PHS Staff close relationship with Police a Concern
"Advocates say that more police in shelters means more harassment of the homeless. Last month, the New York Civil Liberties Union announced a settlement on behalf of three homeless men who were kicked awake and whose belongings were thrown into a trash compactor by police and sanitation workers in October 2016. In the settlement, the city will provide compensation for the personal items police illegally seized and discarded, which included Social Security cards, birth certificates and medication."
amsterdamnews.com/news/2017/feb/09/mayors-upcoming-homele...
___________________
"Warehousing is not social housing and no wonder the residents are pissed off and feel they were deceived."
(Alison Acker; Raging Granny)
thawvictoria.wordpress.com/2017/03/13/notes-from-alison-a...
__________ __________
Super Intent City created a safe supportive community - and they did it better than any efforts by our government and their Poverty-Pimping agencies.
Many of the Super InTent City community and organizers were targeted by the police and other Poverty-Pimps, like PHS, and they continue to be. It has worsened.
Tight knit familial groups were broken up, divided, especially the vocal proponents and organizers of Super InTent City. They are terrorized by police, suffer from stress, broken government promises, reduced funding, personal property destroyed and/or disposed, reduced access to supports, inadequate diet, worsening health and poverty.
The government "solution" has been an abysmal failure; its only success was public relations; fooling their public into believing their tax dollars are improving life for the homeless when, in fact, it has worsened. More have died, more have been imprisoned, and more have been displaced and separated from support groups.
There are many good people advocating for this beleaguered community and the United Nations is listening. Victoria is not fairing well in the eyes of the human rights advocacy field.
This is a monumental challenge, but it is a moral duty to help the less fortunate; essential for the soul.
___________ __________
...lately it seems like you can't swing around a broken promise to the poor without hitting a cop at the BC Housing PHS-run expired elderly-care-facility come shelter(?), mental health home(?), residential tenancy apartment(?), who knows what the heck this Soft Incarceration thingy is?
___________ __________
When housing is treated a commodity, this is what's left for the poor, disabled...
It's Not Right To Deny Their Rights
I've been working with a resident committee down at the Johnston Street Portland Hotel Society boondoggle, helping residents with various matters, including; OPCC and HRT complaints; a Class-Action Lawsuit we're preparing for; the documentation of some of their concerns with my camera, and other issues.
Entry into this building is typically difficult, especially for the resident's advocates and friends. Identification is required for visitors, after you have found the person so they can personally vouch for you.
This is all made more difficult without any sort of buzzer system. Sometimes you find someone who can go in to find them for you, maybe they have a phone so you try to call them ...and there is no way staff will help you or use the intercom system. Obstacles everywhere.
The other day I was stopped and abruptly questioned as to my purpose, and what I intend on using my camera for. Apparently, they only question photographers with large obvious cameras, and not every person who may have a cell phone camera, or other device - just big cameras.
It took me nearly 20 minutes of lectures about the limitations of photographers rights (that don't exist) from 5 PHS staff members, and I was followed and checked up on several times, including one female staff member (wife of somebody with PHS) who eaves dropped on my conversations, even rolling her eyes at me from listening to private conversations that were none of her business.
It's a hostile environment, and this was confirmed by EVERY resident I spoke with; HIGH LEVELS OF STRESS induced by mystery rules that apply to a mysteriously classified building.
Many talked about needing to escape from the closed-quarters, confinement and oppressive rules.
Is it a mental health facility? ...a shelter?
I heard both from staff when they explained restrictions placed upon both residents and their visitors.
(Video soon come)
Is it housing protected under the residential tenancy laws, as the residents were promised prior to moving in?
Why do residents' visitors face such scrutiny while the police wander through with impunity. While I was there I observed and documented many police inside and out, circling about, on foot, in cars ...I observed PHS staff meeting police officers across the street on two occasions, and a couple of the PHS staff walked a plain clothes officer inside the building. All of this during my short and HEAVILY SCRUTINIZED visit.
Police instruct the obedient PHS that residents are not allowed to take photos and video, and the staff comply. Residents and visitors are told they are not allowed to take pictures (collect evidence) in their own building; residents are restricted access to areas such as fire exits; residents are continually frustrated with being provide no answers to their questions and queries; residents are locked (tied with ropes) in their rooms when staff or police decide they wish to do so; no doors for their bathrooms, especially awkward when you have company or the PHS staff and/or police conduct the "welfare checks".
Securing personal property is difficult, and risky at best; exacerbated by thefts, or questionable disposal of stored property by PHS staff...
___________ __________
...and so the work continues; FOI requests are in and more are coming; OPCC and HRT complaints are in and more are coming, The United Nations is paying attention to the rights violations and neglect of the poor and homeless in Victoria, with an update delivered to the U.N. today ...and the beat goes on.
We must end the criminalization of the poor and downtrodden.
We must begin to properly address the needs of the poor and downtrodden.
