Tag Archives: REACH

News

As COVID Cases at Shelters Rise, Many Are Reluctant to Enter County Quarantine Sites

by Erica C. Barnett

(This article originally appeared on PubliCola and has been reprinted under an agreement.)

An alarming increase in COVID-19 cases among people experiencing homelessness has been exacerbated in recent weeks, homeless service providers say, by rumors that if people enter a County-run isolation and quarantine site, they won’t be allowed to leave.

And even before these rumors began circulating widely, many unhoused people who tested positive for COVID-19 were reluctant to enter isolation and quarantine, for reasons that ranged from active substance use to the fear that if they left an encampment, they would lose everything they had — a not unreasonable assumption, given the recent uptick in encampment sweeps.

“The resistance, in my experience, has been across the board,” Dr. Cyn Kotarski, medical director for the Public Defender Association (PDA), said. “I haven’t met anyone so far who doesn’t have some fear and some resistance to go, and that’s mostly just because it’s overwhelming. It can feel pretty scary to think that you don’t know where you’re going or why, especially when you’re taking someone out of their own environment and their own community,” Kotarski said. The PDA is a partner on several efforts, including Co-LEAD and JustCAREare, to move unsheltered people into hotels during the pandemic.

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News

March to ‘Protect Public Spaces’ Meets Anti-Sweep Protest at City Hall Camp

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by Hannah Krieg

(This article was originally published by Real Change News and has been reprinted under an agreement.) 

On the morning of Wednesday, Aug. 11, two residents of the City Hall Park encampment gingerly pulled their belongings out of what was among the site’s last remaining tents. In and out of the tent, they emerged with blankets, a pink backpack, a shopping bag — things that made up their home in the park at the foot of the 14-level King County Courthouse.

One of the residents borrowed a lighter from a couple on a nearby bench. They talked like neighbors.

Behind them, a Seattle Parks and Recreation truck was parked and appeared to be hauling away garbage. One of the residents asked a worker in a vest a question that was ignored.

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News

What We Know About How Unhoused People Can Receive COVID-19 Vaccines

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by Chetanya Robinson 

Medical workers, staff, and residents at long-term care facilities are starting to receive their doses of the COVID-19 vaccine as King County and the State roll out the first phase of their vaccination plan. Next in line is a group that includes residents and staff at shelters, as well as school staff, essential workers, people in jail, emergency responders, and more.

Public Health — Seattle & King County is considering multiple ways to get the vaccine to everyone, whether or not they are homeless, and plans could change at any time, said Jody Rauch, who works as the clinical quality lead for the agency’s Healthcare for the Homeless Network (HCHN).

There’s not a lot of detailed, specific guidance from the CDC or the State Department of Health on what the next phases of vaccination will look like, Rauch said — including, for example, in what phase all unhoused people will be vaccinated.

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Community

Black Women and Girls Center Their Voices at #SayHerName March

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by Sharon H. Chang

“The most disrespected person in America is the black woman. The most unprotected person in America is the black woman. The most neglected person in America is the black woman.”

—Malcolm X

Speakers call out and loud voices respond, rising behind a sea of black, orange, and white face coverings. “Protect Black women!” “Enough is enough!” “All Black lives matter!” Some of the dark face coverings have white writing that reads Black Lives Matter and Say Their Names. Hands clutch homemade protest signs made of cardboard and paper. It was pouring earlier and the grass is wet with morning rain. But no one seems to care as their shoes and socks slowly soak. Everyone is far too busy listening to unapologetic Black women and youth speak electric truth to power. 

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