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About Street roots. (Portland, OR) 1998-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 12, 2016)
Street Roots • Feb. 12-18, 2016 Page 3 E d it o r ia l Write in If you would like to have - something tost you’ve written published in our pages, or would like to get involved as a member of our reporting staff, contact Managing Editor Joanne Zuhl at 503-228-5657. joanne@streetroots.org. We ask that all submissions include the author's na m e and contact information. ifavailabfe. Street Roots PH O T O BY ISRAEL BAYER We're inviting ourselves inside your home student asked me this week why some of the homeless camps are so hard to keep clean. I ask the student to imagine: The entire World stepped insideyour home at this very • moment. Not just anyone, but everyone. The evening news, elected officials, neighbors and ■ friends. Strangers took photos of you and all j •... your belongings, especially your m ess. I hope you’re presentable. They ask you questions about how you’re living and if you chose th e life you live. Some guy in a uniform asks to go through all your stuff. Is your bathroom dean, the kitchen, your bedroom? What’s in your bathroom cabinets? Do you have a prescription for those? We’re going to need to see that now. I hope you took ™ ™ ™ IB— ■ ■ tj.ash out already. I D IR E C T O R 'S WPCW Israel Bayer is the executive director o f Street Roots. You can reach him at israel@streetroots.org or follow him on Twitter @israelbayer. really hope you aren’t sneakihg a toke of marijuana. God help you if B y Israel B a yer you have any extra bike |— — parts lying around your ; home or garage. All of this, of course, will be aired tonight on the evening news. It will be written about in tomorrow’s paper. Experts and strangers will weigh in and comment on your behavior and your lifestyle. Are you deserving of your home or not so much? Now imagine doing all of that each and every day with only a tent, if you’re lucky and a hand full of belongings. You will have no access to running water or a working toilet No electricity. No trash pick up. No access to a safe place to call home. Nothing, Most likely it will be hard to sleep, You’ll be w et and anyone at any bmp could come unannounced and wake you up. Best-case scenario, strangers want to help you. Worst case, they are there to harm you. You are a refugee in a modern land. Cast out for the world to see. How would the world feel about you and they way you’re living? My point is, it sucks to be homeless. Some peoplethink that it’s easy in Portland. They are wrong. I recently had the chance to volunteer with Free Hot Soup, a group of localPortlanders who volunteer each week doing jhobilé outreach to homeless camps throughout Portland. It was inspiring to know that so many unsung heroes go out every night to make sure p e o p le a re s a fe . B u t i t w a sn ’t a w a lk in t h e ' park. It’s hard times in the city. The resilience of people, given their circumstances, is always eye opening. It’s a sad affàir. Human suffering . is tibf a pretty thing. That’s why I was glad to see Mayor Charlie Hales take action this week. A new set of camping guidelines were released that outline a new approach to allowing tent camping on public property and the ability to organize larger homeless camps, including trying to find places for people sleeping in their cars and RVs. The proposal isn’t perfect, but it’s something. Haters are going to hate. It’s a pilot program that was created through a lens of compassion and praticality. Win it work? I’m cautiously optimistic, understanding that nothing is perfect and not doing anything isn’t an option. It’s important to remind ourselves that thé currenthousing crisis didn’t arrive yesterday. The latest homeless emergency is just the latest response to a crisis that’s been going on for far too long. We need to work toward solutions that will create safety for people and alleviate the suffering for our most vulnerable neighbors. The reality is homeless camps, tent cities, tiny homes and shelters aren’t the answer to homelessness. Housing - and housing alone - is the only solution to homelessness. It’s why things like inclusionary zoning, eviction prevention and more resources to.build affordable housing are critical. It’s not getting any better out there, friends, and in fact, it’s probably going to get worse for a whole lot of people. Without that support, it will continue to be a hard knock life for thousands of our friends, family and neighbors. 211 NW Davis St. Portland, OR 97209 503-228-5657 . Fax:503-227-3117 www streetroots.org ' www.news.streetroots.org Hours: 7:30 a.m.-3 p.m. Mom-Fri,, 7:30 a.itv2 p.m„ Sat. and 7:30-11 a,m, St«. Advertising Interested :r. advertising in Street Roots? Contact Israel Bayer at israel@streetroots,org Staff Israel Bayer . israel@streetroot5.org M anaging Editor Joanne Zuhl E x e c u tiv e D ir e c t o r joanne@stieetroots.orq 4 Mendor Coordinator cefeOsfereetr6ots.org 19 Operations Director Sarah Seecroft Development Director Sarah Cfoud Program Assistant Scott Jadson, Jesuit Volunteer Development A s sis ta n t /Vtn-Derrfck Gaillot R ep o rte rs Emily Green, Sue Zalokar, Ann-Derrick Gaillot, Sarah Hansell, Leonora Ko, Jared Paben, Am anda W aldroupe P hotographers D iego Diaz, Joe Glode, Ben Brink Editorial A ssista n t Monica Kwasnik C an v asser Desmond Hardison Board of Directors C hairm an Bruce Anderson Vice-Chairm an Brad Taylor T re a su re r Heather Stadick S e cre ta ry Amber Bielman D irecto rs Rich Rodgers, Michael Anderson, Leo Rhodes, Nora Coon, Darren Alexander, Eddie Barbosa, Rachel Langford, Marcus Swift Volunteers Jan Bayer, John Barker, Stacey Heath, Brian Ritchie, Anders Frederickson, Stephanie Holum, Anjal Rathore, Sam Bouman, Joanna Chase, Zoe Klingmann, Haven Herrin, Eliese Baker, Dan Jones, Rob Shyrock, Tom Ray, Doug Spangle, Susannah Kamala, Jessica Pollard, Lee Ko, Diana Richardson, Cherie Manning, Thomas Buell Jr. If you are interested in volunteering with Street Roots, please submit a volunteer application atstreetroots.org/volunteer. Or gall bur volunteer coordinator for more information at 503-228-5657,
