California skateboarders reclaimed a skate park that local officials had filled with sand to enforce the state’s stay-at-home order.
A famed skate park in Venice Beach, California, was filled with sand in April as part of a plan to keep people off the beach, but skaters showed up on Monday with buckets and cleared out the sand, according to TMZ.
Videos of residents removing the sand and reclaiming the park popped up on social media.
“Taking the Venice Skatepark back today,” an Instagram post from Shacked Magazine read. “The city let this skate park get destroyed, graffiti, garbage, broken glass everywhere……. Skaters want their park back. More clips in our Instagram Story.”
“Can confirm Venice Skate Park is open again. #winning,” local Republican Ron Bassilian said.
Can confirm Venice Skate Park is open again. #winning pic.twitter.com/0lIVNyH5A0
— Ron Bassilian (R) (@Ron4California) May 26, 2020
TMZ reported that police officers stood by and allowed the skaters to remove the sand.
In mid-April, Californians pushed back when local officials poured sand in a skate park in Orange County by turning it into a dirt bike track and removing some of the sand so that skaters could continue to use it.
Residents in California have protested Gov. Gavin Newsom’s restrictions, and businesses have opened their doors in defiance of orders to remain closed, with cities declaring that they won’t obey the state’s orders.
California has slowly started reopening, with hair salons and barbershops being allowed to operate in some counties if they meet certain criteria, but Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti recently warned that life will “never be completely open” until a coronavirus vaccine is found.
