Sacramento Heat Wave and Homelessness

Two of my closest friends and emergency medicine colleagues here in Sacramento, Alex Schmalz and Phil Summers, and I spent some time digging into the data on our area resources for the impending heat wave for our homeless neighbors, including cooling shelters, along with two propositions on the upcoming ballots which would criminalize homelessness.

I’m proud of them for putting this Op-Ed together and getting this published: https://www.sacbee.com/opinion/op-ed/article265257231.html

A few of the important points:

“We see the acute need, as a community, to do more to provide shelter. Despite the increasing frequency and severity of such heat waves, local municipalities have provided meager assistance during extreme weather events.”

“Yet the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors recently voted unanimously to move forward with two ordinances criminalizing people experiencing homelessness: One targets those seeking shelter along the American River Parkway while the other prohibits camping near vaguely defined ‘critical infrastructure.’ At the same time, the Sacramento City Council moved forward with an ordinance to clear unhoused people from sidewalks and other public spaces.”

“Measure O would also increase the criminalization of homelessness without providing meaningful resources…purposelessly shuffling them from place to place and repeatedly displacing them from the locations where they try to establish temporary shelter.”