SAN DIEGO OBSERVES NATIONAL HOMELESS PERSONS’ MEMORIAL DAY DEC. 21

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East County News Service 

December 20, 2022 (San Diego) -- Before the winter solstice, the longest night of the year on December 21, the San Diego Housing Emergency Alliance will hold its sixth and final Tent Vigil of 2022 for at least 1,427 houseless San Diego County residents known to have died in 2020-22 per the County Medical Examiner.  The tent vigil will be on the grass along Upas Street in front of the Balboa Tennis Club in Morley Field (2221 Morley Field Drive, San Diego 92104 at the northeast corner of Balboa Park) from 2-5 p.m.  Donations can be dropped off from 1 to 5 p.m. including new or gently used tents, tarps, blankets, sleeping bags, jackets, socks, gloves, hand warmers, beanies, hoodies and sweatpants.

 

So far this year, 528 houseless residents of San Diego County died on the streets or in their vehicles.  Last year, the death rate of houseless San Diego Co. residents was over eight times that of all San Diego Co. residents in 2021.

"National Homeless Persons’ Memorial Day takes place each year on the longest night of the year, the winter solstice (usually December 21st). 2020 marked the 30th Annual Homeless Persons’ Memorial Day. While we remember those we have lost this year, we cannot let this be the start of another 30 years of growing homelessness.” #HomelessMemorial

 

The Tent Vigil is an Expression of Speech/Art Installation with 19 tents lettered “HOUSING NOT HANDCUFFS” and “#ENDCRIMINALIZATION." Activists have previously held five of these Tent Vigils throughout the City of San Diego, with the most recent on October 10th, World Homeless Day, on the lawn in front of the County Administration Building.

We don’t need any more studies or pilot programs. We KNOW what causes homelessness and we know what will solve it: HOMES for County residents who are too poor to pay our escalating rents,’ a press release from the event organizers states.  “Since at least 2001 how to provide these has been prescribed, such as this study by the Public Policy Institute of CA: 

 

"Our analysis reinforces the view that the two-decade growth in homelessness is related to the function of housing markets rather than to the personal disabilities of the homeless population. Local governments should evaluate the potential to make low-quality housing more affordable and thereby reduce homelessness to its 1980 levels. Federal and state governments should stand ready to assist those localities to combine housing vouchers with credits to landlords, which effectively deter the removal of habitable units from the very low end of the housing stock.”

 

The group is calling for officials to prioritize housing vulnerable residents and effective support services as well as policies to keep them housed, such as rent control, instead of prioritizing more hotels or tourists, large sports/entertainment venues,office space and tourist retail venues.

 

A press conference at 2 p.m. Dec. 21 at the Tent Vigil will include several speakers

 

Coleen Cusack, Defense Attorney, San Diego Housing Emergency Alliance, will remember David Wilson, who died houseless after being ticketed hundreds of times in San Diego.  

 

Anna Stark, a named Vehicle Dwelller Plaintiff in a Federal Class Action Lawsuit against the City of San Diego 

 

Mandy Lien, Advocate for Unsheltered Residents

 

Nathan Smiddy, A New PATH (Parents for Addiction Treatment & Healing)

 

Martha Sullivan, San Diego Housing Emergency Alliance

 

Ann Menasche, Attorney representing San Diego Vehicle Dwellers in a Federal Class Action Lawsuit against the City of San Diego

 

We will be collecting new/gently used winter clothing & camping gear for our houseless residents to be distributed by U.R. Loved Collective.

 


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Comments

Washington is supposedly moving on this terrible problem.

Dec 19., 2022 -- FACT SHEET: Biden-⁠Harris Administration Announces Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness . . .Today, the Biden-Harris Administration released All In: The Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness, which sets a bold but achievable goal to reduce homelessness 25 percent by 2025. . . . All In also sets the foundation for new initiatives, including one to reduce unsheltered homelessness in a cohort of geographically diverse communities that is being announced today.

You think?

How is Washington doing on the war on drugs and chrime? Ya, they are going to "fix" the homeless problem.