Attorney Ed Frey's commentary (Santa Cruz Sentinel 7/11) insists that the sleep-in is a protest for freedom and justice, two overused words. However, looking closely at his comments yields different fruit.
Frey states: "When he (Mr. Facer) arrived in Santa Cruz a few years ago, he tried many times to obtain shelter space." This apparently indicates that Facer came here years ago as a homeless person seeking shelter, not someone seeking employment and affordable rent. Also, for whatever number of years, Facer has continued to be a homeless camper. Frey doesn't say where Facer came from, why he came or how he occupied himself at his former home.
Again: "The accused must run three separate errands." How many errands do those of us who are not homeless run? We run to work. We make trips to stores to buy materials to maintain our shelters, such as paint, lumber, plumbing supplies, and when we wish to replace a crumbling fence, we must run to city hall to pay for a permit. Our lives are filled with errands that accompany being a member of the community.
In reality, we have a pool, known as the common good, and most of us both contribute to this pool and draw from it. Frey's client apparently enjoys drawing from it but has no interest in contributing to it.
I'm having trouble feeling sorry for him.
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