Tuesday, February 7 2014
Papa Bear leaned forward in his seat, with elbows on knees. Folks at the Community Newsroom directed their attention, faces, and cameras toward him, POOR Magazine's "Panhandler Reporter." He then began reporting the news, his monthly state of San Francisco summary distilled from his daily studies and experiences of Geary Blvd.
"Well, they're almost done tearing down the Cathedral Hill Hotel," he began with a big sigh. He worried that the removal of debris and the demolition might cause traffic and additional pollution on Geary Street. "They are gonna put a tunnel underground. They have machines like a corkscrew that they're making a racket with." Papa Bear added, "The black and white come around the block every three minutes—six, seven latinos are gonna be deported."
After its closing in 2009 Cathedral Hill Hotel had been shelter to many houseless people, until California Pacific Medical Center bought the site and began removing/arresting occupants in 2012. Occupy (sic) San Francisco protested the removals in 2012, and police responded with more arrests of squatters, including undocumented folks at risk of deportation. The heightened police presence has continued since then.
With a crack in his voice, Papa Bear spoke on another piece of tragic news. "Someone choked Mary to death this week. She was an examiner in the Tenderloin. The wake was today. She was already in a wheelchair, an alcoholic who drank a lot. She was really a sweet lady, fun to listen to. I liked her a lot." The air felt leaden with sorrow. Someone asked how old she was. He thought for a moment with a questioning expression and replied, "I think she was… in her late 30s?" The Community Newsroom circle hummed with distress. It seemed that someone had killed her while trying to rob her of just some small change. He shook his head in dismay, asking aloud who would do such a thing. "They don't mess around with small change like that in New York," raising his voice. "This is something that only happens in San Francisco."
Papa Bear continued on: "They got my stuff again, took my stuff," he said of the Department of Public Works (DPW). He's planning to go to court next week and fight back for his possessions.
Someone raised their hand and suggested Papa Bear appeal to the Department of Veteran Affairs (DVA) for housing and other services. "The DVA isn't helping me at all," Papa Bear responded. "They're forgetting the Vietnam vets nowadays, focusing on younger vets from Iraq and Afghanistan." He added that he's not interested in the DVA controlling his life, his home. "I don't want to follow someone's rules in my own home," he said. "And they want to take 30% of your income? That's ridiculous!" Someone piped up, saying that the DVA comes to inspect peoples homes every day, and you can get booted out even if you're super careful to follow all the rules.
It was time to go. Papa Bear got up from his chair with an exhausted sigh. He left the room to many heartfelt farewells and thank-yous.