San Francisco Supervisor Dean Preston claims the city’s homeless problem is “really the result of capitalism,” and that it’s “counterproductive” to arrest people who do drugs openly.
Preston’s District 5 includes the Tenderloin District, an area known for open-air drug markets. Nearly half of the city’s homeless population will live in the district in 2022, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.
The Democratic Socialist supervisor argued that his district was particularly affected by the homeless because of the country’s economic structure.
“I think what you see in the Tenderloin is the result of capitalism and what happens in capitalism to the people at the bottom,” the local leader said in a new documentary by UK outlet UnHerd.
“The biggest driver of why people are on the streets is because they’ve lost their jobs, income or been evicted from their homes, usually because they can’t afford the rent. So you have major landlords who are really causing people to lose their homes, and real estate speculation is causing people to be unable to find affordable housing,” he said in the interview.
Preston disagrees with the city’s “inconsistent” approach to arresting drug users and sweeping up homeless encampments, arguing this is “totally counterproductive” and making the situation worse.
A homeless encampment is seen along Leavenworth Street in San Francisco’s Tenderloin district, on Nov. 8, 2023. AP
This method “does not make our city safer. It actually makes it less secure. It increases the overdose,” he claimed.
City leaders downplayed the concerns of many local residents and business owners about rampant camping and drug sales in the area.
“I don’t think every poverty problem or addiction problem or behavioral health problem is a safety threat to someone passing by. I mean, there are a lot of people who do things that are very dangerous to themselves on the street, that aren’t necessarily a safety threat,” Preston said.
Supervisor Dean Preston introduced a resolution calling for a cease-fire in Israel’s attack on Gaza during a Board of Supervisors meeting at City Hall in San Francisco, California, United States on Dec. 5, 2023. Anadolu via Getty Images Homeless people gather next to their tents on a street in San Francisco on Dec. 1 2023. Michael Ho Wai Lee/SOPA Images/Shutterstock
He also doubled down on calls to further defund law enforcement in San Francisco.
“I think we have a very inflated police budget. All kinds of waste in the police department. I can cut $100 million from the department,” he said in the interview.
Preston drew a backlash last May after proposing legislation that would ban security guards from drawing their guns for property crimes at a time when retailers and residents alike fled the city over public safety concerns.
The issue of homelessness remains a significant concern in San Francisco, California, with thousands of individuals living on the streets. Michael Ho Wai Lee/SOPA Images/Shutterstock
In September, Tesla CEO Elon Musk claimed that Preston may be the person “most responsible for the destruction of San Francisco.”
“I’m a Democratic socialist who has successfully stopped thousands of evictions, housed homeless families and taxed the wealthy to raise hundreds of millions of dollars for affordable housing,” Preston replied to X.
“It’s no surprise that right-wing billionaires like Musk don’t like me.”
San Francisco law enforcement has seen a sharp drop in the number of car break-ins over the past three months, coinciding with an aggressive three-pronged effort to deter criminals, the Chronicle reported last week.
The offices of Mayor London Breed and Supervisor Dean Preston did not immediately return requests for comment.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
