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Safe Ground Sacramento's 

Community Bulletin  

Special Jubilee Edition, September 2011 

As we approach our Second Annual Jubilee we

Steve Watters, Executive Director

have much to be grateful for at Safe Ground. Of course there are all those from the Safe Ground community that have successfully moved beyond homelessness in the last several years, finding jobs, homes and reestablishing family contacts. But we also want to thank all of our supporters, volunteers, and church hosts for the extra efforts they have made to help our community keep its dream alive.

The Safe Ground community represents the collective aspirations and dreams of homeless people working together with advocates and volunteers to reestablish their dignity after the loss of jobs, homes and often family ties. The members of the community provide each other with friendship, support and strength in their fight to regain a voice in their lives. In the Safe Ground community we see success everyday as our new members start to understand what it means to be a part of a community like Safe Ground.

Our fight is far from over but our community is growing stronger with each success. Every time a member of SafeGround moves on to a job, housing and repaired family relationships our community grows stronger. Soon, winter will be upon us and, once again we are uncertain of where homeless people will be able to go during the wet and cold of the coming season. Our work to obtain a permanent Safe Ground site continues with some encouraging signs of success but developing a permanent community will not happen in time for this winter. We have started conversations and will soon need to expand them with officials about the coming winter. People need to have to have a place to be, especially when it is cold and wet.  

Please join Safe Ground's fight for equality for all regardless of economic standing, personal disability or circumstance. Safe Ground believes that all people deserve a place to be, a place with access to water, proper sanitation and shelter. A place to be warm and dry that is safe from violence and harassment, and a place where it is legal to stay. It is a human right -- it should not be a crime to be homeless in Sacramento. The way to fight homelessness is not to criminalize or stigmatize the victims.

In this issue below civil rights attorney and Safe Ground founding board member, Mark Merin, shares his insight about Safe Ground with a detailed account of Safe Ground, our history as a social justice movement and our structure as a non-profit. Take a moment to read through it for a great understanding of Safe Ground.

Please come and enjoy our Jubilee on September 14th in Caesar Chavez Park across from City Hall and check out Paula Lomazzi' s article below about the Jubilee. I hope to see you there...  

Steve Watters

Executive Director

Mark Merin, Safe Ground Attorney

Safe Ground: The Movement and its Structure 

There is no "safe ground" for homeless people in the City or County ofSacramento. People who sleep outside in parks, on sidewalks, in alleys or doorways, or on the rivers - even those who sleep on private property with the consent of the property owner - are violating the law which makes sleeping outside (camping) a crime.

It was the recognition that homeless people had no safe place to be, where they could leave their belongings while they sought work or tried to deal with whatever issues contributed to their being homeless, in short no "safe ground," that led some homeless people to unite with organizations (Loaves and Fishes, Francis House, Sacramento Homeless Organizing Committee) and individuals to initiate a campaign to get the City and County to permit the creation of a Safe Ground community.

The community was envisioned not as a place where homeless people would live indefinitely; rather it was seen as a place from which, with threats of arrest eliminated, homeless people could move into permanent housing after the problems that were holding them back were addressed and resolved.

That campaign for "safe ground" has involved a steady presence at CityCounty meetings, largely spearheaded by Tracy Rice Bailey who has helped organize homeless people to speak to the City Council, publicizing the plight of homeless people in Sacramento through news media, reaching out to progressive organizations, holding rallies, demonstrations, Jubilees, vigils, marches and fundraisers.

It has also involved suing the City and the County and committing acts of civil disobedience to challenge the cruel ordinances that criminalize homelessness, and to end the practice of law enforcement confiscating and destroying the property of homeless persons.

The Safe Ground movement has relied upon homeless individuals who recognize that City ordinances and police activity deprive them of dignity and rights that all humans have - the right to life and liberty - and who, given their understanding will participate in the activities that are necessary to make Safe Ground a reality. That means turning out the City Council meetings and the Board of Supervisors' meetings and speaking out against injustice.  That means participating in the planning and execution of events to support Safe Ground.  It could also mean going door-to-door or staffing tables at markets to get the message out and to rally support for Safe Ground."  It means becoming "real" and "visible" to the people of Sacramento, not hiding from law enforcement or just staying in camps on the river.

