History – People’s Park

1969 People’s Park Berkeley Photos by Harold Adler

https://www.adlerphotovideo.com/1969-Peoples-Park-Berkeley-Photos-by-c-Harold-Adler/

People’s Park Newsreels 1969

from vxa.

Making the Park – 1969

Making the Park – 1969: a photo gallery documenting the creative and tumultuous making of People’s Park (opens in a new window) >

The Creation of the Park:

“Through privileges of Eminent Domain the University of California bought a nice tax-free chunk of land in Berkeley, gave the over 200 residents living there notice to “quite and deliver up possession of the premises,” and brought in steam-shovels which religiously gobbled-up the emptied friendly old houses along with some bushes and a forgotten toy or two….For almost a year it was left this way, absent of people and homes, prey to cars and ugly.”—Bonnie Fisher, Daily Cal May 19, 1969

As a way to reclaim their neighborhood, create a place to have concerts and do something positive, a small group put out this call in the April 16th Issue of the Berkeley Barb:

People came and began to lay sod and make a park. Then more people came…

But despite negotiations between the University and the People’s Park Committee working on an agreement and plan for the park, the Chancellor got notice from Governor Reagan, perhaps from Vice President Agnew to shut down the Park. At 4:45am on May 15, 1969, 300 police in riot gear cleared the Park and a fence was erected. It was the beginning of “Bloody Thursday” that would leave one bystander dead, another blinded and many, many wounded.

Below are photos by Bill Haigwood after the Park was fenced in 1969

The Volleyball Court Protests

In 1991, The University of California planned to “take back People’s Park” by covering much of it with sports courts. While the basketball court was somewhat desired and used by locals, the double sand volleyball court was not. UC had under-used volleyball courts nearby and the public cried out against it. Berkeley’s Landmarks Preservation Commission, Parks and Rec Commission and Peace and Justice Commission, after large public hearings, all agreed that the volleyball courts were not in the User Developed tradition of the Park, were not wanted and should not be built. Nonetheless, UC went forth with the construction, showing up with 8 different police departments to break ground on July 31, 1991. Days of rioting followed.

UC removed the court in 1997, as requested by the first meeting of the “People’s Park Advisory Board”.

Below are Brenda Prager’s photos.

David Nadel arrested protesting the building of the Volleyball Courts

Wavy Gravy kazoos against court implementation

David Nadel surrounded the courts with educational boards every weekend for much of the court’s existence.

The middle pillar of the court was cut down

This and below from David Nadel’s boards displayed in the park

Other moments in the Park’s History…

Judy Foster, Food Not Bombs cook extraordinaire on “Gourmet Tuesdays”

Making the Park – 1969: a photo gallery documenting the creative and tumultuous making of People’s Park (opens in a new window) >

The People’s Park Astrological Horoscope Chart

When we held our Julia Vinograd Memorial Poetry Reading and Bubble Blowing on April 20, 2019 (as part of the 50th Anniversary of People’s Park Celebration), Andrea Mallis, Berkeley astrologer, was there and showed us the People’s Park horoscope chart she’d created. Participants were really enthusiastic about having the chart on the People’s Park website, so here it is!