A few years ago, civic leaders opted to emphasize permanent housing over emergency shelters, which were seen as nasty and overcrowded. But the recession and ensuing spike in real estate prices left thousands of people without a place to go tonight…. In the next few months, shelters may come to the Buckman neighborhood in Southeast Portland and on old olive oil factory in Sellwood-Moreland. Neighbors learned about that new shelter through the media. They didn’t like the lack of notification — they wanted input — but have generally responded positively…. Community leaders hope to add 650 more shelter beds over the next two years, doubling the current supply. Until then, police and advocates say Portland’s homeless problem will only become more obvious; warmer weather will lead to more outdoor camping.
I don’t know enough about the homeless population in Portland to know the degree to which it’s grown of late. What I do know is that the problems stemming from and associated with the homeless population have become far more noticeable, prevalent…and in some cases, malevolent. The seemingly impotent manner in which city government has responded (or, more accurately, not responded) has served only to make the problem worse and even more visible.
I understand that homelessness is a complex and not easily solved conundrum. I also understand that Mayor Charlie Hales’ decision to allow camping on city sidewalks and bridge underpasses has been an unqualified disaster. The city’s reaction has been far too little and far too late, the result being that Portland now has a homelessness problem bordering on something approaching anarchy. Long largely ignored, or at the very least dealt with ineffectively and with half-measures, Portland’s homeless problem has moved from the margins and exploded into view. City resources are being strained, neighborhoods feel threatened, and public safety has become a significant concern.
Homeless camps are cropping up all over Portland, with some beginning to look like modern-day Hoovervilles. Portland is a city known for attracting young, bright high tech workers (whose median salary is just a hair over $100,000/year)…and yet the city can’t figure out how to effective deal with and/or care for our burgeoning homeless population.
Why do things seem to be getting worse now? There are six very good reasons.
The city’s State of Emergency isn’t enough. (A series of measures designed to ease pressure in the short term has made virtually no discernible impact.)
Crime near homeless camps is alarming neighbors. (Drug use and violence is in some areas a significant and very real concern.)
It’s getting more dangerous for homeless people, too. (Not all homeless people are drug users and criminals; some end up being victimized by society AND those among the homeless who take what they want when they want it and attack anyone who gets in their way.)
Homeless camps are taking over sections of the city. (Parts of Portland have come to resemble modern-day Hoovervilles.)
Tourists are taking notice. (It would be hard for them not to notice when the homeless sleep on downtown sidewalks, in doorways, parks, and under bridges.)
It’s probably going to get worse. (It’s hard to imagine, but this is very likely true. The city’s lack of commitment in response to this growing crisis has created a situation which threatens to spiral out of control.)
For years, Portland has attempted to push the homeless out of view. This has been great for those who prefer not to think about homelessness, but it’s done nothing to diminish the problem. Indeed, that willful ignorance has allowed the problem to fester and metastasize.The city’s homeless policy has been decidedly laissez-faire- except for preventing people from sleeping on downtown sidewalks…’cuz what would that do to outsiders’ perception of Portlandia? You don’t want tourists having to step over the inert body of someone strung out on drugs or in the throes of late-stage alcoholism, eh?
Now it seems the problem has reached the point where it no longer be ignored. The danger is more visible, more prevalent, and people are increasingly upset about it. There are parts of town in which homeless camps have cropped up seemingly overnight, and the neighbors fear crime and drug use…with good reason.
This isn’t to say or even intimate that homelessness, crime, and drug use go hand in hand, but there’s no denying that substance abuse is a large and growing problem among the homeless community.
The truth is that we’re going to be paying to care for the homeless; the question is how we decide to address the problem. Do we want to pay for more preventive solutions- housing, health care, drug rehabilitation, job training? Or are we content to pay reactively for things like incarceration, emergency room care, burial, or the clean-up and dismantling of homeless camps? Regardless of the choice we make and whether or not we choose to face reality, society will be paying to care for our homeless population.
The approach we decide on will say a lot about what kind of society we wish to be. Are we our brother’s keeper? Will we recognize and accept the responsibility to look out for those among us who happenn to be down on their luck? Or will we be content to force the homeless back to the margins, to the drug use, alcoholism, mental health issues, and other crises that for some present insurmountable hurdles?
For me, it’s a simple answer. If the city of Portland can continue to fund improvement projects in affluent neighborhoods like Eastmoreland and Irvington, it can fund programs to help get people off the streets. It’s a matter of priorities…and if people can’t be our top priority, then perhaps we have no claim to the sort of enlightened humanity so many in Portland lay claim to.
