Advocates push for San Francisco to house homeless in empty homes
San Francisco begins clearing homeless encampments
Crews in San Francisco have begun patrolling the streets and clearing homeless encampments. This comes a few days earlier than originally planned after the mayor said sweeps would start in August. The mayor has doubled down on something she said last week when she told KTVU the plan was to make it uncomfortable for people living on the streets so that they would take the city up on its offer for shelter and services.
SAN FRANCISCO - Advocates are pushing officials in San Francisco to fill the city's vacant homes with unhoused residents rather than criminalizing homelessness.
Community leaders are demanding the city fill the more than 700 vacant homes it controls with unhoused residents.
This demand follows Mayor London Breed's call for "aggressive" sweeps of homeless encampments in August and possible penalties for unhoused residents who refuse outreach services.
"We're hopeful we make it so uncomfortable for people that they accept our offer. That's what this is about. This is not just about cleaning and clearing because these are people and they gotta go somewhere," Breed previously said.
Last week, Gov. Gavin Newsom issued an executive order to remove homeless camps from state-owned property, including freeways, underpasses, and city parks.
Advocates for the unhoused have raised concerns about where homeless residents will go if they do not have guaranteed housing after their removal from the streets.
Julia Arroyo, executive director of the Young Women's Freedom Center, called San Francisco's approach inhumane and counterproductive.
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San Jose mayor rebukes Newsom's homeless encampment order
San Jose's mayor said Sunday that he understands Gov. Gavin Newsom's frustration with sprawling homeless encampments, but said swift sweeps are the wrong way to deal with them.
"Criminalizing homelessness only exacerbates the problem and fails to address the root causes. These actions are a violation of basic human rights. Sweeps displace individuals without providing any sustainable solutions, leading to further instability, trauma, and often death," she said.
Community stakeholders are urging the city to address homelessness by providing adequate and permanent housing by filling vacant homes, offering rental assistance, and eviction protections to prevent homelessness.
"Yes we also need more shelter - but shelter is only efficient if that expensive cost is sandwiched between prevention and housing so stays in shelter are short and brief, and so many folks can avoid shelter all together," said Jennifer Friedenbach, executive director of the Coalition on Homelessness, San Francisco.
The city has begun fulfilling its promise to clear out encampments, with outreach crews going to encampments and engaging with those living there, offering mental health or drug and alcohol counseling, and temporary housing.