The residents of Wood Street Commons believe politicians pushing sweeps of homeless camps are making things worse.
One thing that would dramatically improve the lives of unhoused people in California could be done today and wouldn't cost taxpayers a dime. As simple as a governor or mayor saying stop sweeps now.
People are destroyed when a homeless camp is dismantled. We don't consider ourselves homeless because our camp is our home, but the effort we put into creating a home is gone. Garbage trucks throw away our worldly possessions, including identification, medical records, family heirlooms, clothing, electronics, furniture, instruments, bedding, tents, tools and other items that we use to earn income. The shelters are destroyed by machines.
There is an opinion.
What is acceptable? The people who order and carry out sweeps live alone.
When a homeless camp is dismantled, its residents face more obstacles to overcome than before. A way to create stability, cultivate community, and accumulate needed resources is by creating camps. We are forced to start over with nothing but the clothes on our backs because of the destruction of camps.
Any politician who pledges to end homelessness in a single breath and then pledges to end homelessness in the next is out of his mind.
Billions of dollars spent to help the homeless are undermined by the daily aggression of sweeps. It's true that sweeps make homeless people more entrenched.
Taxpayer money is wasted by sweeps. Roughly 200 people were removed from the park in a violent show of police force. That's a lot of money per person. These people could have been housed for months if their lives had been spared.
The city claimed that most of the people from the camp were placed in temporary housing. Only a few of them remained in temporary housing after the UCLA studies were done. Four were placed in permanent housing and seven died.
Thousands of times each year, large cities sweep one or more camps due to the fact that it is a daily occurrence. sweeps don't get rid of camps, they just move them around, causing chaos and wasting millions in the process
There is a growing body of research that shows why we should encourage and celebrate camps. It couldn't be more logical, even though it may seem crazy to many readers.
The idea that camps are equal in crime is not true. According to researchers, clearing homeless camps is associated with an increase in overdoses.
In a review of research on the topic, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development noted that emergency shelters are not always available.
According to the HUD report, camping may be the best alternative.
It is important to consider why people go to camp. Many of the permanent housing options designed to house the unhoused come with a long list of rules that make them too much like prison. There are many rules that limit guests, spouses, pets, cooking, decorations, and more than can fit in a suitcase.
Tiny homes and sheds are often placed like barracks, surrounded by barbed wire and staffed by rude security guards. Would you give up your freedom to go somewhere else?
Humans need more. The key to recovery for people who have had a hard time is a sense of belonging. The facilities we are asked to move into are impersonal.
The essence of what camps are about is being free. It's essential to our survival that we camp together.
The community on Wood Street in Oakland has recently been swept. A large section of the camp has been cleared.
The part that remains is strong. We cook for each other, distribute clothes and bedding, build our own tiny homes, play music, help each other heal, and host cultural events that have been attended by hundreds of housed residents. We see ourselves as part of a movement that redefines the identity of American cities for the better, instead of being defined by the cult of independence that defines the world of the housed.
On Monday, the last piece of land on Wood Street is scheduled to be cleared. We've been trying to work with Oakland officials to find a place where we can set up a new community, but they refuse to cooperate. The city always tells us where we can't be, but hasn't told us where we can be.
This is why we are taking matters into our own hands. We will continue to press the case at City Hall after we rode our bikes to the Capitol to speak with lawmakers there. We will not be denied our right to exist.
The idea of homeless helping the homeless was founded on by the residents of Wood Street Commons.
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