This
topic of homelessness and progressive policies has made the news cycle, but it
rarely is given thought by most Americans.
Today, cities like Phoenix and San Francisco are known for dealing with
illegal immigration in the form of transient populations, which is what most
of the reported news will involve. The
reality is quite different after viewing the short films. As a minority that was raised in New York,
seeing the depravity of homelessness and drug addiction, unfortunately was a
familiar sight, as many people can attest in certain parts of urban cities.
A Civic Disgrace
Watching
the film, I was curious to read the article, “A civic disgrace,” written
in the San Francisco Chronicle. (San Francisco Chronicle, 2016). The statement that stands out is, “San
Francisco has an entrenched Homeless Industrial Complex that is as difficult to
track and control as it is to count people living on the streets.” (San Francisco
Chronicle, 2016) I had to really let that sit in, because you
see the images on the news, but the hopelessness of the situation doesn’t hit
home for the average person. We are
bombarded with life’s cares, and yet in some other sphere there is this
unspoken and unnoticed reality for many people that can’t escape the grasp of
addiction, poverty, and homelessness. The
words entrenched and Homeless Industrial Complex is mind boggling because it
means that this is something that is permanent and real. The article speaks of the practices and
programs that are attempting to alleviate this misery, but as the film
reported, those in charge seem to have this unrealistic and contradictory
fantasy when it comes to the situation. On one hand they talk about the inequality
that abounds, but at the same time these progressive policies are not only
creating problems but reinforcing them to the point of exacerbation.
If
you visit the site Tripadvisor, one of the reviews warns people not to
visit The Tenderloin, which is located in San Francisco, and another said that
it was incredibly dirty area, while yet another stated, there is nothing like
it. (Tripadvisor, n.d.). One of the more
prominent people in Government is Nancy Pelosi, former Speaker of the House,
and of course the Governor of California, Gavin Newsom. Yet, even Pelosi should
be disturbed about her congressional district and the problem extant as The San
Francisco Standard reported, “No one should be required to report to work in or
around the San Francisco federal building until the safety and health issues
are addressed and resolved,” in reaction to the unsafe conditions downtown. (Lamb, 2023) We should note that this is not an article
from distant past, but recent, as in 2023 describing the situation is clearly
out of control and worsening. It is so bad that Governor Newsom called in
California highway patrol to police the street to try to alleviate the
problem. Drugs, crime, and homelessness
have expanded to many areas of the city leaving the citizens at lost for words,
agitated, fearful, and in a state of confusion due to the lack of safety and
unsanitary conditions that are festering.
The paper makes this clear by stating that during the last few months federal
employees have face knife point incidents, feces on the sidewalks, when some
people report this to the police, there has been a lack of response or desire
to prosecute, much less investigate.
This is problematic because as a citizen you feel as if you are living
in a state of siege, and the policies that are clearly progressive in nature
are doing nothing to quell the situation. (Lamb, 2023)
Add
to this the many occasions of public overdose witnessed by people daily, one
can see how living in an environment like this can weigh on the psyche. Such is the situation that in August, the
Health and Human Services agency cautioned workers to refrain from the federal
building grounds due to incessant drug dealing.
A memo circulated by Cheryl Campbell, Assistant Secretary for
Administration, that is emblematic of the plight which stated, “In light of the
conditions at the [federal building], we recommend employees … maximize the use
of telework for the foreseeable future.” (Lamb, 2023)
9th Circuit Cout of
Appeals
San
Francisco is one the cities that has supported these new laws that many say is
“criminalizing homelessness,” under the name of vagrancy laws. However, a case out of the Court of Appeals
should be noted because it stated that homeless people sleeping outside when
they have no shelter access violates the Constitution stance on cruel and
unusual punishment. If I might state,
that most homelessness is a choice, and it is hard for me to understand how
ridding an area of public loitering would be cruel and unusual. Nevertheless, the court has ruled in this
fashion and, “…The ruling will protect the homeless not only in Boise but in
California and other Western states from ordinances that punish them for being
unable to obtain shelter.” (Dolan, 2018) Furthermore, the ruling explained that the
government cannot criminalize the poor, and homeless for sleeping outside on
public property. (Dolan, 2018) This brings me back to policy, which you can
see is supported by judicial review or is it.
