Berkeley's Measure S, the liberal city's sit/lie measure that would've barred sitting on sidewalks in commercial areas between of 7 a.m. and 10 p.m., tanked by a slim margin last night with 52% voting no. Mayor Tom Bates, who championed the measure, said said it would help local businesses. But some residents, particularly students at UC Berkeley, weren't keen on S.

As the Daily Cal reports, "Campus groups such as Cal Berkeley Democrats, the Suitcase Clinic and the ASUC endorsed a 'No on S' stance, with demonstrations and rallies taking place in the weeks leading up to the election."

Many saw the measure as a swipe at the city's very visible homeless population. "The homeless are just another population within our community," UCB student Mahya Jaberiansari, a junior and advocacy coordinator with the Suitcase Clinic, told the Daly Cal. "It is time for us...to realize what it really means to function in a society where not everyone is alike and not everyone lives the same way."

[DC]