If this is true, Mayor Hannemann, it then begs the question: why are you booting them from the only place left for them to go?
Seems clear where the author of the story and the publishers stand on the issue, given the headline they decided to go with. Frankly, I'm starting to get real tired of hearing folks invoke the "clean and safe" doctrine. More rights have been stomped and trampled in the name of keeping things "clean and safe" than damned near anything else I can think of.....
Council Makes Kicking Homeless Out Easier
Mayor Says City Will Be Compassionate In Moving Homeless
POSTED: 10:04 am HST August 25, 2008
HONOLULU -- The Honolulu City Council last week approved measures to make it easier to kick out homeless campers from public parks.Illegal homeless camping has been on the increase ever since the Hawaii Supreme Court ruled the city's "no camping law" was unconstitutional. Kapiolani Park is now dotted with homeless camps.On Wednesday, council members strengthened the law to make it easier to relocate homeless and seize their left behind belongings.
"Of course I am strongly in support of this. As some people may know, the city has not been enforcing its camping laws since the Supreme Court said our definition of camping is too broad," Councilman Charles Djou said."Hopefully this is going to help the Parks Department keep our parks clean and safe for all of us," Councilman Donovan Dela Cruz said.
The mayor said the city still will try to be gentle in removing homeless from parks."We are always going to work very compassionately with the less fortunate, the homeless, the physically challenged in our community," Mayor Mufi Hannemann said.The mayor declined to say what the city will do with the Kapiolani Park campers.Hannemann said all homeless sweeps are carefully worked out in advance with the state to try and find shelter and transitional housing for the uprooted campers.
