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   From: jokes@onyoudemocrats.com   
      
   BY ALEJANDRA MOLINA / STAFF WRITER   
      
   Published: Oct. 7, 2014 Updated: Oct. 8, 2014 10:35 a.m.   
      
   SANTA ANA – Mayor Miguel Pulido canceled Tuesday night’s Santa   
   Ana City Council meeting after a man in attendance refused to   
   remove a cap with an anti-police expletive on it.   
      
   The chambers were filled as the City Council was scheduled to   
   discuss a proposed homeless shelter, as well as meeting decorum   
   rules after anti-police demonstrators interrupted a Sept. 2   
   council meeting in which police officers were being honored.   
      
   The man, who would not disclose his full name and only went by   
   “Bijan,” was first approached by City Manager David Cavazos   
   while he was sitting, waiting for the meeting to start. “He told   
   me that he was going to give me the option to take it off. He   
   didn’t ask me to take it off immediately when he was speaking to   
   me,” Bijan said.   
      
   Bijan said he’s part of a group, CopWatch Santa Ana, and was   
   arrested last week while he was filming police activity.   
      
   “I came here to talk about the police abuse that I’ve   
   experienced with the Santa Ana Police Department,” he said. “I   
   don’t feel like I have to take this off in this City Council   
   meeting. It’s a meeting for the public and I’m allowed to be   
   here with my hat.”   
      
   Pulido said he found the hat offensive and soon after, the   
   public was asked to leave the City Council chambers because “we   
   didn’t want to get into a big debate with a room full of   
   people,” Santa Ana police Chief Carlos Rojas said. He said   
   police wanted the room isolated “in order to deal with the   
   problem, whether it would lead to an arrest or not.”   
      
   Most left, but about 20 chose to remain inside.   
      
   “Start the meeting!” a woman shouted.   
      
   “You’re silencing people for a hat,” one man said.   
      
   Expletives in Spanish and English were thrown at the mayor.   
      
   Santa Ana police told attendees who chose to remain inside the   
   council chambers that they risked being arrested if they did not   
   leave.   
      
   Albert Castillo with Chicanos Unidos chose to stay and asked the   
   mayor: “Explain to us, what actually are we doing wrong by   
   sitting here? Just tell us what we’re doing wrong.”   
      
   At one point, demonstrators argued with Councilwoman Michele   
   Martinez, who was surrounded by police officers, as she asked   
   the man to take off his hat.   
      
   “Why don’t you just be respectful and take off your hat and we   
   can resume the meeting. That’s all we’re asking,” Martinez said.   
   “It’s disrespectful to the chambers. It’s disrespectful to our   
   police officers.”   
      
   About 10 people remained inside the chambers when Pulido gave   
   the man the ultimatum on to whether remove his cap or leave the   
   premises. He did not leave, but was not arrested.   
      
   After Pulido announced the cancellation of the meeting, the   
   attendees who had remained were greeted with applause as they   
   exited the chambers.   
      
   Community organizer David Villanueva, 21, was one and called the   
   elected officials “a very questionable City Council.”   
      
   “It was very unprofessional for my City Council to do this.   
   There’s no reason to stop a meeting for a hat,” he said. “I have   
   a right to be in the building ... It’s a public meeting. We have   
   every right to be in the room.”   
      
   One of those outside who was planning to attend the meeting was   
   State Sen. Lou Correa, D-Santa Ana.   
      
   “It sounds like to me you had folks exercising First Amendment,   
   but you had some very passionate council members who are very   
   supportive of the efforts of their Santa Ana police,” Correa   
   said.   
      
   Alicia Rojas, who had stayed in the chambers, said, “I decided   
   to stay because I felt that there was something wrong with some   
   violation of our First Amendment right of freedom of speech.   
      
   “I never felt so intimidated and scared.”   
      
   Contact the writer: amolina@ocregister.com   
      
   Comments:   
      
   Kevin Parten ·  Top Commenter   
   Bad manners, his mamma never taught him to remove his hat   
   indoors. I've seen such bad manners all over the city of Santa   
   Ana, from trespassing to graffiti to littering. Their mommas   
   should have smacked them!   
   Reply ·  · 52 minutes ago   
      
   Tim Ferrill ·  Top Commenter   
   I suspect if he was wearing a blatantly anti immigration or anti   
   Mexican shirt people at the meeting would feel a bit differently   
   about the first amendment and want the guy removed..   
   Reply ·  · about an hour ago   
      
   Michelle Sanchez · Works at World of Warcraft   
   The people of Santa Ana care about their community. This is why   
   so many people attended the meeting and didn't want to leave.   
   The ones that should be judged here are the good for nothing   
   council members that have hidden agendas.   
   Reply ·  · about an hour ago   
      
   Michelle Sanchez · Works at World of Warcraft   
   All of you down below are missing the point. You should read the   
   article again to understand that it is an infringement upon all   
   of our rights.   
   *Paul Andrews - "Santa Ana is bascally circling the drain   
   anyways" Sounds pretty racist to me.   
   Reply ·  · about an hour ago   
      
   Mia Perspective ·  Top Commenter   
   The only person who seems to have disrupted the meeting was the   
   mayor. This man wasn't shouting or talking out of turn, he was   
   simply wearing an accessory that expressed his opinion. If   
   expressing your opinion is not allowed what's the point in   
   showing up for a meeting? The council and police are public   
   'servants' not dictators.   
      
   http://www.ocregister.com/articles/police-637732-council-   
   meeting.html   
      
       
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)