MLK Weekend in Venice

A colorful parade on the Venice boardwalk should not come as a surprise but on Saturday afternoon of Martin Luther King Jr. weekend they came with music and a serious message. Over 50 demonstrators escorted by police and a marching band of sorts held up posters.

They were trying to raise awareness for the impoverished. Some posters read "House keys not handcuffs", others said "Public Space is for everyone not just the privileged", some simply stated "Occupy Venice" there were some saying "End Poverty of Mothers + Children. Support the Rise out of Poverty Act" and "Honor the legacy of Dr. King: Support a Homeless Bill of Rights."

The protestors touched on a wide range of issues, from trying to alert the public of the lack of affordable housing to what they call the being unjustly banned and barred from public spaces and amenities taking issue amongst others with the midnight to 5 am curfew along Ocean Front Walk in Venice. The Rise Out Of Poverty Act refers to H.R. 814 which calls for the extension of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program a joint federal-state cash assistance program for low-income families with children and it also establishes matching grants to the states for subsidized employment.

Flyers handed out by the demonstrators indicated that this event was organized by the Los Angeles Community Action Network whose mission according to their website "is to help people dealing with poverty create & discover opportunities, while serving as a vehicle to ensure we have voice, power & opinion in the decisions that are directly affecting us."