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by the Coalition of Homeless People at the WOW Hall on December 21, which would include a reading <br />of the names of the 111 homeless people who died in Eugene in 2011. <br />Kristin Carpenter criticized the proposal as something intended to make the council feel more <br />comfortable. It displaced people and distributed them in a way that did not remind the council of its <br />failure to solve the problems of homelessness, poverty, and wage disparity. The council continued to <br />perpetuate a system of structural violence that would continue to oppress the homeless. She termed the <br />ordinance a disgrace and suggested the council wanted to end Occupy Eugene because it had made <br />homelessness visible on a 24 -hour basis. <br />Jean Stacy agreed with Ms. Carpenter. She suggested the council was engaging in an age -old technique <br />of dividing a population into small groups so it had no power because the homeless threatened the council <br />by making it feel ashamed of itself. She maintained that the camp gave the homeless power and a voice. <br />She felt the ordinance was hypocritical. <br />Mark Rust expressed support for the proposed ordinance. He suggested the council consider adding <br />provisions for additional tents instead of merely considering tents as a vehicle that counted toward the <br />current number of spaces, which would build system capacity. <br />Alley Valkyrie did not think that car camping was a solution to the problem. She felt safe at Occupy <br />Eugene. She would not feel safe inside a tent at a parking lot. Ms. Valkyrie said that Occupy Eugene was <br />a community where members kept each other safe. She did not think people understood the power of the <br />community that was Occupy Eugene. She expressed concern about the future of those living at Occupy <br />Eugene. <br />There being no further requests to speak, Mayor Piercy closed the public hearing and solicited council <br />comments. <br />Ms. Ortiz said she did not think the City had failed to take care of its residents. The community's human <br />service agencies worked very hard; when facing budget cuts, they reduced the number of staff but not the <br />number of clients they served. She agreed that when people came together they had a louder voice, but <br />she believed the best way to realize change was to get involved with the organization one wanted to <br />change. She cited her own experience as an example. Ms. Ortiz supported the ordinance as a step in the <br />right direction. <br />Mr. Clark perceived the ordinance as providing greater flexibility in the car camping program. He was <br />happy to support it. In response to testimony, Mr. Clark recalled that Mr. Cahill had offered testimony at <br />an earlier public hearing that spoke to the importance of creating a civil society and of people coming <br />together to solve problems. He agreed with Mr. Cahill about that, although he acknowledged they might <br />disagree on solutions. While the council's earlier action eliminated the option of camping, he did not <br />think it preclude people from coming together. <br />Mayor Piercy did not think any councilor believed that expanding the car camping program would solve <br />the community's homeless issue. Expanding the program was merely one of many tools. She understood <br />that Occupy Eugene participants had invested a great deal in community and she understood why the <br />proposal seemed like a poor alternative to them. <br />Ms. Taylor pointed out to Mr. Clark that Occupy Eugene had been an opportunity for people to come <br />together to solve problems, which was why she did not want to see it end so suddenly. She hoped <br />Occupy Eugene participants would find a place to meet together regularly to continue to problem - solve. <br />MINUTES— Eugene City Council December 20, 2011 Page 5 <br />Emergency Meeting <br />