In his recent State of the City address Mayor Bruce Harrell promised to clear public spaces of homeless encampments. We implored him to use this historic opportunity to make Seattle safe again, and this week his actions indicate he will make good on that pledge but we hope he will continue using good judgment with long-term solutions.

On Wednesday Seattle DOT and police officers arrived to clear away a homelessness encampments located at 4th Avenue and Columbia. While prior efforts to clear similar encampments have been stymied by fringe activists who also harass and stalk media reporters present, a strong police presence on Wednesday ensured no interference occurred.

The message conveyed was clear. As KOMO reporter Jonathan Choe put it on Twitter, city leadership is “not playing this morning.”

Let Mayor Harrel Know What You Think!

Contact Mayor Harrell’s office today and tell them you support clearing homelessness encampments and greater mental health support for the homeless.

Wednesday’s cleanup is the template City Hall should adopt moving forward. Public spaces belong to the public, and if something or someone is preventing its use for that purpose, city crews and police should step in to address the problem. If anyone interferes with their duties, they must serious repercussions and prosecution by the City Attorney’s Office.

Much of the reason the homelessness situation got out of control is because the rhetoric coming from City Hall didn’t match subsequent actions, and when push came to shove the city didn’t allow public employees to do their job. Good governance dictates that actions not only match words, but they be rooted in practical policies.

As much as this is a good first step toward addressing homelessness, clearing encampments is just one part of the solution. As Choe tweeted Wednesday, “what happens after this?”

Eliminating homelessness encampments from public parks, streets, and trails addresses an immediate problem, but more will need to be done to prevent future encampments from popping up. One way is by acknowledging the primary causes of homelessness. While many local and regional public officials view it as a housing crisis solvable by building tiny homes and transitional housing, the reality is that substance addictions and mental illness are mostly to blame. Until they accept that, efforts to curb homelessness will fail as they have before.

Many homeless people are permanently incapable of caring for themselves, and it is anything but kind at this point to pretend otherwise. Without others looking after them, they will eventually end up back on the street, or dead. Long-term mental health and rehabilitation services need to provide the support these people currently lack. The last thing they need are fringe activists who enable their destructive lifestyles that put themselves and others at risk.  

Contact Mayor Harrell’s office today and tell them you support clearing homelessness encampments and greater mental health support for the homeless.