On this episode of the Street Roots podcast, host DeVon Pouncey is joined by Lauren (Sisters of the Road), Mo (Defense Fund PDX), J-Mo (Defense Fund PDX), Lou (Defense Fund PDX), and Coast to discuss the uptick in sweeps in Portland as the economy attempts to reopen.
“During the COVID quarantine and lockdown, there was an extreme reduction in what we call sweeps (forcible relocations),” said Lauren. “Now as people are being vaccinated, kids are going back to school, parks are opening up, and businesses are reopening, we are seeing a dramatic increase in sweeps.”
During the recording of this episode, J-Mo was at Laurelhurst Park as a police officer was doing a routine drive-past.
“It’s funny we're talking about this. A cop car just drove past,” J-Mo said. “For the first couple of weeks of the sweeps, there wasn’t a very strong police presence. But there's been patrol cars almost daily driving through, past where these people live and their camps are.”
We also discussed connections between Portland parks and Echo Park Lake, how unhoused people in the West Coast region are being targeted and more.
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The Street Roots Podcast reflects the opinions of host DeVon Pouncey and his guests.
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