THE WASHINGTON POST, TUESDAY, JULY 10, 1984
Sleep and Protest
The Post's "Sleep, Speech and the Parks" [editorial, July 3] mirrors the insensitivity of the Supreme Court's ruling that denied free expression to the plight of the homeless.
The Community' for Creative Nonviolence did not merely seek to use D.C.'s parks as camping grounds for convenience during demonstrations, as The Post and the Supreme Court seem to believe. Rather, the demonstration was for those who have no place to sleep to do just that in public new, to awaken the consciousness of the complacent to the fact that many people have nowhere to go at night.
The Post need not fear for the manicure of Washington's parks because allowing the homeless to sleep there to express a particular grievances is clearly distinguishable from any broad sanction of "camping" on national parks.
This decision marks a continuation in the recent trend of Supreme Court decisions illustrating a cavalier disregard for the rights and interests of the locked-out and disadvantaged minorities, accused persons and now the homeless.
TERRENCE G. BERG
Washington
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