I don’t know if I’d heard of The People’s Park, in Berkley, California, but I certainly didn’t know the full history. If you’re not familiar with them, It’s Going Down is a good place for news from a decidedly anti-authoritarian perspective.  This history is a great example of what an organized and dedicated community can achieve, if they’re willing to fight for it. The idea that we are powerless can all too easily become a self-fulfilling prophecy.

In 1969, #Berkeley residents rose up + transformed a vacant lot owned by @UCBerkeley into an autonomous park after hundreds of residents were evicted through eminent domain. Police responded with live rounds, killing one + injuring over 100. This was just the start. A thread. pic.twitter.com/J8yl9nz7O5

— It's Going Down (@IGD_News) August 4, 2022

Following the explosive Free Speech Movement, officials grew weary of the increasing student radicalism + burgeoning youth culture. With groups like the Black Panthers forming in Berkeley in 1966, they sought to stamp out this growing hotbed of radicalism. https://t.co/VuqY9aLqxs

— It's Going Down (@IGD_News) August 4, 2022

Angered at the social cleansing of the neighborhood by the university, increased police harassment + the eviction of hundreds of residents, by the spring of 1969, people had gotten organized and decided to take matters into their own hands – taking over the derelict lot. pic.twitter.com/alp8OoGvJH

— It's Going Down (@IGD_News) August 4, 2022

Reagan was also pushed to crack down on unrest in Berkeley by FBI director, J Edgar Hoover, who "tried to persuade [UC President] Kerr to crack down hard on Berkeley students, which Hoover alleged [were] communist sympathizers. Unable to convince Kerr, Hoover turned to…Reagan." pic.twitter.com/T5MViAPUjB

— It's Going Down (@IGD_News) August 4, 2022

A march of several thousand attempted to re-take the park as police opened fire and shot tear-gas. "James Rector, an innocent bystander on a side street, was shot in the stomach and later died from his wounds. Alan Blanchard…was permanently blinded." Over 100 were hospitalized. pic.twitter.com/OF6AdtnUoX

— It's Going Down (@IGD_News) August 4, 2022

On May 20th, "helicopters released tear gas, spraying the trapped crowd on Sproul Plaza. The noxious stench reached Cowell Hospital, endangering patients. It caused skin burns on swimmers in the pool at Strawberry Canyon nearly a mile past campus." pic.twitter.com/tzNjzOVdSW

— It's Going Down (@IGD_News) August 4, 2022

Over the next few years, more protests broke out in an attempt to tear-down the fence that remained around the park. In May of 1972, the fence finally came down and the park was once again rebuilt collectively by the community. pic.twitter.com/JsMaplZdKc

— It's Going Down (@IGD_News) August 4, 2022

Into the 1990s, riots + clashes with police + UC Berkeley officials continued to break out, as police attempted time + time again to clamp down on new park infrastructure + creations, from playground equipment to bathrooms. pic.twitter.com/Vi6DA3aPiT

— It's Going Down (@IGD_News) August 4, 2022

In December of 1991, a chainsaw is used to cut down a volleyball court post "in broad daylight." In response, the "UC files a lawsuit against key park activists to… intimidate would-be protestors." pic.twitter.com/AULeiEL3Kh

— It's Going Down (@IGD_News) August 4, 2022

The 1990s also saw the launch of East Bay Food Not Bombs, which served reclaimed and donated food free to the community throughout the week. This grassroots organizing + community building continues to this day at People's Park. pic.twitter.com/8eOFphzyft

— It's Going Down (@IGD_News) August 4, 2022

The space also continues to be a hub for autonomous organizing, art, mutual aid, culture, + music. pic.twitter.com/Q3Cb1eOuc0

— It's Going Down (@IGD_News) August 4, 2022

According to @save1921walnut, "UC Berkeley, led by Chancellor Christ, demolish[ed] the building to create exclusive (student only), short term (transfer students) and luxury market-rate housing…" All, during the pandemic. https://t.co/gvWdAzISLQ

— It's Going Down (@IGD_News) August 4, 2022

Moreover, "UC Berkeley itself has contributed to gentrification. Campus housing options…are so limited + priced so high that many students turn to off-campus options. Competition for available housing in the area allows off-campus property companies to raise rental prices…" pic.twitter.com/nSin1odfED

— It's Going Down (@IGD_News) August 4, 2022

As those that have taken part in creating, planting + maintaining People's Park over the past 50 years know – a system that forces us to choose between destroying vanishing green space + tiny amounts of new housing stock – isn't worth defending. We need it all. pic.twitter.com/9Y95s9iRKA

— It's Going Down (@IGD_News) August 4, 2022

The brave actions by the #Berkeley community on Wednesday in the face of a massive police operation in defense of People's Park, is just the latest chapter in a decades old book being written by a brand new generation. pic.twitter.com/A9czmaIOmA

— It's Going Down (@IGD_News) August 4, 2022