Sponsored link
Thursday, March 28, 2024

Sponsored link

UncategorizedStatewide tenant movement comes alive in Sacramento. Where was...

Statewide tenant movement comes alive in Sacramento. Where was Leland?


Assemblymember Tom Ammiano (center) addresses the tenant rally, with State Sen. Mark Leno (left) and Supervisors David Campos and John Avalos (behind Ammiano) looking on.

By Tim Redmond

Last year, when Dean Preston tried to put together a march and rally for tenant rights in Sacramento, he got, he recalled, “Maybe 35 people.”

Wow, things have changed.

More than 500 people filled the sidewalks around the state capitol Tuesday, arriving on buses from San Francisco, Oakland, and Fresno, coming in carpools, seniors and young people … and a lot of folks who don’t make a practice of lobbying the state Legislature.

“The last time I was at a rally up here, it was for AB1 (an early LBGT rights bill) and Willie Brown was our representative,” Linda Post, a longtime Democratic Party activist, told me. That was 1985.

The state Legislature isn’t known as a friendly place for tenants. As Assemblymember Tom Ammiano told the crowd, it’s hard even to get renter-rights bills out of committee – and then “you get embarrassed by the small number of votes on the floor.”

But 2014 is the Year of the Tenant in San Francisco, and we may be making some progress in Sacramento, too. Preston, the director of Tenants Together, the statewide lobbying organization for renters, was impressed and encouraged by the turnout – and the possibility that several critical bills will emerge from the legislative maw by the end of this session. (more after the jump)

48 Hills welcomes comments in the form of letters to the editor, which you can submit here. We also invite you to join the conversation on our Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. 

Marke B.
Marke B.
Marke Bieschke is the publisher and arts and culture editor of 48 Hills. He co-owns the Stud bar in SoMa. Reach him at marke (at) 48hills.org, follow @supermarke on Twitter.

Sponsored link

Featured

Shanti Charan jokes to fight recidivism for people in Bay Area jails

The local comedian-educator uses humor as a tool when teaching college-level courses at Elmwood Correctional Facility.

SF prepares to evict people living in vehicles on Bernal Hill

After years of tolerance, parking enforcement set to start this week—but residents are already getting citations.

Screen Grabs: Fur flies in wrenching ‘The Fox’ and bizarre ‘Dogman’

Cuddly canines comfort in Franz Streitberger’s World War II drama and kill in Luc Besson's new thriller.

More by this author

Arts Forecast: Remembering Jess Curtis

The groundbreaking dance-maker passed suddenly this week. Plus: St. Patrick's Day events, CCA MFA expo, Scourge of Worlds, more.

Famed fingerstyle guitarist Brian Gore steps up to the mic

Founder of International Guitar Night finds his voice on heartfelt new album 'Seek the Love You're Yearning.'

Arts Forecast: The cool, clear eye of Wolfgang Tillmans

Plus: Flatstock, Afrolicious, Conrad Tao, Luis Miguel Garcia-Mispireta, Branford Marsalis, Chiquimamani-Condori, more
Sponsored link

You might also likeRELATED