UC Berkeley students and community members alike gathered in People’s Park on Friday to protest campus plans to build housing in the area, culminating in crowds of people tearing down fences and placing them on the steps of Sproul Hall.
The protest, which was planned by a loose network of organizers, was prompted by UC Berkeley’s decision to fence off certain areas of the park in order to retrieve soil samples for the planned construction.
Several people against this plan claim that People’s Park has invaluable environmental significance.
“People have the right to a free environment,” said former Berkeley mayoral candidate Aidan Hill, who helped organize the demonstration. “They have the right to clean air and space especially children. It’s the last open green space in the Southside neighborhood and close to the university.”