Tuesday, November 25, 2014

Homeless Sprayed with Hoses by DPW employees: Gentrification or Sensationalism

Aljazeera: "Activists say San Francisco trying to wash away the homeless" by Massoud Hayoun
URL: http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2014/2/18/san-francisco-tensionbetweenhomelessandsecondtechboomers.html

The Coalition on Homelessness, a homeless advocacy group, has recently called attention to what appears to be a resurgence in unbecoming behavior on the part of San Francisco's Department of Public Works (DPW) employees. According to this advocacy group, DPW employees have recently begun hosing and kicking homeless in the downtown area while cleaning the sidewalks each morning. A recent article entitled "Activists say San Francisco trying to wash away the homeless" by Massoud Hayou, notes that in past years, when programs of this nature have previously been introduced, advocacy groups and local media  have verified the reality of these types of unsavory activities.

In Hayou's article, Jennifer Friedenbach, director of the Coalition on Homelessness, observed that "There was a very orchestrated campaign to gentrify the Mid-Market area and draw in tech companies" and that "What goes hand in hand with that is displacement of poor people." DPW spokeswoman Rachel Gordon notes that the recent street cleanings are part of a pilot program to maintain sanitation in the city. Additionally, contrary the statements of Friedenbach, Gordon denies the claims of advocacy groups and local media that the street cleanings are a deliberate attempt to spray the homeless. She stated "We do not point water at homeless people".

Despite claims that this program is a signal of the government's outright support of gentrification, I believe this type of street cleaning program has been long overdue merely on the grounds of public health alone. Business incentives were merely a catalyst. From personal experience, I can attest that the area has for a long time been covered in human excrement. The city's recent interest in fostering an attractive business climate for technology companies seems to be more of a tipping point, just one of many factors that supports the enactment of the recent program. While the displacement of homeless individuals in the immediate area is an unfortunate consequence, it is not a surprising phenomenon.

While claims that DPW has been deliberately hosing down homeless people sound like sheer sensationalism by advocacy groups and the local media, I believe it is a fair assessment that the enactment of the street/sidewalk cleaning program is an attempt to attract tech companies into the area. The reality is that municipalities are primarily funded and driven by property taxes. Likewise fostering job growth is a high priority amongst the city's electorate and by extension city officials. The controversy surrounding this program in the context of gentrification in San Francisco highlights the dilemma public officials face while navigating a political environment that is defined both as a region of rapid economic growth and a staunchly socially and fiscally liberal electorate.


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