The City of Rochester, NY hosted a 5K "Reindeer Run" last Saturday, the 20th of December- 5 days before Christmas. The city's homeless residing at their Sanctuary Tent City were asked to clean up around the area in anticipation of the race and to vacate the area until the race was over.
The residents of Sanctuary City did as they were asked, only while they made themselves scarce, the city moved in and scooped their tents and tarps- their homes, and all their belongings into a dump truck and hauled it away. Among the "garbage" were personal effects such as SocSec cards and what meager possessions our homeless neighbors were able to salvage from their former lives.
This brief account also includes information on how one might help those who were duped and displaced during this Christmas season:
http://rochester.indymedia.org/...
Sanctuary Village's facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/...
Local facebook posters are saying Mayor Lovely Warren's facebook page and the City's website are shutting down or purging comments.
Local coverage attributes the decision to tear the village down to an alleged fire in a tent last Thursday. The comments following the article are typical:
http://www.13wham.com/...
There are some shelters in the city run mostly by religious organizations. These are often full in the coldest weather, and some are less conducive to family situations than others.
For whatever reasons, some homeless had chosen to live in a tent village over the shelters. The city had told them they could remain there until December 28th when they needed to disperse since the area is used to launch the city's New Year's Eve fireworks extravaganza.
What was to happen after the fireworks display as far as the Sanctuary City's residents are concerned isn't clear, but some organizations in the city have said they will try to provide tents to those in need so they may reform Sanctuary City in the same or in an alternate location.
While some of my local friends and family and fellow tri-county citizens will say this is business as usual, I was quite surprised by this. Rochester, though largely Republican, is still considered a Progressive city and area, historically so.
The timing of this couldn't be worse. And the way it was done was sneaky, underhanded and dishonest. Please keep these folks in your hearts and minds this Christmas, along with their homeless counterparts in cities and towns across our fair nation- the wealthiest on the planet.