3 Celebrities Sleep Out in L.A. to Call Attention to the Plight of Street People

A small group of celebrities slept on the sidewalk of the northwest corner of 1st and Spring streets near the former site of Tent City on Tuesday night to draw attention to the plight of the homeless.

Project coordinator Kathy Stevens said radio personality Casey Kasem, actress Carol Kane and actor Max Gail were among those who joined the sleep-out.

Actor Martin Sheen and activist Mitch Snyder organized a larger group of celebrities and about a dozen politicians to spend the night on the streets of Washington, D.C. in the “Grate American Sleep Out.” The demonstrators settled in for the night on steam grates near the Library of Congress, about two blocks from the Capitol.

The protesters are attempting to convince officials that the homeless should be allowed to stay in buildings not being used, Stevens said.

Early Tuesday, four homeless people were arrested in Los Angeles after they refused to vacate the pedestrian tunnels on Grand Avenue that connect the Hall of Administration parking area to The Music Center, and more street people said they plan to risk arrest again Tuesday night by entering the underground walkway, which county security officers locked after the arrests.

Homeless spokesman Stephen Keen said that although the gates are locked, “we have a way in.”