PHS Staff close relationship with Police a Concern
"Advocates say that more police in shelters means more harassment of the homeless. Last month, the New York Civil Liberties Union announced a settlement on behalf of three homeless men who were kicked awake and whose belongings were thrown into a trash compactor by police and sanitation workers in October 2016. In the settlement, the city will provide compensation for the personal items police illegally seized and discarded, which included Social Security cards, birth certificates and medication."
amsterdamnews.com/news/2017/feb/09/mayors-upcoming-homele...
___________________
"Warehousing is not social housing and no wonder the residents are pissed off and feel they were deceived."
(Alison Acker; Raging Granny)
thawvictoria.wordpress.com/2017/03/13/notes-from-alison-a...
__________ __________
Super Intent City created a safe supportive community - and they did it better than any efforts by our government and their Poverty-Pimping agencies.
Many of the Super InTent City community and organizers were targeted by the police and other Poverty-Pimps, like PHS, and they continue to be. It has worsened.
Tight knit familial groups were broken up, divided, especially the vocal proponents and organizers of Super InTent City. They are terrorized by police, suffer from stress, broken government promises, reduced funding, personal property destroyed and/or disposed, reduced access to supports, inadequate diet, worsening health and poverty.
The government "solution" has been an abysmal failure; its only success was public relations; fooling their public into believing their tax dollars are improving life for the homeless when, in fact, it has worsened. More have died, more have been imprisoned, and more have been displaced and separated from support groups.
There are many good people advocating for this beleaguered community and the United Nations is listening. Victoria is not fairing well in the eyes of the human rights advocacy field.
This is a monumental challenge, but it is a moral duty to help the less fortunate; essential for the soul.
___________ __________
...lately it seems like you can't swing around a broken promise to the poor without hitting a cop at the BC Housing PHS-run expired elderly-care-facility come shelter(?), mental health home(?), residential tenancy apartment(?), who knows what the heck this Soft Incarceration thingy is?
___________ __________
When housing is treated a commodity, this is what's left for the poor, disabled...
It's Not Right To Deny Their Rights
I've been working with a resident committee down at the Johnston Street Portland Hotel Society boondoggle, helping residents with various matters, including; OPCC and HRT complaints; a Class-Action Lawsuit we're preparing for; the documentation of some of their concerns with my camera, and other issues.
Entry into this building is typically difficult, especially for the resident's advocates and friends. Identification is required for visitors, after you have found the person so they can personally vouch for you.
This is all made more difficult without any sort of buzzer system. Sometimes you find someone who can go in to find them for you, maybe they have a phone so you try to call them ...and there is no way staff will help you or use the intercom system. Obstacles everywhere.
The other day I was stopped and abruptly questioned as to my purpose, and what I intend on using my camera for. Apparently, they only question photographers with large obvious cameras, and not every person who may have a cell phone camera, or other device - just big cameras.
It took me nearly 20 minutes of lectures about the limitations of photographers rights (that don't exist) from 5 PHS staff members, and I was followed and checked up on several times, including one female staff member (wife of somebody with PHS) who eaves dropped on my conversations, even rolling her eyes at me from listening to private conversations that were none of her business.
It's a hostile environment, and this was confirmed by EVERY resident I spoke with; HIGH LEVELS OF STRESS induced by mystery rules that apply to a mysteriously classified building.
Many talked about needing to escape from the closed-quarters, confinement and oppressive rules.
Is it a mental health facility? ...a shelter?
I heard both from staff when they explained restrictions placed upon both residents and their visitors.
(Video soon come)
Is it housing protected under the residential tenancy laws, as the residents were promised prior to moving in?
Why do residents' visitors face such scrutiny while the police wander through with impunity. While I was there I observed and documented many police inside and out, circling about, on foot, in cars ...I observed PHS staff meeting police officers across the street on two occasions, and a couple of the PHS staff walked a plain clothes officer inside the building. All of this during my short and HEAVILY SCRUTINIZED visit.
Police instruct the obedient PHS that residents are not allowed to take photos and video, and the staff comply. Residents and visitors are told they are not allowed to take pictures (collect evidence) in their own building; residents are restricted access to areas such as fire exits; residents are continually frustrated with being provide no answers to their questions and queries; residents are locked (tied with ropes) in their rooms when staff or police decide they wish to do so; no doors for their bathrooms, especially awkward when you have company or the PHS staff and/or police conduct the "welfare checks".
Securing personal property is difficult, and risky at best; exacerbated by thefts, or questionable disposal of stored property by PHS staff...
___________ __________
...and so the work continues; FOI requests are in and more are coming; OPCC and HRT complaints are in and more are coming, The United Nations is paying attention to the rights violations and neglect of the poor and homeless in Victoria, with an update delivered to the U.N. today ...and the beat goes on.
We must end the criminalization of the poor and downtrodden.
We must begin to properly address the needs of the poor and downtrodden.