citySWEEP

PLEASE MEET OUR COMMUNITY:

On the morning of January 28th the Dearborn encampment, a place where nearly 90 individuals and a few animals called home, was to be swept by the City of Seattle. This was a result of a drug bust that took place inside the camp recently. They would be vacating all who lived there by 9am sharp.

I didn't know what to expect , but I knew it was going to be a very emotional morning. At 7:30am I picked up Dee Powers who was organizing some activists to help the homeless that morning. She told me to "Clear the day after we are done here, you are going to need a lot of self care." I steadied myself. She was right.

It was just getting light outside and luckily the rain that had been coming down for hours showed mercy and stopped. As we faced the encampment I could see people packing things up into garbage bags. The air was heavy. The mud was thick and deep and full of needles and garbage. Surrounded by freeway it was hard to hear. I walked inside with my bag of Hostess Snowballs hoping to make someone smile. It definitely worked a few times.

As I walked through the camp, I saw the faces of so many people who looked lost. "Where will you go?" Most people told me that they didn't know. I saw a woman nearly in tears holding her two cats in a blanket. She sat them down to move her stuff, and the cats scurried into the shadows. She spent the next few hours crying for them. She still hadn't found them hours later when I left. Another woman arrived 15 minutes after the cut off time-and lost everything she owned. It was all inside her tent... and it was now lined with police tape. No one was allowed in. She stood staring blankly into the sea of tents, "My kid's stuff is in there...my pictures..." she muttered as she wiped away tears.

I met a wonderful young man named Lyman, 24 years old. He had been camping there for three months and has been on the streets just under a year. He had no idea where he would go. "But you still manage to smile," I told him. "Everyday is like this, just survival."

I met a young lady named Red. She is 28 and has lived in the jungle for 5 years. Red was very concerned about where to go, and was really ready to get inside. There were quite a few kind souls walking through the mud just helping people.
Somehow in the midst of all of this chaos I saw the beauty. There was a man walking around aiding people who needed shelter and he helped Red. Thank you Dwight Jackson. Thank you Dee Powers and all of the people who were there to help people move, giving out food, calming people, passing out gloves, blankets, garbage bags, water.

It was a day full of heavy hearts. Many shades of humanity were in front of me. I cried when I got home and stared at the ceiling. I came out of this with a heart full gratitude for everything I love, a drive to help more, and with a greater sense of hope.

Atlantic Neighborhood | Dawndra

A QUIET THOUGHT - If you're moved by the goodness of this community, please visit http://www.facinghomelessness.org/ and click on the 'donate' button and consider a "monthly recurring" donation of just $5 in support of the work. THANK YOU!
#FacingHomelessness #JustSayHello #Kindness Crosscut KING 5 #stopthesweeps

evisceratingEXPECTATIONS

PLEASE MEET JEFF AND BRANDY :

Homelessness carries visions of cartoonish characters. Outlaws and bogeymen. Demons and danger. As a kid, dangerous places taunted me. Woods, bridges, abandoned buildings. But if danger is your deal, you may find homeless encampments boring. Because, with notable exceptions, in an encampment you’re more likely to encounter Ned Flanders than Vincent Price. Doris Day than Cruella de Ville. The Jefferson’s rather than the Adam’s Family. If homelessness were TV drama, Jeff and Brandy are the couple next door in a 70’s sitcom. Quirky, witty, engaging. Sometimes outshining the main characters.

Brandy is a jovial soul with flowing red hair. She enjoys company and conversation. A genuine woman, she laughs often, but speaks with conviction. She’s delightful but don’t mess with her. She yields no quarter to trouble makers. A neighbor fellow was recently evicted for harassing women. “If he was on fire I wouldn’t piss on him,” she laughs, pulling back her long red hair. Brandy was a competition roller skater. Her eyes catch fire when she talks about it. She’s tough. But also enjoys drawing and has an insatiable appetite for homemade cheese cake.

Today there’s tension. An upcoming sweep has them agitated. Brandy is packing up. In frustration, she’s tossing belongings into bags with a vengeance. Pontificating passionately about the city’s failed policies. Still yapping, she grabs a stick deodorant and vigorously applies it under her sweatshirt before tossing it at an open suitcase where it bounces and hits the floor. All without breaking verbal stride. Brandy will always crack you up. Jeff keeps a low profile in these instances.

Jeff is quieter. He works hard. Roaming alleys nightly, collecting recyclables. He returns after sunrise. “We survive on the money from the cans. But you’d be surprised at what people toss in dumpsters. Tools, valuables, even money.” He points at 4 large sacks of fresh food discarded from a Starbucks. He smiles, “These will feed our entire camp today.” Jeff is a framer and general woodworker but has had trouble staying employed. “School never worked for me. But I learn well on the job.”

Jeff and Brandy have been homeless and in love together a long time. But why are they homeless? Having known them for 3 years I can only say it’s not a lifestyle they choose. But knowing Jeff and Brandy, one can’t help but conclude that, by stereotypical expectations, these two simply don’t look or act homeless. But on the stage that is poverty, Jeff and Brandy reside in the wings. Behind crooked props. Out of view of the critics. Defying audience expectations.

Beacon Hill Neighborhood | Damian

A QUIET THOUGHT - If you're moved by the goodness of this community, please visit http://www.facinghomelessness.org/ and click on the 'donate' button and consider a "monthly recurring" donation of just $5 in support of the work. THANK YOU!
#JustSayHello #FacingHomelessness #Kindness