The Eviction and Mistreatment of the Homeless in Echo Park
By Nathaniel Aguilar
Image credit from Los Angeles Magazine
Context
Los Angeles is one of the many cities in California with the largest homeless population. According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, one of every four people experiencing homelessness did so in New York and Los Angeles in the year 2020 alone (14). As of March 2021, the homeless population in Los Angeles is over 63,000, a 12.7% from 2019. This statistic is alarming considering this marks the fourth consecutive year, homelessness has increased nationwide (1).
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| Image credit from U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development |
The leading cause:
While causes can vary widely between poverty, drug abuse, mental illness, unemployment, etc. A recent annual survey conducted by the U.S Conference of Mayors listed the lack of affordable housing to be the number one cause for both homeless families and individuals. (LAFH, n.p).
Los Angeles County is now being considered the least affordable rental market in the county. The graph above credited by LA Family Housing suggests that in order for housing to be considered affordable, a family should spend less than 30% of their income on rent. Thus, a working family needs to earn at least 42$ an hour or $87,880 a year to afford the average rent (LAFH, n.p). On average however, people in L.A are spending 47% of their income on rent. Housing isn't just out of reach for those making minimum wage. it's out of reach for the majority of middle class families.
The Echo Park Situation
With many people on the street, many homeless found themselves shelter in encampments inside public park, the most recently popular being Echo Park for its safety and thriving community. The Los Angeles Homeless Service Authority documented 590 in the small neighborhood of Echo Park, with many residing in the park (LAHSA n.p).
As a resident of Echo Park myself, I took notice of the huge increase in tents among the years, specifically the year 2020 when COVID-19 struck many and unemployment risen. While taking sister to work, I pass by the park only to now notice it with angry protesters and police officers surrounding the area. As I began researching, I learned that city officials intended to shut down the encampment and relocate the homeless into temporary hotels and housing while they renovate the park. This project is titled, Project Roomkey. At the moment, I believed this was for the better as homeless were now given the opportunity for housing and resources such as food, clothes, etc. Yet many homeless were displeased with the dismantling of their encampments as many of them believed to have built a community within in the park. Not to mention the police force swiftly barring the park and attempting to remove the park-dwellers by force. This sudden urge to relocate the homeless by force sparked protest from the community of Echo Park as it signified the mistreatment and lack of compassion for the homeless in our community.
Image credit from ABC NEWS
On the day of the removal, March 25, police arrested 182 people including journalist and reporters only furthering the distrust in city officials and police in this small community of Echo Park (Lenthang). The next morning, the park was met with closed gates and the homeless completely removed.
The Aftermath
The big question after the transfer, is where were the homeless relocated to? An article by The Los Angeles Times, titled, "A week later, here's what happened to some of the homeless people booted from Echo Park" meticulously depicts the mismanagement and confusing mess that stemmed from the relocation. A women by the name of Olga recounts that she ended up in a hotel in Century City where she expected to stay for several months, but is now being evicted again and taken to a new hotel in Monterey Park far away from anyone she knows, as travel restrictions from COVID-19 are starting to ease (Smith).
She was quoted saying "They're not truthful...there's no full disclosure". Despite city officials already happily calling the removal of the homeless in Echo Park a success.
Smith reports in her article that at a press conference in front of L.A City Hall, Ayman Ahmed a former Echo Park inhabitant ranted, "I don't even have my Bible. They tossed it...Why did they displace us? For what reason? These are not adequate alternatives to what we had. What we had at Echo Park was a shelter".
It's difficult to call this a "success" when people were forced to leave and are unhappy of the treatment set upon strict Project Roomkey rules such as lack of privacy, a curfew, background checks, and more disruptiveness, while at the same time refusing to stay in the housing that's being offered to them. While Echo Park was at least a stable safe place for them, it's clear to see that Project Roomkey is causing them more distress than comfort.
While there's no clear resolution as of yet, I hope to bring awareness of this issue, as City Officials will continue to brag about their success while many homeless are still continuing to suffer. The eviction of the homeless in Echo Park is just a small talking point to the bigger crisis we're facing in all of California.
My Final Words
This social issue directly influences me as I live in Echo Park myself. As I mentioned above, I see the park on my drive home almost every day, and it saddens me to see how bad the homeless crises has gotten over the years. It's not just that I believe it's getting worse, it's that people seem to generally not care. I chose this issue because I have talked with some of the homeless living here, and my uncle is homeless himself and frequents this park a lot despite never setting up a tent here. When the homeless were finally forced out, I spoke to my uncle and he told me that many of the people living in the encampment were genuinely nice people, in fact many of them would share their food with him and invite him to their prayers which they would host every week. I can't speak for every homeless there, but as someone with an uncle who is homeless and is still very savvy and kind, I hope to see that kindness shared back by the people who can provide a better opportunity than what Project Roomkey is now.
Works Cited
2020 Homeless Count By Community/City. (n.d.). Retrieved April 14, 2021, from https://www.lahsa.org/data?id=45-2020-homeless-count-by-community-city.
Causes & Solutions to Homelessness. (n.d.). Retrieved April 15, 2021, from https://lafh.org/causes-solutions
Henry, M. (2021, March). The 2020 Annual Homeless Assessment Report (AHAR) to Congress. Retrieved April 14, 2021, from https://www.huduser.gov/portal/sites/default/files/pdf/2020-AHAR-Part-1.pdf.
Lenthang, M. (2021, March 26). Police, protesters clash over sweep of Echo Park homeless encampment. Abcnewsgo.com. Retrieved April 14, 2021, from https://abcnews.go.com/US/police-protesters-clash-sweep-echo-park-homeless-encampment/story?id=76701960
Smith, E. D. (2021, April 3). Column: A week later, here’s what happened to some of the homeless people booted from Echo Park. Latimes.com. Retrieved April 14, 2021, from https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2021-04-03/echo-park-lake-homeless-housing-los-angeles
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