Laura Jedeed (Misanthrophile)

@tents4homes also does awesome things: they provide tents, tarps, and sleeping bags to the houseless community. This is real important as we head into the cold and rainy winter They accept donations!

Chants of "house keys not handcuffs!" led by a very small child Children don't really have the agency to hold political ideas they weren't fed and I'm always vaguely bothered by this sort of thing, but it's a good message

Camilla with Free Hot Soup addresses the crowd They started this organization a couple years ago when several houseless people froze to death on the streets The group distributes hot food and supplies to houseless people

"the city's decision to sweep this homeless camp in the middle of a global pandemic is cruel and inhumane!" Applause

They point out that the people in these camps are often struggling with serious problems. Addiction, mental illness, discrimination, and so on. These are not people we should be abusing

"The city claims that these sweeps are in the best interest of public health and safety. These people are not our enemies. These sweeps do not make anybody safer" "The real crisis is capitalism!" Applause. "There are more than enough resources." But our priorities are fucked up

A mind-blowing list of groups who endorsed this event which I cannot type fast enough to capture. There are so many great orgs in this city. We take care of us

A joint statement from all this group is read The statement points out that these sweeps lower visibility and does not solve the problems Studies show that people disrupted in sweeps do NOT end up in shelters and are less likely to seek help

"Taking people's property away does not make them disappear, but it does make their plight more deadly." Cold can kill. Stress, dehumanization, and destruction of community injures in more subtle ways.

The statement points out the added danger of COVID on top of all this. Crowded shelters are far more dangerous than outdoor camps

The city of Portland has just allocated even more money to these sweeps: money they could use to actually help people

Shelters do not help people get off the streets: most are back outside within 24 months Even if they did help, there are simply not enough beds in Portland. We are over 2,000 short. Where are people supposed to go?

With evictions looming and no federal aid in sight, the homeless crisis is just going to get worse. Rent is skyrocketing. It's not going away

A new speaker steps forward and talks about "the public relations problem" How the media often talks about trash on the street, portrays homeless people as drug addicts (with the suggestion that this is a moral failing and not a medical problem"

They talk about the double standards imposed on the houseless "Is there no trash in your home?" "Are people in homes staying 12 feet apart?" Of course people aren't living ideally on the streets. So let's help instead of sweep

"The fact of the matter is, sweeps kill" "The problem is that people value property over human life. And if that doesn't change, the dark days of Trump will just continue"

A homeless person who lives here steps forward They say the only reason the sweeps didn't happen today is this protest They ask people to please not call the police on homeless people. They'll get arrested for trespassing

They talk about how people sleeping drunk in their vehicle are vulnerable to DUIs if their keys are in the ignition: a pretty reasonable place to store keys No one gets arrested for sleeping it off in their homes. That's what you're supposed to do

They talk about the importance of abolishing corporate personhood often used against homeless people in court--something I wasn't aware of How courts do not treat homeless people fairly, how they are demeaned and not provided adequate access to attorneys

(it's worth noting I've heard similar stories of violations of attorney access, pre-trial hearings, and so on from a variety of people. Our justice system functions very differently depending on who you are)

Pat Snyder steps forward. She is the "godmother of the Beacon PDX" They have recently lost their decades-long space in a church basement She thanks everyone for coming

Pat talks about how she had choice this morning about what to wear. It's cold out here. She's dressed for it, as am I The people in this camp do not have these kind of options, partly because regular sweeps deprive them of their possessions

"They are houseless, but they are not homeless. They have created a community [here]. They know each other, they listen to each other...they tolerate and forgive each other "They know who needs help and they know where to go when they need help. Not the city, but their friends"

She talks about the weird misconception that these people can go "somewhere else," that there are options unexplored "It's not easy being walked around town, trying to find food, a place to sleep. They want to stay in one place"

Here are some things that would help a lot more than sweeps, Pat says: -more bathroom facilities -more trash recepticles

The city is giving out sleeping bags and tents, but they haven't done their homework The sleeping bags are not thick enough to provide protection from the elements The tents can fit one, which strikes me as a problem for keeping warm It's cool that they're trying

Pat concludes by asking people to come out tomorrow as well to continue to prevent these sweeps

A member of the Stop the Sweeps hotline steps forward to speak The number is: 844-206-2005 If you see a sweep, call the hotline! It is monitored 24 hours a day