MARCH 15, 2017 | BIMONTHLY | STREETSHEET.ORG INDEPENDENTLY PUBLISHED BY THE COALITION ON HOMELESSNESS SINCE 1989 MINIMUM SUGGESTED DONATION TWO DOLLARS. STREET SHEET IS SOLD BY HOMELESS AND LOW-INCOME VENDORS WHO KEEP 100% OF THE PROCEEDS. VENDORS RECEIVE UP TO 75 PAPERS PER DAY FOR FREE. STREET SHEET IS READER SUPPORTED, ADVERTISING FREE, AND AIMS TO LIFT UP THE VOICES OF THOSE LIVING IN POVERTY IN SAN FRANCISCO. HOMELESS WOMAN WRITES VENDOR PROFILE NICARAGUAN WOMEN FIGHT PHOTO VIEW JUSTICE FOR ENCAMPMENT LETTER 2 SABRINA, WARRIOR MOTHER 3 FOR FARMLAND 5 INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY 6 AMILCAR PEREZ-LOPEZ 7 ARTWORK BY MELANIE CERVANTES & JESUS BARRAZA MARCH 15, 2017 PAGE 2 COALITION “JUST BECAUSE YOU DON’T WANT TO SEE US DOESN’T ON HOMELESSNESS MEAN YOU CAN’T TREAT US LIKE HUMAN BEINGS” The STREET SHEET is a project of the Coalition on Homelessness. The Coalition on Like I said, we are human Center, but then was discharged—and Homelessness organizes poor and homeless as well, not animals who need forced to live on the streets again. She people to create permanent solutions to training. Thank you for listen- was placed onto another waitlist for poverty while protecting the civil and human rights of those forced to remain on ing and reading this letter. shelter for a 90-day bed, still with no of- the streets. Sincerely yours, fer of housing. Shyenene Brown The City has also begun to put up Our organizing is based on extensive peer outreach, and the information gathered metal barricades to discourage people directly drives the Coalition’s work. We do not During the encampment sweep of from sleeping or pitching a tent in the bring our agenda to poor and homeless people: more than thirty tents, displacing over same area. According to Cutler, the bar- They bring their agenda to us. We then turn that agenda into powerful campaigns that are thirty people, Shy’s husband was ar- ricades have been increasingly appear- fleshed out at our work group meetings, where rested by police on a warrant. Although ing around the city and are the opposite homeless people come together with their she explained that the court date was of a solution to homelessness. other community allies to win housing and human rights for all homeless and poor people. set for the following day, they still took These barricades also make it dif - him away. That left her to move all of ficult for people to use the sidewalks, their belongings by herself in the rain. It especially for people with disabilities. also left her much more vulnerable and Resources should be going into housing WORKGROUP MEETINGS Homeless encampments continue to unprotected as a woman on the streets. and social services, rather than blocking AT 468 TURK STREET be displaced by the San Francisco Police HOUSING JUSTICE WORK GROUP Every Tuesday at noon “I can’t do this by myself. It’s ten off public spaces. ≠ Department, the Department of Public times harder to be a woman than a man If you see an encampment sweep, The Housing Justice Workgroup is working toward a San Francisco in Works, private security and others. En- which every human being can have and maintain decent, habitable, safe, on the streets,” Shy says. document it. Take videos, photos, or notes and secure housing. This meeting is in English and Spanish and open to campment residents are told to move The constant displacement—many and notify the Coalition on Homeless- everyone! Contact: Miguel Carrera, [email protected] along, but have nowhere else to go, with during early morning hours and harsh ness’s human rights organizers at human- HUMAN RIGHTS WORK GROUP Every Wednesday at 12:30 p.m. an adult shelter waiting list consistently weather conditions—from one area [email protected]. The Human Rights Workgroup has been doing some serious heavy lifting over 1,000 people long. on these issues: conducting direct research, outreach to people on the of the city to another is extremely One woman living in an encamp- streets, running multiple campaigns, developing policy, staging direct ac - traumatic for encampment resi- tions, capturing media attention, and so much more. All those down for the ment has something to say about it. cause are welcome to join! Contact: Dayton Andrews: [email protected] dents. Shyenene “Shy” Brown, whose encamp- “I’m really physically, emo- To learn more about COH workgroup meetings, ment on San Bruno Avenue was swept tionally stressed out,” says Shy. contact us at : 415-346-3740, or go at : www.cohsf.org in early March, left a powerful letter to “The disrespect from DPW, the those who swept her encampment in the police, everyone that has to deal pouring rain: with them. I’m just tired. I’m try- STREET