Holding a sign won’t stop shit…

Jesus,

Take a gander at the comments posted to the main article… heh.

Offensive Against Public Housing Demolitions in New Orleans

New Orleans: Public Housing Supporters Speak Out Against Demolition:

Thursday morning, The Coalition to Stop Demolition rallied in front of City Hall to call attention to the projected demolition of four public housing complexes. The broad-based Coalition was formed out of a concern that thousands of families will permanently lose their homes. Furthermore, the Coalition is critical of the idea of mixed income housing because they believe it will fall short of addressing the housing needs of a community that has yet to recover from the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

Raising a banner that read “Stop the Demolitions” Rose Kennedy Guy stated that public housing offers opportunities for residents that are not available in the private sector. She said that if there is a plumbing problem, it gets fixed. But “outside the projects you got slumlords,” who fail to address their needs. Rose shared with a local reporter that she is here today to fight and to pray and closed by saying, “I deserve to sleep in a comfortable bed.”

Alongside Rose stood Chantel Young. Chantel is a 27 year resident of St. Bernard Public Housing. She stated that mixed income housing limited the number people who will get housing, “A lot of qualified people won’t be able to get in.” She also stated that the public housing complexes are safe to live in because they survived the hurricane and the flood. “It makes me sick to my stomach,” Chantel declared, when thinking about the proposed demolition.

Coalition members then walked around to the City Council Chambers and took their seats. After a long wait, the Coalition finally had the opportunity to approach the council and address their concerns. Malcolm Suber opened and assured the council that the Coalition was composed of concerned citizens who are here today to oppose demolition.

Somewhat of a debate ensued as Suber asked the Council if they believed they had the power to stop the demolition. Suber later told the Council that the Coalition would like to get a sense of where they stand on the issue of demolition. When Council members refused to offer a concrete response to their constituents, Coalition members called out for a “Yes” or “No” response. Suber again asked, “What’s your position?” After the Council failed to respond, Suber informed the Council that they were disrespectful to those who took the time to come here.

Although City Councilwoman Cynthia Willard-Lewis offered to meet and listen to the group at a later date, an apparent conflict between the Coalition and the Council was a sense of urgency. With people’s homes on verge permanent destruction in a matter of days, Coalitions members wanted to know where their elected officials stood on the issue; whereas, Council members appeared to want to table the matter. Standing just a few feet away from the podium, a public housing resident said to the Council, “You don’t care because you have a home to go back to.”

Coalition members began clapping their hands as they broke out into chants “Stop the Demolition” and “No Demolition.” They then spontaneously began marching around the public seating area of the chamber. As a group of marchers passed her by a Coalition member exclaimed, “They’ll spend the whole day to decide if a coffee house is going to be built, but they won’t talk about public housing!”

After realizing that most of the City Council members were no longer present, City Council President Arnie Fielkow left the chamber. Coalition members continued with their protest until it appeared that a meeting in the Mayor’s office was going to be held. Upon receiving this information some Coalition members stepped out for the meeting. When blocked from entering the main building, some returned to the chamber.

Bill Quigley, a prominent civil rights attorney and law professor was taken in to a security shed located in the parking lot just outside the chamber. A number of Coalition members gathered around the parking lot, protesting the actions of the police. Later it was determined that Quigley was cited for disturbing the peace.

As Coalition members and the police began to disburse the parking lot, Kym Clark, an activist from New York, displayed video footage from her 3.5 inch video camera LCD screen to Coalition members and the local press. The footage showed a city official dressed in a dark tan suit shoving Quigley against the wall and forcing him into an arm lock. While photographers and videographers for the press filmed the footage displayed by Clark, she stated, “This is why community media is so important, we don’t hide this stuff.”

Bill Quigley arrested at City Hall during Public Housing Meeting

Public Housing Teach-In/Strategy Meeting for N.O. Anarchists

There are two sides to protesting. One is that freedom of speech doesn’t do shit to make the ones with money and power change their minds. Thats why they let you stand in the street and yell your heads off. Cuz they will sit there, let you protest and laugh. The other side to protesting is that they haven’t taken into account, that whatever you yell, no matter what people say, you are still forcing your thoughts and ideas into others mind, wether they think about it or not is up to them. So protest, but dont go out yelling “hell no we wont go” cuz that doesn’t say shit to people walking, driving by. Instead hold a sign with a website or group name, or maybe even an idea.

direct action gets the goods!

“Take a gander at the comments posted to the main article© heh.”

Brutal

One of the comments:

“Affordable housing is not a right…My father had a 6th grade education. He had to work in order to help the family. He could not read or write. Of course he could not work in an office or have a profession of that sort. Instead he worked on the highway and in the later years, the railroad… He had long hours and hard work… I never once heard him complain about what he didnt’ receive from the government.”

I wonder if you feel that life would be fine for your children too.

jesus… those comments were just… wow…

kinda makes you grateful for what we have here, doesn’t it?

well, it does for me at least.

i love you fuckers.

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