The mayor of Anchorage has vetoed a repeal of a law that makes it illegal to sit or lie down on downtown sidewalks. Mayor Dan Sullivan said in a statement that the ordinance is a “very narrowly tailored law aimed at conduct, not speech.” Sullivan says a similar law passed in Seattle was upheld by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Â The law approved in November bans sitting or lying down on downtown sidewalks during certain times. There are exceptions for medical emergencies, waiting for a bus or watching a parade. The Anchorage Assembly voted 7 to 4 Tuesday to repeal the law. Eight Assembly votes are needed to overturn the Mayor’s veto.
Daysha Eaton is a contributor with the Alaska Public Radio Network.
Daysha Eaton holds a B.A. from Evergreen State College, and a M.A. from the University of Southern California. Daysha got her start in radio at Seattle public radio stations, KPLU and KUOW. Before coming to KBBI, she was the News Director at KYUK in Bethel. She has also worked as the Southcentral Reporter for KSKA in Anchorage.
Daysha's work has appeared on NPR's "Morning Edition" and "All Things Considered", PRI's "The World" and "National Native News". She's happy to take assignments, and to get news tips, which are best sent via email.
Daysha became a journalist because she believes in the power of storytelling. Stories connect us and they help us make sense of our world. They shed light on injustice and they comfort us in troubled times. She got into public broadcasting because it seems to fulfill the intention of the 4th Estate and to most effectively apply the freedom of the press granted to us through the Constitution. She feels that public radio has a special way of moving people emotionally through sound, taking them to remote places, introducing them to people they would not otherwise meet and compelling them to think about issues they might ordinarily overlook.