Not every homeless person has the energy necessary both to survive outdoors and to participate in the campaign for Safe Ground.  Neither do all homeless persons have the ability to give up alcohol, drugs, and to commit to non-violence which the Safe Ground movement requires of persons who want to advance the cause of Safe Ground. But those who do will find themselves welcomed into Safe Ground.

SAFE GROUND CAMP

Until we get our pilot Safe Ground community up and running, homeless Safe Grounders are camping together wherever they can find suitable, although extremely temporary camp sites.  With the assistance of their supporters, the Safe Ground campers comprise a self-governing community with elected elders helping to maintain peace and to insure the camp functions smoothly. The Safe Ground campers can and should be the public face of homelessness in Sacramento, but they are necessarily, a shifting group of persons, some of whom leave for jobs and housing or a variety of other destinations.  Others remain and take leadership positions not only in camp, but in the movement as a whole.

SAFE GROUND STEERING COMMITTEE

Social justice advocates, agencies serving homeless people, civil rights lawyers, homeless advocates, and homeless Safe Ground campers and elders who are committed to securing land for Safe Ground and gaining relevant, needed approvals to develop Safe Ground communities, have come together and meet regularly to advance efforts to secure Safe Ground - every Wednesday morning at 9:00 am at Francis House, 15th and C Streets.  This group is the work horse of the Safe Ground movement and enlists assistance from others, organizes events, and assists in the development of leadership among the homeless population.

One of the steering committee's efforts is to develop consciousness among homeless campers that only through sustained coordinated efforts on many fronts will Safe Ground communities be permitted to be developed in Sacramento.  The steering committee acts as the coordinator of various Safe Ground activities and is the forum in which ideas are developed for programs and campaigns to move the Safe Ground vision toward fulfillment.  It functions informally and invites input from homeless persons who share the commitment to making Safe Ground a reality.

The steering committee does not exist to serve homeless campers; rather, it is the other way around; homeless campers are the reality which makes Safe Ground necessary and, through their participating in the Safe Ground movement will help to convince the powers to be to approve the establishment of Safe Ground.

THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF SAFE GROUND SACRAMENTO, INC.

To be able to secure tax-exempt donations and to promote the concept of Safe Ground, the activists who started the Safe Ground movement in Sacramento established a non-profit corporation named Safe Ground Sacramento, Inc. and designated a board of directors comprised of persons interested in assisting in forming Safe Ground communities. This involves lobbying the City Council and the Board of Supervisors, contacting influential people in the community to get them to support Safe Ground, and raising the substantial funds that will be needed to develop and operate the Safe Ground communities.

The Board of Directors meets monthly and receives input from its Executive Director and homeless and formerly homeless persons who sit on the board on how best to achieve it objectives of making Safe Ground a reality.

But only when the people of Sacramento tell their elected leaders, loudly and strongly, that they MUST facilitate, not obstruct the creation of Safe Ground will our dream become a reality.  And only when the people of Sacramento are persuaded by the consistent and compelling advocacy of homeless campers, steering committee members and the Board of Directors of Safe Ground Sacramento, Inc., all working together to shape public opinion, will the elected leaders follow the will of the electorate and allow us to establish the SAFE GROUND we've been fighting for.

Onward to Victory!

Marcelino Medina, Camp Cook

I have been with Safe Ground about a year and a half, but I have been homeless for 25 years. I had a good job but I quit it on my birthday after my divorce. I let my wife take the two kids in San Jose. I did not fight - I let her have everything. Then I went downhill after that. It was okay to drink a lot because I did not have the responsibilities of being a husband or a father anymore. I never bothered to weigh the consequences. The drinking covered everything up and made it alright. If I had it to do over again I would do most everything different. I would have stood by her, but I was suffering too much. I was miserable with her. I asked for the divorce. But I have no real regrets about the way things turned out because I met a lovely girl by the name of Erika, who is my soul mate. I don't know if it makes a difference but I am 20 years and 20 days older than her. She lives in Mexico.

