggle to keep and take care of them. And we’d like to continue, hopefully you will give us a chance but I would like to thank you for what you have done and thank you mayor.
Nathaniel Abrams. He is a member of Operation Welcome Home, I’m a homeless advocate. Occupy Madison started as a political movement, they speak of the 99%, it is turned to become a building ground for that small part of the 99% which are the homeless. My friend made a quote, and I wish to correct him on it. The greatness of a city is measured by how it handles and takes care of its poor. I have seen some astounding feats of humanity in Occupy Madison, people coming in at 2:30 in the morning, they don’t know each other, but still they open their hand. And I know in this great city, there should a place somewhere, a public place where they should be allowed to have a camp. The shelter system, as good as it is, some people fall through the cracks. I know, I was homeless for 10 years. I’ve had police officers run me out of places so much, they gave me so many tickets, they said they got tired of writing me up. People can be be devastated by, people are devastated by this financial situation where they don’t have the ability to get a job. And they lose hope in tomorrow. Unless you lived in that you wouldn’t understand how just a simple act of random kindness gives you something to keep striving for. I hope that the Mayor will meet with us and we can come to some understanding, that we can come to an agreement that someplace in this city there is some land where Occupy can be allowed to exist, I think it would be a great benefit, I think Madison can be a trailblazer, with allowing them to have a spot here, something that the city could stand out in the nation, to be an example for humanity, with this I pass, thank you.
David Williams. He’s a retired librarian. He wants to first say this issue tonight about Occupy Madison is not just about helping the homeless, there are much wider implications. Since 2008 this country has been in the worst crisis of the American capitalist system since the 1930s. Now there is a lot of happy talk lately about an economic recovery. It is a very anemic economic recovery, there are still millions of unemployed that will never find jobs again in our economy. There are millions of distressed homeowners that are facing foreclosure by the very banks that helped trigger this economic crisis. There’s millions of college students, from our own UW, who are entering a grim job market, who are burdened with astronomical education debt. Even in the best of times, there are homeless and unemployed people who will not be reintegrated back into the economy, but we may be living in the middle, in the eye of an economic hurricane. In the not too distant future, when this economic recovery sputters out or flatlines, the community may be facing renewed or even deeper economic distress along with other communities across the United States, so I say, why can’t the City of Madison enable the social experiment to continue. An experiment in outdoor communal living and collective democracy. Why not establish the precedent of camping on a public space in the city, I don’t understand what is so bad about that. It would also send a message to the rest of the country, especially where the blue meanies have been sent to drive out the Occupiers and the homeless have been pushed back into the shadows again, it would send a message to the nation that Madison has a more creative response to the whole situation. I realize it is unfair to talk about a sitting politicians radical past, but I wear this hat 1969 because that is when I first met Paul Soglin, its ironic that end of the permit for Occupy Madison is going to correspond with the Annual Anniversary of the first Mifflin St. Block party which I had the honor to be present at, I remember seeing Paul hauled out of his car, you know the scene in the movie War at Home, hauled out of his car by the police . . . buzzer goes off, and, uh, after that . . .
Mayor Paul Soglin says that is a good time to stop.
David says a young liberal alder like many of you here, tried to diffuse an explosive situation that had been building up for several years with the Vietnam War and the protests at the UW.
Soglin says as flattering as this is I’ve got to call you on time.
David says you can probalby guess what I was about to say.
Mayor starts reading off additional registrations, gets interrupted, there are several people standing there to speak. Alders point out that he called on Z! to speak next.
Z! Haukness Mostly it has been good to hear what everyone else has said. And I think that is shows that what Occupy Madison is a an example of democracy in action. And I think that this is a great body to be hearing about this effort for democracy. And I think as somebody who has been part of the homeless movement for quite a few years in Madison, and trying to find houses for people, trying to make sure that people are not suffering, its been a relief to have Occupy Madison as part of that effort. Its taken a burden off of some of the other people in the city that have been working hard to make sure that people are taken care of, one of the organizations, one of the committees that has come out of Occupy Madison is a called the Coalition on Homelessness and foreclosures and they have been doing great work not only for homeless people, but for people facing foreclosure in the Madison area. I don’t think that this is the end all to a complex situation, I think this is part of the solution. I think this is also an opportunity for us to look at the crisis we are facing and to really prioritize affordable housing, single room occupancy hotels, housing first initiatives and to really give people a place to call home, not outside and in tents, but also actual housing. As other people have said, he thinks it would be great if Madison could support this on-going initiative and be a leader nationally to support the movement finding a place to stay beyond April 30th.
Bruce Wallbaum He talks about a spreadsheet. Its the economic impact, you’ve heard a lot about the heart, its been a magical place, he has been there since the beginning of November, what he did was put together, being there every day, he doesn’t live there, but he goes there almost every day. He calculated some statistics. There has been roughly 5000 plus overnight stays. Zero cost to the city. There has been close to 7000 meals served, at no cost to the city. 2700 gallons of drinking water brought in, zero cost to the city. Roughly 11,000 cups of coffee served, 34 cords of wood brought from people outside from the community, brought in for free about 570M BTUs of heat. There is probably 2700 to 3000 square feet of shelter there, no cost to the city. He did estimate the electricity the city provided, he is guessing it is around $230. Someone could tell him better, all for the cost of $300 we have provided these things, its been a magical experiment with people from the outside community connecting with people who are seeking homes and trying to lift themselves up. I ask that we meet with the mayor, I hope we can.
Confusion about getting copies, mayor reads off the rest of the registrations. There are 6 people available for questions, 10 others registered in support. Mayor asks for questions.
Subeck says there is another speaker. Mayor says he does not know what is going on here, he is going to try to run the meeting, he says there are no other registrants wanting to speak. He asks if they want to suspend the rules.
Lisa Subeck suspends the rules.
Cheryl Elkington She says the size of the homelessness problem is increasing. Occupy Madison may have once been an anarchist organization. Anarchy is typically anti-government, however, I have spoken with several people at Occupy Madison and am under the impression that they are diverse in their opinions. They do have tents and supplies that could be helpful in giving homeless persons along with themselves shelter. Realizing the state of the economy, outdoor shelter is a necessary service. I personally do recommend an addition of private security services which could be paid for by fundraising and it is her request that Brittingham Park could be the location.
Tomorrow I will let you know what the council members had to say. They did pass the resolution unanimously. But for now, lets let these voices stand before we realize that the council doesn’t seem inclined, once again, to do anything meaningful to address the homelessness issues here in Madison.
