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Houseless people create our own research investigation to “prove” that these violent sweeps orders are killing us while we celebrate the second Homefulness, a rent-free forever housing site in Oakland.
by Lisa ‘Tiny’ Gray-Garcia and Muteado Silencio, POOR Magazine
“Do you know where the bus station is?” RoofLessRadioSOMA reporter Sr. Asuncion, who had just been swept from a little corner he was standing on by California Highway Patrol officers, had a bus ticket he had received in his hand but had no idea where he was going, no money or resources or family in the town he was going to and not sure exactly why he even had a bus ticket. – excerpt from the first WeSearch report, “Sweeping us to Nowhere”
Sr Asuncion is just one of the houseless poverty skolaz who contributed his story and struggles to the 2024 RoofLessRadio WeSearch report on these violent moves being made by Gov. Newsom and mayors from San Francisco to Los Angeles to disappear our houseless bodies and lives from the public streets of so-called California.
From Grants Pass vs. Johnson to Gov. Newsom and London Breed, Karen Bass, Sheng Tao and Eric Adams, all of these towns across occupied Turtle Island are waging a war against our houseless bodies. Sweeping, disappearing and arresting us to nowhere. RoofLess Radio WeSearch is poor and houseless people-led research project which will reveal the impact of the deadly violence of sweeps, bus tickets, jail-like motel rooms, navigation centers, temporary shelters, cabins and arrests that are killing us. We are also highlighting that we do have actual solutions created by us for us –- solutions like Camp Resolution, Wood Street Commons, Aetna Street Solidarity, Reclaiming Our Homes and Homefulness, to name a few.
We are building solutions in the middle of this war ON the poor – why can’t we get any media attention?
During BlackAugust, POOR Magazine WeSearchers, Homefulness residents and resident leaders of Wood Street Commons released Part 1 of the RoofLess Radio Findings on these violent sweeps and policies of removal, as well as welcomed in the first two homes at Homefulness #2 at 7600 MacArthur Blvd in Deep East (Huchiun) Oakland with all nations prayer, education, a free bbq, poetry, art and love for ComeUnity.
Homefulness #1 was an 11-year-long journey
In 2022, after being blocked for over 11 years by the City of Oakland, the first Homefulness project, located at 8032 MacArthur Blvd was finally allowed to open its doors to houseless families, elders and youth. As of July 2024 we have 21 formerly houseless, now homeful, residents living in rent-free forever healing housing. Homefulness #2 is the second example of this practicable dream of rent-free forever housing we poor and houseless people are working on to house over 35 houseless families and disabled elders.
“Where would I go?” RoofLessRadioSOMA reporter Demetrius K explained why he rejected the bus ticket offered to him by London Breed to erase houseless peoples from the streets of San Francisco, “I’m from San Francisco, I’m not going anywhere.” Demetrius went on to explain that he has been asked to move multiple times but never was offered housing and how the money and resources of San Francisco continue to go for the rich.
“They keep building all this housing for rich people, but hardly any for the poor. Look at all these empty buildings,” he said pointing his hands to all the nearby towering empty office buildings, “Why can’t we build a Homefulness here?” – excerpt from “Sweeping us to Nowhere,” RoofLessRadio Sweeps WeSearch
POOR Magazine is currently working with houseless communities in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Seattle and West Oakland at Wood Street to open their own versions of this powerful and doable dream we call Homefulness.
“Saturday’s event is celebrating a Herstoric Day: 530 years after the violence of colonization, we poor and indigenous peoples are building our own solutions,” declares Muteado Silencio, formerly houseless co-founder,povertyskola and lead builder of Homefulness.
“With permission, prayer and guidance from First Nations Ohlone, Lisjan leaders, we are opening a second site for our own self-determined solutions of Healing Housing without the Lie of Rent – only possible because of the radical redistribution of conscious housed residents with resources radically redistributing to us poor peoples so we can mamafest this dream,” explaines Tiny aka povertyskola, formerly houseless co-founder and visionary of Homefulness.
Event which will include teachings on off-grid energy sources, housing and waste reduction in low– and no-income communities, as well as poetry, music, children’s activities, art, free barbecue for the neighborhood and so much more is co-sponsored by POOR Magazine, a poor, indigenous, homeless people-led movement dedicated to providing media access, art, education, advocacy and solutions to youth, adults and elders in poverty locally and globally and the Self-Help Hunger Program, a poor Black elder-led movement towards self-determination, and Wood Street Commons movement, a homeless peoples movement of healing and activation.
Lisa “Tiny” Gray-Garcia, aka “povertyskola,” is a poet and teacher and the formerly houseless, incarcerated daughter of Dee and mama of Tiburcio, author of “Criminal of Poverty: Growing Up Homeless in America” and many more and co-founder of Homefulness, a homeless people’s solution to homelessness. Reach her at www.lisatinygraygarcia.com or @povertyskola on Twitter/X. Muteado Silencio is a teacher and the lead builder of Homefulness.
