Four people were arrested outside of Cambridge City Hall this afternoon as part of a day-long protest organized by Black Lives Matter Cambridge, and calling for more and more robust affordable housing policies in Cambridge, a city increasingly unaffordable for many residents.
Among the demands protesters made was a call for an expanded version of inclusionary zoning, which, in Cambridge, currently requires developers building ten or more units of housing to make 15 percent of them affordable.
The protest started this morning, with some protesters (whether all were associated with BLM Cambridge isn't clear) chaining themselves to the front doors of Cambridge City Hall.
Police removed protesters and surrounded some at different points of the day, according to other news accounts. But around 2 p.m., police moved on four protesters who had chained themselves to the building and arrested them.
A statement on the Facebook page for Black Lives Matters Cambridge posted shortly after the arrests said: "After a 9 hour standoff with Cambridge Police Department, two of our chapter members and two of our allies were arrested."
Cambridge Police say charges have not yet been filed, but could include disorderly conduct or trespassing. At least one of the four arrested was a juvenile.
The demonstration dissipated after the arrests, but protest leaders told the remaining crowd that today's events were just "part one," and asked for donations for those jailed.
