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This article is here in Spanish.
I fought a hard battle to clean up dangerous homeless encampments in places like the San Benito Riverbed since joining the Board of Supervisors in 2021.
After a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling clarified that local authorities can ban camping in public places, authorities quickly passed an anti-camping ordinance that initially passed unanimously on August 13. The law will take effect 30 days after final passage on August 27, giving them plenty of time to coordinate a plan with local authorities.
It was long overdue to begin cleaning up our community and getting these homeless people to accept the help they desperately need. I have made it clear that I will not tolerate attempts to delay the clearance of the encampments. I will not tolerate the further degradation of local ecosystems and neighborhoods, the increased proliferation of trash, and the serious endangerment of the general public from fires or other criminal activity emanating from these encampments.
A small minority of advocates argue that communities like ours should allow homeless people to do what they want, where they want, and I will continue to insist that the inaction they encourage is the most inhumane act.
While many homeless people suffer from serious mental illness, addiction, or both, continuing to allow them to self-destruct without imposing barriers is the most uncompassionate thing we can do. It’s time to face the reality that this laissez-faire approach has never worked. The homeless crisis has worsened since district judges in Oregon and Idaho tied the hands of local governments seeking to ban tent encampment housing.
Our riverbeds and surrounding habitats are being treated like human wastelands. Our streets and neighborhoods are more littered and generally more inhospitable than ever before. Our children are forced to witness this constant display of hopelessness. Our security forces are overwhelmed by what has become a routine barrage of reports of disturbances and fires that threaten the lives of decent citizens.
Advocates playing the compassion card should ask themselves if it isn’t time to not only acknowledge the massive failure of their social experiment, but also whether they should open themselves to compassion for the rest of us who have begrudgingly endured this utter nonsense for far too long.
Allowing this behavior to go unchecked has worsened the quality of life in our society as a whole. This is the most serious impact of this extremist, now ailing policy, which is somehow ignored by its proponents who insist on it.
However, we face major challenges. We must do a better job of encouraging these residents to change their lives through a combination of mental health services, community and church work, housing and job placement services.
Although the vast majority of homeless people routinely reject public shelters because of the rules they come with, we need to continue to expand the availability of emergency shelters, transitional housing, and affordable housing to get them on their feet. I’m also open to Supervisor Dom Zanger’s idea of offering transportation to connect these residents with family or friends who can help them get on the right path. After all, 85% of San Benito County’s homeless moved here in the past year, as the most recent published count documented here.
Finally, if we are to make progress in cleaning up our community, the City of Hollister must get on board. I urge City Council members to act quickly and work with the County on this effort. Otherwise, these encampments will all move to the city, and the rest of us will continue to pay the price.
