Politics > Politics-USA > (fwd) Fresno Homeless Update - Concentration Camp Planned For the Homeless
| Topic: |
Politics > Politics-USA |
| User: |
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| Date: |
21 Jun 2007 12:24:54 AM |
| Object: |
(fwd) Fresno Homeless Update - Concentration Camp Planned For the Homeless |
-----Forwarded Message-----
"Robert Norse" <rnorse3@hotmail.com>
Subject: Will Fresno's Homeless People be put into a Concentration
Camp?
Date: Wed, 20 Jun 2007 20:21:01 -0700
Will Fresno's Homeless People be put into a Concentration Camp?
Is this the final solution?
By Mike Rhodes
Homeless people say they don't want to be put into a concentration
camp
located in the old industrial section south of downtown Fresno.
Speaking
before the Fresno City Council on June 19, Al Williams who is a
homeless man
in the Roeding Park area, said "you are trying to put people into a
concentration camp. . . I'd rather be in jail than a concentration
camp."
Williams was referring to the city's plan to force all homeless
people into
a 30,000 square-foot lot that has no shade and is fenced in on all
sides.
Williams is not the only homeless person concerned about the specter
of
being put into a concentration camp. Cynthia Greene, who lives in a
homeless
encampment on G and California street, told me that she would not be
forced
"into that concentration camp. They don't have any shade, it is all
fenced
in, and full of goat head thorns." Williams and Greene spoke up for
their
rights as the City Council debated a new city ordinance that would
ban
camping (without a permit) in the City of Fresno. The ordinance is
targeting
the thousands of homeless people (the latest estimate is that there
are
over
8,000 homeless people) in this community. If passed, this ordinance
would
add to other "quality of life" ordinances directed at the homeless.
Those
ordinances include one passed last year that makes it a crime to push
a
shopping cart and an earlier ordinance that makes it illegal to
panhandle.
Becky Johnson, a homeless advocate in Santa Cruz, Ca says that local
government has passed anti-camping ordinances there and that it has
been a
dismal failure. Johnson writes, "common sense tells us that if a man
doesn't
have $40 for a motel room, then he can't afford a $90 Camping
citation
either. Here in Santa Cruz our city writes nearly 6,000 camping
citations a
year and we STILL have a large homeless population. Surprise!
Surprise!
Surprise!"
Johnson continues "you can't solve homelessness thru fiat.
Homelessness is
the logical consequence of current economic and political policies
over
which the individual has little control. When a homeless person gets
a
citation for the "crime" of living out of doors because he can't
afford
to
live indoors, this compounds his set of problems. He now is treated
as
a
criminal by law enforcement, is deeper in debt, and in the best case
scenario ( he serves his sentence/pays his fine) he now has a
criminal
record which is a further obstacle to obtaining housing and
employment.
In
as many cases as not, these citations go to warrant, and the person
ends up
spending time in our county jail which is costly and completely
non-productive."
According to Johnson "the 9th Circuit Court ruled in 2006 that citing
people
for sleeping or sheltering themselves at night in a situation in
which
insufficient shelter exists, constitutes 'cruel and inhuman
punishment' and
is forbidden constitutionally. Those cited under Fresno's new law
might
turn
right around and sue the City for damages."
The proposed ordinance can be seen here:
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2007/06/18/18428393.php . The
ordinance was
recommended by a homeless task force headed by the Rev. Larry Arce.
See
earlier story - Holy War Against the Homeless here:
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2007/04/20/18402635.php . There are
no
homeless people on the "Homeless Task Force."
Rhodes article continues at:
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2007/06/20/18428838.php
Mike Rhodes
Editor
Community Alliance newspaper
P.O. Box 5077
Fresno Ca 93755
(559) 978-4502 (cell)
(559) 226-3962 (fax)
AllianceEditor@comcast.net
http://www.fresnoalliance.com/home/
-----End Forward-----
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