Residents struggling to pay for housing due to the coronavirus pandemic have requested more assistance than what is available through City Hall.
Tag: COVID-19
Posted inCity Hall, Coronavirus, Homelessness, Housing
Homeless Activists’ Latest Tactic: Occupying Hotel Rooms
Seven protesters from Poor Magazine, a publication and activist organization, attempted to occupy the Marriott Marquis hotel in downtown San Francisco on Monday morning to demand that the city house more homeless residents in the thousands of hotel rooms left vacant during the coronavirus pandemic.
Posted inCoronavirus, Labor
Weekly Unemployment Payouts in State Skyrocket to Record $4.4 Billion
California doled out a record $4.4 billion in jobless benefits last week, more than triple the amount it paid out the previous week, data from the state’s Employment Development Department shows. In the week ending April 25, the state disbursed $1.4 billion in benefit payments.
Posted inEconomy & Business, Housing, Labor
Rental Relief Programs See Requests Surge From Newly Jobless
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Nonprofits that serve people who need emergency help with their rent are seeing requests surge from a new class of clients — those who were previously financially secure but have lost their jobs due to COVID-19. But red tape is complicating their efforts to help the newly jobless, the groups say.
Posted inHomelessness, Housing
Two Squatters Occupy Vacant S.F. Home to Protest Housing Policies for Homeless
Two homeless women staged an occupation of a vacant single-family home Friday in the Castro in a move aimed at drawing more attention to their demand that the city move more quickly to shelter homeless people during the COVID-19 pandemic. They hung banners outside with messages such as “End homelessness, reclaim San Francisco” and “Housing is a human right” and attracted protesters and neighbors supporting the action before leaving several hours later after negotiations with police.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, Coronavirus, News
Sustaining Local Media During the Public Health Crisis
Even as more people than ever are turning to local media for reliable information during the COVID-19 crisis, many local outlets are actually laying off staff because of a collapse in the advertising market.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, Community, Coronavirus, Social Justice
Activists Warn Anti-Asian Racism Likely to Worsen After Lockdown Lifts
A national tool created in March to track incidents of anti-Asian discrimination, harassment and violence received almost 1,500 reports within a month. Activists expect incidents of discrimination and even life-threatening violence to escalate after shelter-in-place orders are lifted, and they’re already organizing against that possibility.
Posted inCoronavirus, Homelessness, Housing
City Kills Plan for Mass Coronavirus Testing in S.F. Homeless Shelters
San Francisco turned down a research startup’s offer to test all of the city’s homeless shelter residents for COVID-19, urging the firm to divert its resources to other populations, according to emails. Shelter leaders and organizers had lined up doctors and volunteers to perform the testing, and the startup had drafted a letter of understanding, when the city pulled the plug on the plan.
Posted inCity Hall, Coronavirus, Homelessness
S.F. Supervisors Support Tent Camps – Some, Even Post-Pandemic
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors is throwing its full support behind the idea of approved tent camps for homeless people to try to prevent the spread of COVID-19. And some say they want the encampments to stick around even after the pandemic passes.
Posted inArts & Culture, Economy & Business, Opinion
Independent Filmmakers, Coronavirus and the Lost Spring of 2020
The coronavirus pandemic has dealt a severe blow to the independent film industry, with production on hold, festivals canceled or postponed, and distribution and revenue opportunities damaged. Industry organizations have rallied to support those feeling financial pain, but recovery may not be quick.