Letter Template

*See past entry entitled "ACTION Recommendations" for some suggestions on how to complete this.

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Subject: Eviction of Vallejo homeless citizens in the White Slough

To: Mayor Davis
CC: Councilmembers, Mr. Tanner, Police Chief Nichelini and the Vallejo Police Department

Message:

A recently published Vallejo Times Herald article entitled “Pack Up, Move On” (http://www.timesheraldonline.com/ci_11832718 ) along with coverage from Bay Area news radio station, KCBS (http://podcast.kcbs.com/kcbs/1614756.mp3), has alerted the public about an impending eviction of the homeless squatters in the marshland area off of Sonoma Blvd., otherwise known as the White Slough. According to the Times article, on Thursday, February 26, Vallejo Police distributed notices to the homeless in this area informing them that they are to vacate by Friday, March 6 or face arrest. There appears to be no plan for alternatives or aid, while homeless shelters in Vallejo and Fairfield remain at full capacity as they have been for some time now. The homeless citizens facing eviction have nowhere to go and our weather as of late threatens to further exacerbate their hardships. This shouldn’t be an approach to dealing with this situation.

Yes, the issue of homelessness in our city needs to be addressed. Yes, the resulting deterioration of the quality of life needs to be addressed. And yes, trespassing on private property is a serious issue that needs to be addressed as well. But, Mayor Davis, I believe a far more serious injustice would be to obligate homeless citizens to desert their dwellings without providing sound and tangible alternatives.

Evictions, or "homeless sweeps," and subsequent jailings are NOT solutions to homelessness—they have never been. They don't address how or why people are homeless. They only serve to shuttle the problem to other parts of the city creating further quality of life issues elsewhere. Worst of all, what message would that approach send about our perception of the most vulnerable citizens in our community? That they're second-class citizens? Or, dare I say, animals? How would this effect our city’s already suffering image? Being poor or homeless is NOT a crime, nor is it deserving of criminalization. Like the rest of us in Vallejo, they are citizens, and more importantly, human beings. They deserve our respect, support, and compassion.

Mayor Davis, I URGE you to do everything in your power to completely halt the pending eviction of our homeless citizens. We acknowledge that neither you nor city officials were initiators of this action but regardless, we, as a city, need to act on the behalf of our homeless residents. Please seriously consider contacting the property owner of that land to negotiate either a withdrawal of his/her eviction request, or at least to produce an adequate time extension that allows the city and its basic need providers an opportunity to work towards offering alternatives for these citizens.

Furthermore, I URGE you to take the lead in publicly acknowledging that homelessness is a serious issue in our city that needs to be addressed. I urge that the city initiate a task force or committee to begin seriously assessing this issue as well as our city's capacity and infrastructure to effectively resolve it. There are many organizations and concerned citizens, like myself, who are willing work WITH our city leaders to collectively find effective, sustainable, and just solutions.

The entire city of Vallejo, leaders AND citizens, have long ignored the plight of the homeless in our city. This current situation should make it painstakingly clear that homelessness in our city needs to be prioritized and carefully addressed. It cannot continue to be viewed as an arbitrary problem that can be fixed by a simple or quick response. The causes and impacts of homelessness are not simple so neither is the solution, and we should treat it as such. It won't be an easy task, but it's the right thing to do for these citizens and for our beloved city.

Mayor Davis, on the City of Vallejo website you greeted visitors by writing, "For those now a part of our community, we hope to provide you with important information to improve your quality of living in our city of Vallejo, a city in which we take 'Pride in Serving'"! I hope you, most of all, would reflect on these meaningful words. Please examine if WE, as an entire city, are truly improving the quality of living for ALL, including our homeless citizens – and if not, may each one of us have the moral fortitude and humanity to align ourselves with what’s right.

I hope and I pray that you, the leaders of our city, will exhibit moral leadership and compassion by halting this plan to evict the homeless in the White Slough and by pursuing a prudent and purposeful analysis of homelessness in Vallejo together WITH local organizations and citizens.

Sincerely,

John Doe of Vallejo
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