A Publication of the Coalition on Homelessness
by Jack Bragen
Criminals really exist. They aren’t just a figment of the imagination of political conservatives. Having been a victim of crime myself constitutes one of the reasons that I don’t agree with defunding police. Much of the time, the only thing that can get a criminal out of one’s face is the certainty that the cops are on their way. And I’m saying that as a mentally ill adult with an imperfect past,
story and photos by Isidore Mika Székely Manes-Dragan
Camp Resolution, the self-governing encampment for unhoused Sacramento residents, received a notice on March 28 for its nearly one hundred members to vacate by May 16, preceding the camp’s clearance on June 1.
On May 15, the residents and their allies organized and marched to City Hall, saying “no.” The city first extended the timeline for removal to May 31. Then the city called off the eviction on June 9.
by Lukas Illa
Every weekday morning, somewhere in San Francisco, well-coordinated teams of City workers destroy people’s homes. Unhoused residents beneath freeway overpasses, tucked in Tenderloin side alleys, and living in recreational vehicles in the Bayview know the horror of this near-daily operation, where they have mere minutes to collect their belongings and escape the City teams intent on seizing as much of their property as they can.
The Healthy Streets Operation Center,
Interview with General Dogon of the LA Community Action Network
by Cathleen Williams, Homeward Street Journal
General Dogon is an organizer at the Los Angeles Community Action Network, or LA CAN. This interview took place on April 13, 2024, at the headquarters of the organization, where visitors are greeted by a sunny reception area with comfortable chairs.
LA CAN’s sturdy cement block building is set back from East Sixth Street in the heart of Skid Row,
a statement from the Coalition on Homelessness
San Francisco — Despite a marked improvement in housing placements, underlying socioeconomic disparities combined with a lack of significant federal and state investment in affordable housing have driven homeless rates up 7% in San Francisco. In particular, the Point in Time Count showed a 94% increase in family homelessness, and a 90% increase in vehicularly housed. Increased shelter and housing availability has led to a 13% decrease in street homelessness.
by Jack Bragen
For 99% of human beings, rejection is a painful experience. It might not matter whether it’s actual or imagined, or if it’s intentional or incidental. In all of its forms, rejection undoubtedly hurts. And it’s the same for unhoused people.
For some reason, many affluent people don’t get this. They may feel they can treat those less fortunate any way they want, and that it has no impact—but it does.
by Akir Jackson
Each morning I wake up invisible, just another faceless black body people avoid seeing on San Francisco’s streets. As a transgender homeless man who hasn’t medically transitioned, the world interacts with the gender assigned to me at birth, not my true male identity. This erasure compounded with anti-Blackness leaves me dehumanized and rejected by all sides.
When seeking shelter, I’m turned away from men’s quarters and told to sleep with women based on my sex assigned at birth.
by Jordan Davis
As you might already know, I write mostly about permanent supportive housing and how San Francisco’s government stands in the way of delivering effective services on time, under budget, and in a manner that works for everybody. I don’t like to talk much about my past, but since it’s Pride month, I’d like to share how being a neurodivergent, non-binary trans femme who began transitioning nine years ago has impacted me,
by Billy Thomas
EDITOR’S NOTE: The following is adapted from multiple pieces of correspondence by Billy Thomas, an inmate at the John Wynne Unit of Texas State Prison in Huntsville to A.B.O. Comix in Oakland, California throughout 2022 and 2023. It has been edited for brevity and clarity.
I am a 51-year-old person, a two-spirited transgender. I am a survivor of mental and sexual abuse from my time in the care of Texas Child Protective Services,
by Tatiana Lyulkin
Your eyes
Are the color of the sea
After the storm.
You and I,
Explorers and fearless voyagers
At one
With the nature and the night,
Seeking safety and comfort
In each other’s arms.
We share
What little we have
With each other
And with the world.
