Housing is a human right, but California’s homeless will soon lose their tents
Exactly one year ago, I proposed an Oshkosh to San Francisco Tent Truck that would help those experiencing homelessness in a state where everyone with political power agrees that housing is a human right.
This year, Gavin Newsom has issued an executive order encouraging California cities to clear homeless encampments. It is unclear where unhoused Californians will go. The order merely suggests “Contacting of service providers to request outreach services for persons experiencing homelessness at the encampment.” That’s not a guarantee of shelter, certainly. CNN:
Michael Weinstein, president of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, the parent organization of the Housing is a Human Right initiative, accused Newsom of “criminalizing poverty” and “doubling down on failed policies.”
“Governor Newsom, where do you expect people to go? This is a shameful moment in California history,” Weinstein said in a statement Thursday.
Jennifer Friedenbach, executive director of the Coalition on Homelessness in San Francisco, called Newsom’s executive order “a punch in the gut.”
She said there are already thousands of people on a waitlist for housing, and all shelter beds in San Francisco are already full. Roughly 8,000 people are homeless every night in the city, which has 3,300 occupied shelter beds, Friedenbach told CNN.
The actual order:
Some Oshkosh tenting action…
![](https://philip.greenspun.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/2024-07-23-12.18.57-1520x1140.jpg)
![](https://philip.greenspun.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/2024-07-23-12.19.11-1520x1140.jpg)
![](https://philip.greenspun.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/2024-07-24-19.56.31-1520x1140.jpg)
![](https://philip.greenspun.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/2024-07-24-19.52.07-1520x1140.jpg)