San Francisco, in the latest case is now enforcing laws to remove these
homeless encampments due to a recent understanding of the federal court. (Seldon, 2023). The courts ruled that the city can clean up
the city of individuals that are declining shelter services, which the City
Attorney claims is half of those being offered services. (Seldon, 2023) At the same time the Coalition of
Homelessness took a different stance because they want to prevent police from
working towards this goal, and support a more “health-focused response,”
instead of allowing the criminal justice system to be involved. (Seldon, 2023)
It
should be noted that the DOJ was the key actor in the Bell v. City of Boise
et al, case during the Obama administration as they argued, “…making it a
crime for people who are homeless to sleep in public places, when there are no
other housing options, unconstitutionally punishes them for being homeless.” (Nyguen, 2019) We needed to revisit that because this problem is a case of the policy values that ultimately are coming back to harm
the city. Again, the Coalition on
Homelessness, Jennifer Friedenbach, believes that laws are ineffective, and
they make the situation worse. It is
concepts and ideologies like this that are voiced that make one wonder whose
interest is better served, and if the poor are just pawns. You can read between the lines on that point. This excerpt is a case example:
“Friedenbach said she is sympathetic to the frustrations felt
by homeowners and businessowners. She recommends not calling police to deal
with a homeless-related situation, but rather contact an agency that is better
suited to helping the individual.” (Nyguen, 2019)…”
“In California, there are hundreds of “anti-homeless” laws.
Although there is nothing that specifically bans or restricts homelessness…” (Nyguen, 2019)
The situation is a national discussion as The New York Post
reported that Mayor London Breed complained that homeless activists are
enabling it to continue by passing out tents. (Hernandez,
n.d.) In the video, one individual said that many
people are coming to San Francisco to be homeless, which gives an idea that
there is a reasonable acceptance that this lifestyle is tolerated in the city. Furthermore, roughly 40% of the nation’s
homeless live in the areas of California, Oregon, Washington, and Arizona as
these cities suffer from unkempt areas, which include public parks and
sidewalks. (Lane, 2023) This is the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals
jurisdiction, the rulings that proceed from this court are making it very
difficult to control the homelessness. Liberals and liberal policy advocates
now ask their liberal leaning court for assistance, but the court is famous for
being left leaning.
As we see
laws notwithstanding, the real culprit is that the intentions to create some sort
of compassionate environment whereby people can be free to “be themselves,”
sounds well-meaning but it created a huge problem for cities and the resources
thrown at the problem cannot stem the tide.
This is sort of a progressive illusion that has become a nightmare for
the residents of the two cities of Phoenix and San Francisco. “The Zone,” is
the center of controversy involving multiple legal disputes on the handling of
homelessness in Phoenix. It is the
largest encampment, and the city is attempting to navigate the situation, but
it has two court orders to deal with.
One deals with removing tents on public property, which was ordered by
Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Scott Blaney, but a federal judge ordered the city to stop enforcing bans on sleeping and camping in response to a
lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona. (Rihl, 2023) Of course, the
outcome is directly connected to the Ninth Circuit court as one can assume
correctly. Additionally, Governor Katie Hobbs vetoed the bill that targeted
homeless encampments and prohibited shelters on street and sidewalks in public
areas. This is the policy aspect shining
through once again, where on the one hand you say you don’t want the problem to
continue, but on the other hand you don’t do enough for it to go away. As Governor Hobbs explains, “We need to
address Arizona's housing and homelessness crisis in a comprehensive manner… …Rather
than solving these issues in a meaningful way, this bill only makes them less
visible.” (Rihl, 2023)
Conclusion.
In
Conclusion, my opinion doesn’t even account for funds allocated to the issue of
homelessness because it is nonsensical to direct funds in the millions at a
problem that the policies and ideologies do not want to get rid of. San Francisco spent over 1.1 billion in
the fiscal year of 2021-2022 on the problem and has nothing to show for it
because policy wise it creates more and more homelessness and in fact, as the
video makes clear, it is an inviting proposition for homeless people across the
nation. There is no accountability on
where the funding is directed, and it is poorly utilized. (Ohanian,
2022) As Lee Ohanian writes, “It is hard to imagine
a more inhumane outcome than watching the train wreck of homelessness evolve in
San Francisco, as the city spends billions on flawed policies that facilitate
drug abuse and on badly designed systems to carry out those policies.” (Ohanian,
2022) I could not agree more with his statement,
and I can’t help but wonder what the end game is because right now policy wise
it is obvious that the solutions to homelessness put forth thus far are
misguided at best, and intentional at worst, with the addicted and homeless
suffering more than anyone.
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