It is one of the first things that makes students uncomfortable when moving to Berkeley — the widespread poverty. Encountering this social welfare problem tends to be strange because for the majority of students, this level of poverty is only seen on occasion and probably not seen in our hometowns. Read More…
Given Mayor Tom Bates and the Berkeley business community’s complicated relationship with the city’s homeless population, Berkeley City Council’s decision to further consider building a new resource and housing center located in the Downtown area for the city’s homeless population is an encouraging development. Read More…
The benefits of being homeless As an alumnus and an occasional Telegraph Avenue and park bum, I would like to commend Jay Scherf for his kind and sensible words (“Homelessness and Telegraph Avenue,” March 15) with regard to the ‘Ave, in response to a column from Ms. Yu, which I Read More…
Homelessness and Telegraph Avenue Lynn Yu’s column (“Talking on Telegraph. Stop,” March 7) came from a place of such privilege that it rendered the whole article ridiculous. The piece uses the same rhetoric as 19th century British imperial policy. To assume that Telegraph’s ‘potential’ is to gentrify it into some Read More…
Half of politics is talking, and the other half is talking about talking. Unfortunately, discussions about Telegraph Avenue usually fall into the latter category. Mayor Tom Bates hosted a forum last Thursday concerning the revitalization of Telegraph. According to Berkeleyside, plans have been put forth to construct new projects on Read More…
Veteran Kelly Johnson speaks about homelessness and his past.Surrounded by a pile of tattered backpacks, Kelly Johnson squints against the sun’s glare as he recollects the years he spent searching for a home. Johnson, 51, is one of the hundreds of homeless veterans that the Obama administration seeks to house Read More…
Nearly 250 volunteers spread out in 33 different locations throughout Alameda County for the county’s biennial homeless count, Wednesday morning. Read More…
Nearly 250 volunteers spread out in 33 different locations throughout Alameda County for the county’s biennial homeless count, Wednesday morning.
Following the failure of Berkeley’s sit-lie measure, the City Council will consider establishing a committee to address ongoing problems of homelessness in the city. In light of Jesse Arreguin’s proposal for his Compassionate Sidewalks Plan, homeless residents and a business owner discuss transience and the city.
Although Berkeley voters rejected Measure S, a controversial proposal that would have criminalized sitting on commercial sidewalks, we shouldn’t mistake it as an endorsement of inaction. The simple fact still remains: We need to address homelessness. I didn’t support Measure S, but I’m not calling it a day, as many Read More…