Hey WRAP Community,

"Power cedes nothing without a demand. It never did, and it never will."
- Fredrick Douglass

In this newsletter, you will find links to so many incredible community responses to the coronavirus crisis. This pandemic worsens the already existing problem of the disappearance of affordable housing and the subsequent crisis of houselessness. People living without housing have been left behind by politicians and the government since the advent of homelessness and the decimation of the federal housing budget. For a long time, we have sounded the alarm and organized in order to stop this abusive oppression.

Until now, houselessness has been largely painted as an individualized and pathologized issue - the perception that homelessness is caused by choice, dysfunctional behavior or medical, psychological problems, not a total lack of Human Rights. Until now, we have acted in solidarity with each other with little to no help or recognition from the local, state, or federal government. However, with the growing pandemic, suddenly the CDC is issuing recommendations to Stop the Sweeps. Suddenly, the State of California has decided it is able to step in and house a couple people in trailers and hotels. Suddenly, some city governments are halting evictions and putting in place eviction moratoriums and releasing some people from jail. Suddenly, public health officials are recognizing that shelters are incubators for illness. And just as suddenly, the federal government has 2.5 trillion dollars to inject into the stock market, and major corporations - cause the Feds don't change! Making the 2008 TARP bailout look like chump change!!!

So, of course, we are still here organizing to address our own needs with our own resources and skills. We have seen the blossoming of countless community based mutual aid and direct action efforts. Though tent donation drives, food distribution, DIY handwashing stations, information sharing, and more, we are caring for each other and for our communities! Along with these efforts, so many voices are demanding the same thing: that housing and health care are human rights, that incarceration is a public health crisis, that the cities need to stop harassing and arresting people for crimes of poverty. That, in fact, we need to stop the escalating cycle of using jails and prisons to address conflicts.

These demands are incredibly useful as we move forward with a shared vision towards our goals of liberation and justice. But what brings these demands to fruition is organizing, taking direct action, and practicing mutual aid. As we work tirelessly to meet our communities needs the best that we are able, we must demand better from the city, state, and federal government. Who has been there to respond in this crisis? The answer is below.

Denver Homeless Out Loud (DHOL)
Demands of the Unhoused Community Regarding COVID-19 Response – Denver, CO

Mayor Hancock's declaration of the state of emergency leaves the unhoused community out with no protection. As people without housing are unable to follow the CDC's guidelines without a house to wash up, get rest, isolate oneself, ect. our city must take action to protect all those without housing in at least the following ways:

• Maritorum on encampment sweeps
• Access to hygiene outside
• Sanitation in shelters
• Health Care
• Moratorium on evictions
• Housing

Services Not Sweeps – Los Angeles



In this public health crisis, Dr. Barbara Ferrer and her Los Angeles Department of Public Health (DPH) must IMMEDIATELY issue appropriate guidelines to be followed by unhoused people who lack shelter (75% of the homeless people in the County) and those who are trying to help them, whether at the City, County, LAHSA or others. On March 5, 2020, DPH issued a "Guidance for Homeless Shelters." That guidance is irrelevant to the more than 44,000 unhoused people in her jurisdiction who have no shelter of any kind. Among those 44,000 unsheltered homeless people are more than 11,000 people aged 55 and over, including almost 3,400 who have a physical disability, and almost all of whom have significant health problems associated with living on the street. They are among the most vulnerable people in the County.

Oregon Stop the Sweeps Coalition
URGENT: Please Call Elected Officials to Say STOP THE SWEEPS!

In December 2019, the Stop the Sweeps Pdx coalition (groups listed below) demanded an end to sweeps.

Despite the rapidly growing Covid-19 pandemic, the City of Portland and ODOT are still sweeping people. Sweeps kill under the best of circumstances. During a pandemic, they are a death sentence to those being swept and also to the broader community.
We urge you to call and email the elected officials listed at the bottom of this message, and demand that they fully STOP the SWEEPS and immediately insitute the following, which will help flatten the curve and is fully in line with health care authorities’ recommendations

SACRAMENTO SERVICES NOT SWEEPS COALITION (SSNSC) DEMANDS

NEED: We are in the midst of a worldwide COVID-19 pandemic. Sacramento Services Not Sweeps Coalition [SSNSC] feels, as does the Center for Disease Control [CDC], National Coalition for the Homeless, National Health Care for the Homeless Council, and Housing & Urban Development [HUD] that it is critical for communities to proactively address the unique needs of people experiencing homelessness in this health care crisis.
CENTER FOR DISEASE CONTROL (CDC)

Solutions Not Sweeps – San Francisco
7 STEPS THE CITY MUST TAKE NOW TO SLOW THE SPREAD OF COVID19 AMONG UNHOUSED PEOPLE



Below are 7 steps we are pushing for the city to do in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in order to address the needs of homeless people and those at risk of becoming homeless. PLEASE SIGN THIS PETITION to show your support for the city taking these immediate steps to protect our unhoused neighbors!

Shameless grovelling for tents –
San Francisco

For Immediate Release - 100 Medical Experts Call on San Francisco to Expedite Housing the Unhoused

In an open letter published in the SF Examiner today, 100 doctors and medical professionals urge increasing city's hotel capacity so that unhoused people can socially distance
San Francisco, CA, March 25, 2020 – Experts from some leading Bay Area medical institutions today issued an open letter recommending that the city government prioritize quickly housing San Francisco's unhoused population in hotel rooms and other non- congregate settings as a key aspect of its coronavirus (COVID-19) response.

WRAP Statement Regarding COVID-19


With the spread of COVID-19, we must remember that our communities' health is interconnected - it is critical to ensure adequate medical care and hygiene for every person, especially those who are unhoused. Many houseless people are immunocompromised or disabled due to the difficulties of living without shelter. Many are elders. We should resist any further stigmatization of those living in encampments or shelters and demand they are provided the resources to prevent infection and further spread of the virus. We demand that public officials work to ensure the health of both our unhoused and housed communities