In the last two weeks, people all over the world have gathered in the streets to protest the unjust murder of George Floyd. In response, police forces across America have assaulted protesters with rubber bullets and tear gas.
For protesters who choose to join demonstrations and fight for the #BlackLivesMatter movement, tear gas and rubber bullets are a scary but unfortunately expected potential outcome. For America’s homeless population, however, there is often nowhere to go and no choice in the matter.
Protesters in downtown Portland have witnessed numerous instances of homeless individuals suffering as a result of these tactics. “A video taken [June 2nd] shows a thick cloud of tear gas blowing through a row of tents along Southwest Naito Parkway, as five [...] police officers walk away” (Harbarger). Despite attempts to warn homeless individuals of the upcoming protests and move them out of the city, police officers “don’t have a strategy to avoid homeless people who might get caught in their crowd control munitions” (Harbarger).
So, how do we protect the lives of America’s homeless population in the midst of these protests?
Early April, California governor Gavin Newsom introduced an initiative titled Project Roomkey. The Project’s goal is to provide “a way for people who don’t have a home to stay inside to prevent the spread of COVID-19” (County). While this model for housing homeless individuals is not sustainable in the long-term, it does provide safe reliable housing for the time-being. Especially with tear gas, rubber bullets, and COVID-19 all creating an increasingly dangerous environment in public spaces, initiatives like Project Roomkey keep homeless individuals safe for the time-being.
To learn more about the effect of protests on Portland’s homeless population read this article by OregonLive: https://www.oregonlive.com/news/2020/06/portlands-downtown-homeless-community-increasingly-caught-in-police-protest-tactics.html
Additionally, The County of Los Angeles have outlined the details of Project Roomkey it the article linked here: https://covid19.lacounty.gov/project-roomkey/
Natalie Eng
Sources:
No comments:
Post a Comment