“And homeless near a thousand homes I stood,
and near a thousand tables pined and wanted food”
~Wordsworth
9.04.2008
Police Post Orders To Vacate Tent City by 8am 9-22-08
It's been a busy week down at the camp, no doubt about it. Police presence has been regular in the area; today it started at 8am with a visit from Commander Huggins and a couple of other officers who followed him.
They went door to door, passing out what appeared to be hastily constructed flyers on standard printer paper; no seal, signature, watermark, or other identifying marks indicating it was an "official" document, while announcing that peeps in the area were trespassing and they had until 8am September 22nd to leave.
Around noon, camp resident Ray Ray, who was walking out of the camp to the main road, called me and told me a number of police vehicles were turning down the road and heading towards the camp.
3 squad cars and 4 minibike patrols arrived at the main gate behind Inner City, a couple of officers unlocked the gate and a group of officers entered the area.
I shot a bit of video; nothing real compelling or exciting, but frankly, the officers looked rather bored as they went about contacting folks, putting up these flyers and handing out the Where to Find Help brochures MDHA prints up each year.
Overall, the visit was polite, calm and uneventful, just like the vast majority of the days and nights are down at the camp.
I spoke with one of the officers who was tacking up the flyers and he stated that he rarely had to deal with troubles at the camp and that he was just "doing his job." He also stated that "we don't yet know how this is going to turn out; who knows, maybe it won't close."
I have a feeling it'll be an uphill battle but you can bet there'll be a number of us at the Homelessness Commission meeting tomorrow (Friday, 9-5 at 930AM) at the MDHA office on Rosa Parks blvd) talking over the options. Lt. Swisher will be speaking at this meeting, discsussing as I understand it the rationale for closing the camp and Clifton's effort in establishing an ordinance to allow "official" camps that are structured, governed and patrolled like any other part of the city.
A reporter and photog from The Tennessean has been working on a story for several days now; that article should hit the streets on Monday, with an online slide show of pics of the camp. After the camp actually closes, I'll post some more detailed vids and additional pics of life in the camp but right now, the folks both need and deserve their privacy.
Regardless of where you stand on the trespassing issue, surely you can empathize with anyone who would like to be able to maintain some privacy while in their own home, even if that home is a tent or a pallet hut out in a field....
It's been a busy week down at the camp, no doubt about it. Police presence has been regular in the area; today it started at 8am with a visit from Commander Huggins and a couple of other officers who followed him.
They went door to door, passing out what appeared to be hastily constructed flyers on standard printer paper; no seal, signature, watermark, or other identifying marks indicating it was an "official" document, while announcing that peeps in the area were trespassing and they had until 8am September 22nd to leave.
Around noon, camp resident Ray Ray, who was walking out of the camp to the main road, called me and told me a number of police vehicles were turning down the road and heading towards the camp.
3 squad cars and 4 minibike patrols arrived at the main gate behind Inner City, a couple of officers unlocked the gate and a group of officers entered the area.
I shot a bit of video; nothing real compelling or exciting, but frankly, the officers looked rather bored as they went about contacting folks, putting up these flyers and handing out the Where to Find Help brochures MDHA prints up each year.
Overall, the visit was polite, calm and uneventful, just like the vast majority of the days and nights are down at the camp.
I spoke with one of the officers who was tacking up the flyers and he stated that he rarely had to deal with troubles at the camp and that he was just "doing his job
." He also stated that "we don't yet know how this is going to turn out; who knows, maybe it won't close."
I have a feeling it'll be an uphill battle but you can bet there'll be a number of us at the Homelessness Commission meeting tomorrow (Friday, 9-5 at 930AM) at the MDHA office on Rosa Parks blvd) talking over the options. Lt. Swisher will be speaking at this meeting, discsussing as I understand it the rationale for closing the camp and Clifton's effort in establishing an ordinance to allow "official" camps that are structured, governed and patrolled like any other part of the city.
A reporter and photog from The Tennessean has been working on a story for several days now; that article should hit the streets on Monday, with an online slide show of pics of the camp. After the camp actually closes, I'll post some more detailed vids and additional pics of life in the camp but right now, the folks both need and deserve their privacy.
Regardless of where you stand on the trespassing issue, surely you can empathize with anyone who would like to be able to maintain some privacy while in their own home, even if that home is a tent or a pallet hut out in a field....
