This morning I talked with a vendor who sleeps out in one of Seattle's vanishing public spaces. For most of his life, he's done the kind of work that wears your body out before its time. He uses a walker, has visions he says might come from a microchip, and stays outdoors because, to him, being under the sky is safer than in a shelter. He's 60.
My friend hopes to survive at least another two more years, when he'll finally reach the minimum age for Social Security eligibility.
The average age of death for homeless people is 48, but he's unusually tough. I'd give him better than 75 percent odds.
He says around 10 others share the area with him at night. They're there, he says, because the harassment of sleepers in Seattle has ramped up to the point where precious few spaces are left where peace can be found. People grab a few hours where they can, he says, and just keep on the move. If they don't, they get moved.
I'm guessing that none of them know that the dragnet on public space in Seattle is about to tighten again. A newsbrief in this issue describes the new parks rules which, as a change in administrative procedures, are occurring without any real process.
One of my greatest educations in the Seattle public process was a hearing two years ago, in which 63 speakers passionately spoke up against Seattle's homeless sweeps, and not one person there defended them. It was perhaps the most one-sided hearing in the history of the city. The resulting revision in protocols offered only minor concessions to civic morality while sneaking in two huge loopholes that would eventually render the rules irrelevant. This, too, was a new administrative rule. The hearing was an empty formality.
It's happening again. Leaving "personal items unattended" in parks will soon be illegal, as will be the possession of explosives. Someone seems to be confusing our parks with our airports. Smoking will be illegal as well. Everyone in Seattle hates smokers, who also happen to mostly be poor, so, no problem there. Most of the other stuff, like "Abusive or harassing behavior, including obscene language or gestures; assault or fighting," oddly, is already illegal.
But, they're going to do it anyway. For those who have nothing, things will get even harder, and the majority of us will never notice. It's the Seattle Way.