Streets and sidewalks are lined with tent cities, tarps are placed over abandoned vehicles, and sleeping bags are stowed away in storefronts. It’s impossible to deny that Portland, Oregon, is experiencing a homelessness crisis.
Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler recently said, “I would be an idiot to sit here and tell you that things are better today than they were five years ago with respect to homelessness.” “Those who live in this city know better than to take you for a fool. They’re able to see.”
While COVID-19 spread across the United States, many cities halted clearing homeless camps following federal health officials’ advice. Due to a lack of intervention, many communities have seen their poverty levels spiral out of control, prompting angry residents to call for action.
To combat the growing problem of homelessness, Wheeler has invoked emergency powers to impose a ban on camping along some major thoroughfares.
Leaders are increasingly removing encampments and pushing other strict measures to address homelessness, which would have been unheard of just a few years ago in liberal cities across the country, where people living in tents in public spaces have long been tolerated.
Encampments were a major issue in the campaign of Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell, who promised to take action in his first few months in office. Tents and personal belongings from two blocks away from City Hall were removed on Wednesday. End of a two and half week standoff between the mayor and activists who occupied the camp and worked in shifts to keep homeless people from being moved out of the area.
BIDEN’S HOMELESSNESS CZAR WILL ONLY WORSEN NATION’S CRISIS
Over the summer, Mayor Muriel Bowser of Washington, D.C., launched a pilot program to permanently clear several homeless camps in the city. Legislators put the initiative to the test in December when they passed a bill prohibiting clearings until April. It got a 5-7.
Over 160,000 people are homeless in California, and cities are rethinking how to deal with the problem. Using new legislation, the Los Angeles City Council has prohibited camping in 54 different locations. The mayoral candidate for Los Angeles, Joe Buscaino, has proposed a ballot measure that would make it illegal for those who have refused offers of shelter to sleep in public places.
In December, San Francisco Mayor London Breed declared a state of emergency in the Tenderloin neighborhood, which has long been a hub for drug dealing, overdose deaths, and homelessness. To combat “bull—- that has destroyed our city,” she said it’s time to become more aggressive and less tolerant.
A number of ballot measures aimed at combating homelessness in Sacramento could be decided by Sacramento voters in November, including a ban on the storage of “hazardous waste,” such as needles and feces, on public or private property and a requirement that the city builds thousands of shelter beds for the homeless population. Cities in the area are under increasing pressure to defy liberal norms, including a conservation group that wants 750 people who have been camping along a 23-mile (37-kilometer) natural corridor of the American River Parkway removed from the area.
Opponents of aggressive measures for the homeless have slammed them, saying that the problem is being treated as an inconvenience rather than a humanitarian crisis.
Encampments in at least 65 American cities are being criminalized or swept away, according to the executive director of the National Coalition for the Homeless. “We started to see this as their response to a high population of homeless people.””
In recent years, Portland’s homeless problem has become more visible. There were an estimated 4,015 people experiencing homelessness in the area at the time of the 2019 point-in-time count, which is like a yearly census. In the opinion of proponents, the number has probably increased significantly.
Wheeler used his emergency powers last month to ban camping on the sides of “high-crash” roads, which account for about 8% of the city’s total area. According to a recent study, 19 of the 27 pedestrians killed in Portland were homeless at the time of their death. It was announced that people in at least ten encampments had 72 hours to vacate their quarters.
THE LOS ANGELES COUNTY HOMELESS COUNT WILL BEGIN AFTER THE EVENT LAST YEAR WAS SUSPENDED DUE TO COVID-19
There is no doubt that people are dying, Wheeler said. “As a result, my approach is one of urgency.”
Sam Adams, a former Portland mayor who serves as Wheeler’s top adviser, has also proposed a controversial plan that would force up to 3,000 homeless people into massive temporary shelters manned by Oregon National Guard members. The move, which advocates say represents a significant shift in tone and policy, will criminalize homelessness, according to these advocates.
Adams wrote, “I am aware that my ideas are complex.” “Our efforts, including mine, have thus far failed to yield the desired outcomes.”
Governor Kate Brown, a Democrat, vetoed the proposal. If liberal cities don’t take drastic action, ballot measures aimed at reducing homelessness may emerge, Adams says.
It happened in Austin, Texas, a liberal city. A ban on camping downtown and near the University of Texas was reinstated by the city’s voters last year, as well as a ban on soliciting money in certain areas and times.
People who work with the homeless are urging mayors to look for long-term solutions, such as permanent housing, and addressing root causes like addiction and affordability, rather than short-term ones that they say will further traumatize and villainize a vulnerable population.
Complaints about homelessness have soared in Portland since COVID-19 struck, and the number of campsites removed each week has dropped from 50 to five.
Businesses and events have been affected by the current situation, and officials have been asked to do more on a regular basis. While some may be considering a move, others are already in the process of doing so. As a result of safety concerns related to a nearby homeless encampment, the LPGA Tour’s Portland Classic was moved from Portland, Oregon, last year.
He told the City Council that he had worked in an area surrounded by encampments and that it was difficult for him to get around.
Vandalism and car break-ins were the main security concerns, according to Crammond, four years ago. “Unhinged” people and discarded needles have become more commonplace, he said.
EXPLOSION AT PORTLAND CITY COUNCIL MEETING OVER SAFETY RISKS AT HOMELESS ENCAMPMENT: ‘EXISTENTIAL THREAT’ TO BUSINESS
USGS wants to relocate despite spending $300,000 on security and setting up a buddy system to keep employees safe while working outside.
“The campers are not to blame. There are a couple of other places to stay in the area. the meth and opioid epidemic have spread throughout the world with little hope or assistance for those affected “Crammond made the statement. “In my opinion, the City of Portland bears the brunt of the blame.”
Proponents say Adams’ characterization of homelessness as a “cancerous sore” perpetuates an inaccurate and harmful narrative about the homeless population.
As Portland-based Central City Concern’s associate director of external communications, Laura Recko noted, “It can happen to any of us. Talk to someone on the street and literally just hear a little bit about their stories.”
According to a federal court decision known as Martin V. City of Boise, Idaho, cities cannot make it illegal for people to sleep or rest outside without providing adequate indoor alternatives.
It was hoped that a landmark ruling by the Supreme Court would force elected officials to begin developing long-term solutions and creating enough shelter beds for emergency needs. Instead, he said, some regions are ignoring or working around the decision.
Cities could end homelessness “tomorrow” if they were as creative in their solutions as they were in their criminalization, he said.