This is just a reminder that tomorrow the Board of Supervisors plans to pass an anti-camping ban on ALL public property in the unincorporated county, without any provision for shelter. It is Item 52 on the consent calendar, meaning they plan to pass it without discussion. See the agenda here!
There are a few ways to make your voice heard!
In Person! Public comment on consent calendar is early in the meeting, just following public comment for items not on the agenda, so if you can make it in person, it should be a quick day! The meeting begins at 9:30am at 700 H St. Suite 1450. This is the most impactful way to participate, as you are able to share with the general public as well as the board.
By Email! You can send a virtual public comment on this item by emailing BoardClerk@saccounty.gov and include the meeting date and agenda item, which are Nov. 5, 2024, Item 52. You can include your supervisor on the email!
By Phone! Though it does not make it to the public record, contacting your supervisor’s office directly by phone to register your disapproval of this policy is another way to move forward thoughtful discussion with your elected leaders.
If you’re not sure who your supervisor is, you can find out here.
You can watch the meeting live at metro14live.saccounty.gov.
It’s time we were all in on real solutions to this crisis, instead of status quo displacement, criminalization, and punishment, which do nothing to resolve someone’s homelessness. As with all policies that increase police contact, these policies pave the way for more discriminatory policing and a disparate impact on the Black unhoused community and other communities of color. We will not police our way out of this social health crisis.
Besides protection from the elements and the modicum of privacy that a tent provides, staying in encampments is a strategy for safety and survival. Individuals stay together to share resources and look out for one another. The physical and mental distress caused by these criminalization policies is incalculable. By destroying these communities, we are destroying the survival strategies of the most vulnerable. This is morally repugnant as well as ineffective at reducing homelessness, simply removing unhoused communities from sight, rather than a focus on long term support on the pathway to housing.
Hope to see you tomorrow!
In solidarity,
Niki Jones
SRCEH
[…] Regional Advocacy Project (WRAP), a social justice organization based in San Francisco, said in a statement posted before the meeting that a ban is not the solution and would unfairly impact […]