I was in Mexico visiting family, and she had a crush on me. She was 16. I was 36. Then we got together 10 years later when we met up again. I felt that she was old enough now - I needed to let her mature. There was no way I would have taken advantage of her at 16. I did not know when she was 16 that she was my soul mate. I knew she was my soul mate after about a month of courting. That was in 2005. We just had our 6-year anniversary. We haven't gotten married in the church. We have the maximum amount of trust for each other, which holds a relationship together like solid crazy glue. For her age she was extremely mature and very smart. Otherwise we wouldn't have gotten along. We don't see much of each other - maybe three months out of the year. It's all because I am pending SSDI because of my back injury and other ailments. I am always on pain killers but they are all prescription. She and I communicate with Nextel walkie talkies.

I can't work because of the excruciating pain that accompanied the aggravation of my lower lumbar, near the tailbone. I was a young wiper snapper, invincible, and was injured when me and my brother were wrestling. I did not bother to go to the doctor. I was in pain but I was procrastinating. I went to the doctor periodically when I was working. I worked mainly in the steel industry in fabrication shops and also worked as a head cook in the Alaska fishing industry in the Bering Sea. Peridocially my back was aggravated and was reinjured. The injury was always there. There were times when I did have to see a doctor when it got really bad. But I always shrugged it off. I was constantly looking for 800 mg ibuprofens during those times. Then it became Vicodin. Lots of Vicodin. The drinking covered up the screw-ups in my life. My favorite was beer in the summertime. I was a partier, a lush. It never hurt to have a bottle of Jose Cuervo nearby. It made me twice as happy. But the drinking did not cause a problem in the marriage. I was very responsible. I was able to keep working and keep going while we were married.

The hardest part about being homeless is that my life is passing me by. I am on hold waiting for SSDI. This is literally killing me. I am also diabetic. I don't have any quality of life. I had a cold and I couldn't shake it because I couldn't shake it for 2 months because of living outside and not being able to get any sleep.

I want to be independent someday once again. I paid into Social Security not knowing that I would ever need it. I feel I am entitled to it. And perhaps I will get what I deserve. They took an MRI but the MRI was never read by a doctor. I am having a hard time finding someone who will read it. That was taken September 2009 and not even primary care doctors have referred me to a doctor that will read the MRI. The Social Security judge at my hearing has granted me more time to find a doctor who will read it and make a report. The doctor needs to write a report so that the judge can read it. But I have never been taken seriously by the doctors. They seem to have doubt and make me feel as if I am lying. I don't know if this is an injury that could be corrected with surgery. What takes a normal person a month to do, takes me a year. I have to force myself to do activities, otherwise being diabetic is detrimental. In my daily routine I have to ride my bicycle for survival, and it's becoming an issue with my health. I have problems with my feet, knees, hips, and numbness in my left leg. I need medical attention.

Safe Ground has done wonders for me. I had nowhere else to turn without an income. Safe Ground is there. I feel safe. I am safe. Safety is my biggest concern. There are homeless that prey upon homeless. People get mugged, beat up, hurt, and sometimes killed. It really bothers me to see so many people suffering and for no reason when the city, state, or county are turning a blind eye to the massive homeless situation. When a person becomes homeless, they become vulnerable. And there are people who are up to no good out there. A high percentage of the people have a valid reason for being homeless and are not getting the proper necessary attention all because of the economy. It's a real big deal when you have people that care, that respect you, that you can look up to, and vice versa. They've got my back, I've got their back. The city hasn't got my back. They have failed me and everybody else.

I will always remember how much I have suffered and the times where I have almost given up. My mother, family, brothers and sister keep me from giving up, and also my girlfriend. I'm not gonna hurt my family by doing something stupid like committing suicide. My mother is in Davis - she is 71. I have family here in Sacramento but I won't crash at their house. I'm not on their lease, they don't have room, and they all have lives to live. When the wind and rain is really bad I take refuge at their houses for one or two nights, but I feel like I am imposing on their privacy and I am not comfortable doing that. I do have pride. They do not make me feel unwelcome. I am welcome - not every time I want to, but sometimes they invite me for a night or two until the storm blows over. I feel bad when they spend money on me. I am very conscious of it.

I really wish and hope that the City Council and Mayor Kevin Johnson take us seriously and give us some resources. I hope they will listen to what we have to say. Please help us.

(Update: Marcelino has been able to get his MRI read and is applying for SSI with a good chance of being approved, he says.)