Facebook: First They Came For The Homeless
As homeless people in San Francisco we spend a lot of time doing two things. Being chased by the cops in macabre game of hide and seek. In court for silly things like sitting on the sidewalk.
San Francisco is an extremely mean city. You are either extremely poor or super wealthy. Presently there are over twenty anti-homeless. They are selectively enforced depending on where you happen to be sitting or camping. Leave the township and you will get confronted not only by S.F.P.D. but also private security and irate business owners.
The City retains its popularity as a tourist destination due to its proximity to the ocean, parks, and historical significance. Its transportation system allows one to travel region wide in a matter of minutes.
Internationally recognized as a financial center some have referred to it as Wall Street West.
Here in San Francisco you will enjoy a diversity of people and level of tolerance found in few other places. |Government policy ignores this and exists only to serve the extremely wealthy and terrorizes the poor.
CAMPAIGN PURPOSE – GOALS
Clearly San Francisco’s ruling class has an agenda to push poor people out of the city. Those that remain as a source of cheap labor are forced to live in only certain areas. Homeless people are not only a convenient scapegoat but also a source of immense profit. In the last ten years the government has spent $1.5 billion on homeless services. This year alone it will spend $1.6 million. All of this is spent on a broken system of desperation and hopelessness. The system is designed not to solve the problem but to perpetuate and exacerbate it.
Not content to simply generate profits for his cronies, the Mayor of San Francisco declared war on the homeless so he can host a super bowl party for his super wealthy friends. The spoiler is those damn filthy homeless people.
The purpose and goals of this campaign is
1.) To embarrass the city through a series of direct actions
2.) 2.) To disrupt business as usual in retaliation for continued and escalating attacks against the homeless.
Our main tactic is to invade the city creating a critical mass. An autonomous carnival of resistance with the singular demand End Homelessness Now!
By participating in this invasion you become like |Mumia Abu Jamal the voice of the voiceless. By committing to assisting homeless people in defense of themselves you bring hope to the hopeless.
BOOTS ON THE GROUND
All things considered, as an urban environment San Francisco is actually pretty easy to survive in. Food Not Bombs serves on a regular basis. In addition there are numerous soup lines, dumpster diving is outstanding. You do need a pair of bolt cutters to overcome those special challenges. They are also a great asset to opening locked porta potties.
We are asking all participants to be self-sufficient as possible. Present there do exist limited resources which will be continually developed as time goes by.
Main point of contact shall be listed Facebook pages and email address. On the ground a message board and base camp shall be established in Berkeley at the post office located at Alliston and Milvia just two blocks from the downtown BART station.
Across the street is room to camp which we can defend from our current location. We have been defending the post office property from privatization for about a year now. Additionally we use this vigil to defend and serve our local homeless community.
CAMPING OUT
Camping out is prohibited by Section 168 of the San Francisco Police Code from 7 am to 11 pm. One of the most important exceptions is the one that deals with rally, demonstrations, meetings or similar events. This means if you post a sign that says I protest Sit Lie! SFPD is supposed to leave you alone. Also they have to warn you before writing you a ticket.
There are numerous established areas that can be considered urban campgrounds the largest of which is Golden Gate Park. We encourage folks to camp in the vicinity of these locations. It goes without saying you should be prepared to defend the area from mean spirited people like the Department Of Public Works, Homeless Outreach Team, and SFPD.
Be a good neighbor by offering to share food. Take the time to visit and find out more about us. Always keep an extra blanket or two on hand to meet that need.
Items that we hardly see and are always appreciated
1.) Tobacco
2.) Coffee
3.) Hot Chocolate
4.) Socks
5.) Band Aids
Most importantly be respectful and tolerant. Always ask before you act. The worst thing about being homeless is people treat you like a six year old child and make decisions for you. Telling you what’s best for you.
OCCUPY
It is not a matter if it will happen but when. Initially it is envisioned and expected several smaller occupations will occur. At some point during this campaign a larger occupation of a critical, disputed area will be called.
In the events leading up to and including the main occupation we shall adopt a good neighbor policy.
We only control and exercise consensual authority over a designated area. We expect and encourage others to establish neighboring encampments. These are autonomous in their decision making structure, social organization, and what they deem is proper behavior.
The main occupation is established for publically stated reasons. We do not and will not exercise authority over other encampments. Neither do we accept any responsibility for what occurs outside our designated area. What we will do is provide material support to the best of our ability and also practical advice.
AFFINITY GROUPS
We encourage the formation of affinity groups. These shall be considered autonomous formations free to take whatever action the feel appropriate in furtherance of the campaign goals.
It is requested you take no action where in can be reasonably expected which will result in harm or loss of life.
BLACK BLOC
It is acknowledged and appreciated the important contributions that Black Bloc has made over the years.
Due to the vulnerability of homeless people individually and collectively it is requested that no physical force action be initiated. The errors of enthusiasm that occurred at WTO and other places is not appropriate in this circumstance. The welcoming role of Black Bloc is that of defenders. On a day to day basis assisting homeless people in their struggle to survive. Also to be a constant reminder to security forces that any action taken of a physical nature will be responded to in like fashion.
When a physical confrontation occurs every attempt should be made to do so away from this threatened community and other non-combatants.
CONCLUSION
This document is merely a guideline. It provides a framework for the overall campaign. It is subject to individual and collective interpretation. It may be seen as authoritarian in its language. Its spirit though encourages independent conclusions. Each participant is encouraged to take actions which they feel further the campaign goal to End Homelessness Now! That Housing Is A Human Right.
San Francisco is the epi-center of the battle to end homelessness. The laws, tactics and strategies used here against the poor are being employed elsewhere. Every day more and more people are being displaced by government policy, greedy developers and multi-national tech companies. On our side we only have sheer numbers and the absolute belief that the course of action we take is the right one. Collectively we link arms. Employed, unemployed, under employed demand in one loud determined voice End Homeless Now.
Homeless Action Team
c/o box holder 537 Jones #3399 San Francisco CA 94102
swapmeetkinglv@gmail.com
Contact:
EMAIL ADDRESS
mzint02@gmail.com
TELEPHONE NUMBER
415.304.1449
