EP005: The Sweep
Transcript available here.
What do sweeps accomplish?
“I'm just confused. And I want to be mad, but I'm just more like sad than anything else. And me going up and screaming at people and telling them how idiotic they are about their choices. It's not going to do anything to put me in jail. I understand that. So I'm not really trying to do that. But I wish I could look at the person who's in charge of this and ask them what like, what was your end goal? Like, what? Why, why are you doing this? What what are you? What are you hoping to accomplish? How does this make you feel like you've done something good. If you came here and you saw all the hopelessness and a sorrow on people's face, if that person actually had to see….”
- Lily in August 2022 during the Aurora sweep
In this episode we’ll be discussing the controversial government policy of sweeps. If you are not familiar with the term, a sweep is the forced disbanding of a homeless encampment on public property.
The act of sweeping is typically performed by a combination of police, tow trucks, dumpster trucks, and any other needed government agency to accomplish the task. For example, when parks are involved, often the Parks Department is included. During a sweep all individuals, regardless of their circumstance or condition, along with all of their personal property are removed from the area. This is fairly straightforward. Government removing people and belongings from locations where laws have made it illegal to reside.
Sweeps are often set into motion when individuals in business and residential neighborhoods complain that the laws are not being enforced. In short, homed individuals reach a tipping point and want something done. This seems reasonable. I think everyone can sympathize with those that have been impacted by a homeless encampment either near their business, out front of their home, or in the park they enjoy. It is clearly unfair that the impact of homelessness should be felt by a few when it is in fact a larger community issue and responsibility.
However, sweeps as a solution have not proven to be an answer to, or even a path towards, addressing homelessness. Yes they provide immediate relief to those being impacted, but the issue itself is not being resolved by sweeping, only swept to a new location where another neighborhood is then impacted. There is a plethora of information around homelessness, including sweeps. Most of it comes in the form of collected data around programs, policies, services, resources, and budgets. What gets missed in all the data is the human being being swept. Nobody is measuring increased levels of trauma, or how many steps back are taken in what is already a difficult path to move forward on for those struggling with homelessness. It is accurate to say, sweeps are conducted to benefit the homed, not the homeless.
Links we feel you should explore
Mutual Aid Seattle Large list of Seattle Mutual Aid groups
Stop The Sweeps Seattle Mutual aid group featured in this episode.
Union Gospel Mission Recovery Program.
Emerald City Resource Guide Up to date list of services in the Seattle Area.
Facing Homelessness Window of kindness and The BLOCK Project.
Sound Foundations NW Weekly tiny homes constriction volunteer opportunities.
Urban Rest Stop Hygiene services offered to those living on the street.
People's Harm Reduction Alliance Health and Harm Reduction Services.
Ballard Food Bank Volunteer opportunities.
University Food Bank Volunteer opportunities.
ROOTS Young Adult Shelter with Volunteer opportunities.
Video Rex took while walking around the active Aurora sweep area.
“Nobody just chooses homelessness.” - Rex
“That's the thing that really ticks me off about it is you can't go to an encampment full of 20 or more people and say I've got two houses, two houses for the whole lot of you. We're going to do with drawing, you know, yeah, just draw straws and the rest of you scatter. Yeah, yeah. And yeah, good luck. Getting your homes out of here on time because we got tow trucks on the way, you know. Sorry about your luck, but you you drew the wrong straw. Yeah, that's not cool.”
-Dene in September 2022 after the Aurora sweep
In a situation where people are illegally living on public land, why should our policies and programs be structured to benefit them? What’s wrong with sweeps just benefiting those living legally? To quote many folks living outside, when told to ‘move along’, they will answer, “Move along to where?” One of the fundamental flaws with sweeps is that there is no safe place to be swept to. All the land is spoken for. When housing is offered often it ends up being unavailable or unsuitable to that person’s real needs. It is also important to remember that each person living on the street has a profound and true story of why they are there. Nobody just chooses homelessness. Often, beginning very early in childhood, some form of trauma is experienced, knocking them off their life path. While most of us move forward on our journey, working to fulfill our hopes and dreams, those who have been traumatized spend a great deal of time just getting back to the start line, just trying to survive. For this reason alone we owe it to those struggling on our streets.
If we are going to address homelessness in a meaningful way, our programs need to also fit the needs of the homeless, not just the homed. Our actions must be thoughtful and sensitive to not only do no harm, but to also actively provide paths forward. This begins by listening to those living on our streets. In this episode you will hear from people who have recent, first hand experience of what it's like to be swept. Also we talk to a few very passionate folks from Stop the Sweeps Seattle, a mutual aid group who advocate for services over sweeps.
“I'm here because I can't afford the rent.” - Kimberley
Excerpt from the episode:
On a sunny August day I'm standing with Lilly on a skinny strip of land running north south, about three blocks long and 50 feet wide. To the west is a chain link fence with a wrecking yard and golf driving range behind. To the east is a green belt hillside buffer with a mobile home park above it. We are in north Seattle just off hwy 99. It's dusty and hot.
Lilly is absolutely frantic. The whole scene is chaotic. Our conversation is interrupted nearly every other sentence as Lilly yells out to friends, checking in if they are okay, or asking what they need. People are desperately working on their vehicles trying to get them started. Lilly and I simultaneously move to the back of a car to help push it up onto a trailer as the guy there struggles to keep it from rolling backwards.
The police have a heavy presence. I am guessing in total 40, maybe 50 officers. Most of them are just standing and watching the chaos. I am wondering what they are thinking when they see all the upheaval of these lives. I’m assuming it must be difficult for them. Some officers are informing folks to come out of their RVs or tents, letting them know how much time they have left. A few are directing traffic as people use tow ropes to pull out non running vehicles.
Tow trucks with flashing lights are towing derelict cars and RV’s through a narrow dirt road that runs all through this piece of land.
There is a real sense of desperation as people try to salvage what they can of their belongings as the city workers break down the makeshift structures, throwing everything into piles to be put into the back of dump trucks. A distraught man on a bike with his backpack goes by, undoubtedly containing all his belongings.
Here and there are housed folks who belong to mutual aid groups and nonprofits. Some are talking to campers, bringing them coffee and snacks, and trying to figure out how they can help. I’ve seen this too many times before, knowing there’s not much help to be given other than being there emotionally for those you manage to connect with as the chaos goes on all around.
One of the residents of this camp named Cuba planted a beautiful flower and vegetable garden along the hillside that will be torn up. In the grand scheme of things, it was a small garden, but for this community, it was a bigBIG deal.
I try not to get sucked in emotionally. It’s hard. All these people being uprooted will have a very difficult time in the coming weeks. There is a deep sense of loss, a good many people had created a community, one that provided connection and safety. Now it was being disrupted and dismantled.
Coming back from visiting Cuba’s garden I find Lily again. She is leaning against one of the abandoned cars, visibly shaken and upset…
I'm here because I can't afford the rent. I'm on SSI now, because I have cancer so I can't work anymore. I can't afford the rent here. It's impossible. We even with two incomes that are saying that we still can't afford it is impossible. gotten crazy is too bad, because everything is going up. Yeah. So that's why we're in this predicament.
-Kimberley right before the Greenlake sweep - December 2021
“We're all here for such a short time. We really don't have time to be shitty to each other.”
-Dizzy in September 2022