Locking up the Lake (Merritt)

Violent sweeps of longtime houseless ComeUnities residing at Lake Merritt -a supposedly "public" park

When: TODAY: 8:30am Monday, April 7th 

Where: Lake Merritt Amphitheater 

Emergency press conference organized by houseless /formerly houseless residents of Lake Merrit, Liberation Health Network and POOR Magazine- co-sponsored by Wood Street Commons and Oakland Homeless Unión and SELC 

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TODAY Monday April 7 at 8:30am, longtime houseless residents of Lake Merritt will be violently swept to nowhere by the city of Oakland..

“I have nowhere to go, none of us do, we will be pushed to some other outside location. That’s the City’s idea to solve homelessness,” Ronnie G, longtime houseless resident of Lake Merrit and lifelong Oakland resident explained to POOR Magazine. 

“As they have with every other houseless community in so-called Oakland, the City will be spending literally thousands, possibly millions of dollars moving people off of so-called public land  to nowhere. Again,” said tiny gray-garcia, formerly houseles co-founder of POOR Magazine.”We as houseless peoples have solutions, that don’t include millions of dollars sweeping us like we are trash,” she concluded

“Once again the city of Oakland feel the need to continue doing things that harms the community and separates us more..” John Janasko, formerly houseless resident of Wood Street Commons 

Houseless residents of Lake Merritt have struggled with sweeps before proving the futile project of spending millions moving people to nowhere rather than listening to poor and houseless peoples solutions. 

“This is the third sweep we have dealt with, everywhere we go we are harassed,” Marcus explained to us that he had been swept from two other comeunities before coming to a very secluded part of the lake, “ I never bother anyone, I cause no trouble,” he concluded

“The Oakland Homeless Union stands in solidarity with all unhoused Oakland residents, and we will continue to fight until the voices of the unhoused are acknowledged as the experts of our own lives that we are. We are not subhumans, nor are we garbage to be swept into the shadows; we are human beings, and one day history will show who was on the side of right, and who was not.”,said Freeway , Oakland Homeless union 

“We are artists, we are a community, we support each other with food and help and whatever one of us doesn’t have we share, they are breaking up our community and sending us to nowhere,” Reina de Aztlan, a houseless Lake Merritt resident from Liberation Health Network who co-organized this press conference with POOR Magazine, sees no point in this violent displacement. 

Because of this sweep and the daily sweeps harassment POOR Magazine, Wood Street Commons and Oakland Homeless Union are demanding that the City of Oakland, immediately implement a moratorium on sweeps

Click on this link for sanctuary solutions/demands created by houseless and formerly houseless residents and leaders of Homefulness/POOR Magazine and Wood Street Commons 

Please follow:

IG: reinadeaztlan

IG & fb:poormagazine

IG @woodstreetcommons

IG Oakland.homeless.union