A Publication of the Coalition on Homelessness
by Tiny
The Federal Government’s Attempt to Starve us and the Emergency Need for our Own Self-determined Solutions
SNAP or no SNAP
These weren’t life sustaining plans
Only bits and pieces of a weallthhoarding trap
To make us feel like we had a life raft
An option to dying of hunger even tho we all pay their pinche tax
What’s happening republiCRAPS –
by Lupe Velez
The last three weeks has been a large-scale humanitarian crisis, with hundreds of thousands of low-income Bay Area residents and millions of Americans being locked out from accessing food.
In mid-October, federal officials announced that the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits funds would be halted starting November 1 due to the government shutdown, potentially leaving 48 million Americans without access to governmental assistance for groceries.
by Jordan Wasilewski
I am a millenial, and one of the defining moments of my generation was 9/11. There are many takes on this issue, but one thing I gleaned from the aftermath is that, despite the supposed “unity” that crises bring, there are people out there who will weaponize collective pain to push policies that are wrongheaded and cruel. I find the same holds true for San Francisco’s overdose crisis.
by Lupe Velez
On October 15, a new City-created delegation called the Commission Streamlining Task Force held its first meeting to make recommendations on several advisory and policy groups that are focused on children and youth, homelessness and human rights, among other bodies. The Task Force reflected that the homelessness crisis is one of the biggest issues that San Francisco faces, one that Mayor Daniel Lurie has centered during his time in office.
by Eric Muscosky
Workers at the San Francisco Homeless Outreach Team spend their days helping people struggling on the streets. Now they want a fair workplace.
On August 20, workers at San Francisco Homeless Outreach Team (SFHOT) voted 38–6 to form a union with the National Union of Healthcare Workers (NUHW). Workers said that, in addition to improved benefits, they’re hoping for more power to shape decisions about the services they provide to San Francisco’s unhoused residents.
This transcript of the Street Speak podcast was edited for brevity and clarity. Listen to this episode in its entirety at streetsheet.org/street-speak-podcast.
We welcome Apple Cronk along with her partner, Josh Donohoe, who are co-plaintiffs in the Coalition on Homelessness’s lawsuit against the City of San Francisco for their practices in encampment sweeps and the destruction of property belonging to unsheltered residents. That case was recently resolved and signed by Mayor Daniel Lurie on Friday,
Homeless Activist and Mother Fights for Housing as Disabled Daughter Leaves Hospital
by Lupe Velez
On Tuesday August 27, Faith in Action, in collaboration with United Educators of San Francisco and the Coalition on Homelessness, held a press conference, rally and march, starting at Cesar Chavez Elementary School in the Mission District and continuing to Catholic Charities. The event was held in support of a houseless family, Maria Zavala and her daughter Samara,
by Kenyota
Content warning: This piece contains a reference to suicide.
I was homeless on the streets of San Francisco, and in several cities throughout the Bay Area, for over a decade. During those years I experienced what it felt like to be a non-person. I received the harsh stares, societal shunning and feelings of inadequacy that are common among those considered lost in the world of the unhoused.
by Charlie Fisch and Azucena Hernandez
On Tuesday, June 17, the Municipal Transportation Agency (MTA) Board of Directors met to approve on a 6–1 vote a refuge permit program that would exempt oversize vehicles from a proposed two-hour parking limit for up to 12 months. Approval of the program is only the first step in Mayor Daniel Lurie’s two-phased RV ban. Members of the End Poverty Tows Coalition and their allies told the panel that this plan will lead to displacement and increased street homelessness while residents struggle to find shelter.
by Lupe Velez
Mayor Daniel Lurie unveiled a proposal for San Francisco’s city budget for the next two fiscal years in a May 30 video statement.
While funding for the San Francisco Police, Sheriff and Fire departments and the District Attorney’s office is preserved—or even increased—nonprofits with City contracts face $200 million in cuts in the next two years. These include several groups that deliver services like homelessness prevention,
