On July 31, 2024, 87-year-old Karl Meyer decided to break the law.
He grabbed a blanket and drop cloth and headed to the Tennessee State Capitol, where he planned to risk a felony charge for sleeping on state property, calling his action a 24-hour peace vigil. Meyer, who has been a radical activist for 67 years, was protesting a state law that he believes unfairly targets homeless people. He had sent a letter to Gov. Bill Lee requesting an audience to discuss the constitutionality of the law.
Meyer camped near the state’s Liberty Bell replica, in a spot visible from a window in the governor’s office. It rained on him. He also chatted with an unhoused woman at one point in the night, learning about her usual struggle to find a safe place to rest.
The next morning, Aug. 1, state troopers arrested him for sleeping on the Capitol lawn overnight.
It wasn’t the first time Meyer had been arrested — a 2001 profile on the activist estimated he had been arrested 50 or 60 times by that point, often demonstrating against war.
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In Meyer’s living room is a black-and-white photograph of him at age 20 awaiting trial in New York City, circa 1958. He’s joined by four other activists, including legendary Catholic labor organizer Dorothy Day. The quintet had been arrested for refusing to participate in a mandatory citywide drill for nuclear attack — they sat outside on benches instead of seeking shelter.
It was the second time Meyer had been arrested for refusing to participate in the drills. The first time Meyer was arrested, in 1957, he served time in Rikers Island. After that, Day became a close friend and mentor to Meyer as part of the Catholic Worker Movement.
Meyer supports the creation of public designated campgrounds for unhoused Nashvillians and points to Green Street Church’s “Sanctuary” encampment as an example.
Residents in the Sanctuary stay in 1 of 15 primitive micro-houses, or in a tent.
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