SHEET STAFF ing to get my point across. In their To Whom it May Concern, minds, I’m nobody.” On this date at approximate- The Street Sheet is a publication of the During encampment sweeps, Coalition on Homelessness. Some stories are ly 5:30 a.m. DPW and SFPD had homeless residents often have collectively written, and some stories have us residents of Alameda and individual authors. But whoever sets fingers their personal belongings taken San Bruno, pack up our stuff to keyboard, all stories are formed by the away, including medicine, items for collective work of dozens of volunteers, and and leave while it was pouring health care needs, and sentimental pos- our outreach to hundreds of homeless people. down rain. HOMELESS sessions. Currently, the Lawyer’s Com- I understand that the home- Editor, Sam Lew mittee for Civil Rights is filing a lawsuit ENCAMPMENTS SWEEPS less epidemic is out of control, against CalTrans for destroying and con- Assistant Editor, TJ Johnston but just because you don’t want WATCH TRAINING fiscating people’s personal belongings. to see us with our tents up and Vendor Coordinator, Scott Nelson “Even though DPW wants the streets the whole nine, doesn’t mean clean, they take our personal belongings When: Wednesday, March Our contributors include: we can’t be treated like human and throwing them away—you’re tak- 29 from 5:30-6:30pm beings. Just like the residents Lisa Marie Alatorre, Bob Offer-Westort, ing our personal belongings that we’ve of San Francisco, we too are hu- Where: Coalition on Home- Jennifer Friendbach, Lesley Haddock, had for years. And you don’t have noth- Jason Law, Jesus Perez, Miguel Carrera, man and have feelings as well. lessness, 468 Turk Street be- ing to give us back,” says Shy’s brother, Vlad K., Mike Russo, Arendse Skovmoller We got treated with such dis- Julia D’Antonio, Chance Martin, who is also an encampment resident. tween Larkin & Hyde respect from the 2 entities [SFPD Irma Núñez, Paul Boden, Lydia Ely, What he says rings true for many. and Public Works] that we are Will Daley, Nicholas Kimura While the City tried to improve its en- Learn how to respond to ongoing Matthew Gerring, Jim Beller afraid to say anything to them Robert Gumpert, Art Hazelwood, campment protocol with an Encamp- homeless encampment sweeps hap- in fear of our stuff getting tak- the Ghostlines Collective, ment Resolution Team led by social pening in our San Francisco com- en. What you guys call junk or Dayton Anddrews, Kelley Cutler, worker Jason Albertson, there is still no munity. Homeless people are told Raúl Fernández-Berriozabel, trash is not that to us. We hold housing that is being offered. to “Move along” by SFPD, DPW, and Jacquelynn Evans dear to the things that matter This cycle of moving people from private security, and others, but most. So the reason for this let- place to place is best exemplified by one there is nowhere to move along to, ter is that we are asking you, VOLUNTEER CONTACT: of the more visible sweeps that occurred with city shelters at a consistent our city officials, to please work earlier this year with the Box City en- 1000-person long waitlist. The hour- WITH US! [email protected] with us. And to try and change campment. While most of the residents long training will consist of a ‘Know your outlook upon us. Because were offered shelter at the Navigation your rights’ training… what to do PHOTOGRAPHERS TWITTER: I’m just one of the many who Center, many of those were only offered and not to do during sweeps so that VIDEOGRAPHERS speak up when injustice is done @STREETSHEETSF 30 days there, some with an extension. you can be an ally to homeless peo- ILLUSTRATORS to us for no reason whatsoever. Human Rights Organizer Kelley ple trying to survive on the streets. COMIC ARTISTS @THECOALITIONSF The names on the follow- Cutler at the Coalition on Homelessness NEWSPAPER LAYOUT ing page are one’s who want to chatted with one of the former Box City Questions? Contact Human Rights WEBSITE FACEBOOK: support me in asking you guys residents during her street outreach. Organizer, Kelley Cutler, at MAINTENANCE FACEBOOK.COM/ to stop the injustice towards the The resident had entered the Navigation [email protected] GRAPHIC homeless. STREETSHEETSF DESIGNERS JOURNALISTS “I am not free while any woman is unfree, INTERNS WEBSITE: WRITERS STREETSHEET.ORG even if her shackles look different from my own.” - audre lorde POETS PAGE 3 MARCH 15, 2017 sabrina: “This is my final stand of warriorism as a mother and a woman.” I am 38 years old. I was born and raised here in San Francisco Hayes Valley, Fillmore. I have three kids. I also taught my kids before our life took a left turn about 2 and a half years ago.