Tiny homes gifted to homeless only to be seized by the local police.

For months, gaily painted wooden houses on South Los Angeles freeway overpasses had intrigued motorists looking up from the roads below.

The 6-by-10-foot structures, it turned out, were homes for the homeless that Elvis Summers had built and placed in several encampments around the city.

Each house, about the size of a garden shed, came with an American flag, solar-powered lights and a house number, proudly displayed next to the front door.

Link to article

I put this in social issues because it is an issue with society when we are ok with just letting thugs in uniforms seize what amounts to being shelter the most basic and needed necessity of man. The domiciles were even solar powered so it's not like they were stealing power from the state/county or whatever whoever. It seems as our overlords and masters think that the underprivileged don't even have a right to exist at all. So much land in the world surely there is somewhere these tiny dwellings could be put so that these people can at least have a roof with four walls to sleep under at night. This makes me so sad, angry and scared that it has gotten to this point. Like if you are so down on your luck and in between homes then society feels like you have no right to exist. I have been homeless for a few months with the worst of it sleeping in my vehicle in a parking garage to the best being sleeping on the floor at a friends in a neighborhood where getting shot is a possibility. Being homeless is not fun and sometimes unavoidable, not everyone has a family they can run back to for help in hard times.

a reply to: RainbowPhoenix

quoting from the article:

"It's psychology," said Summers, a self-described struggling musician who lives in South L.A. "The slightest thing you do to make them feel normal is so important. They're treated like garbage."

This is why ^ any attempt to humanize and dignify this forgotten element of the American population is no gewd! It makes all the other hard-working flake tools stop and ask, "Why do the homeless get all the breaks? Tear it down!"

It's whiny brat mentality, if you ask me

In this situation peasants of the pre Magna Carta Era had more freedom than we do today.
The more people living like that and not paying taxes and paying into system the less control they have.
Unless their going to provide better housing it's a violation of human rights.

a reply to: RainbowPhoenix

This is quite sad this story.

It seems the homeless cannot win, that was quite cruel.

The fact those homes were tiny WITH SOLAR POWER just shows how nasty people can be.

Sad world we live in.

a reply to: Slickinfinity

That's it right there, because they're outside of the system they will not be treated like humans (or should I say slaves) and instead will be given the choice of either joining the system or try to survive with no means of shelter.

I think it's funny they call it a health & safety issue while totally ignoring the health & safety of these poor homeless people

Councilman Curren Price, who requested the cleanup, said the structures posed a serious health and safety problem.

"Police have identified firearms, drug activity going on," Price said. "A box of plywood is still a box."

Price said the homeless people had been offered alternatives, including shelter beds.

'Tiny houses' for the homeless seen as health and safety problem

Who are you, Councilman Curren Price, to label to anyone's home a box. To you, a plywood structure might be just a "box". It's easy to say something like that while you're likely living it up an a home that few can afford with a fully stocked fridge and a mailbox. But to those people, those plywood boxes are a home. Excuse those people for not wanting a public shelter, but a place to call their home.

I guess for some people that's just too much for the poor to have.

a reply to: RainbowPhoenix

The domiciles were even solar powered so it's not like they were stealing power from the state/county or whatever whoever.

That's part of the reason they took them down. If there is no capital being made then it can't be allowed. Once others realize that you can park a shed, or trailer on government land, and pay nothing, more people will want to do it...and this corporation isn't having that.

I'm not agreeing with how it's handled and I wish everyone could be provided a home, but our capitalistic corporate society won't allow for it. We are all a commodity and if you aren't providing a service then you aren't accepted by the status quo.

So, so sad.

a reply to: Discotech

They're already in "the system,"...as a marginalized group that we can almost neatly not care about by claiming they are "not in the system." This is precisely why they can't be given such ostentatious measures of comfort. It draws attention to the fact that homeless people are very much a part of society's shortcomings; and then people might want to actually do something about it.

We wouldn't want to change the status quo of apathy now would we?

Rules only come before the individual when those in charge want them to. For themselves, rules are just a minor annoyance to silently be brushed aside if it suits them, be a bit lenient, after all! When it comes to screwing over the plebs however, rules are the sacred stick to beat the dog with.

too bad he can't find someone to donate a nice piece of land for it. I can't see where putting them on the sidewalks of bridges could irk the city, it needs to be done on private land, to remove some of the risk of the gov't meddling.

too bad this guy wouldn't win the lottery, I think he would put the money to good use!

a reply to: RainbowPhoenix

I agree. We have tons of banker foreclosed homes that they even seized illegally in some cases. I am a Realtor and I see the banks let nice homes sit and rot to where they are condemned and torn down. These should be given to homeless families imo. The homeless problem is created by these bankers and their policies in the first place in many cases. If they are not going to market a house and leave it to sit and rot it should be seized in an appropriate amount of time. I say 3-6 months from the time of foreclosure with an exception if it is being actively repaired for resale. Otherwise, we are leaving people homeless when homes are available.

Obviously, as a Realtor I believe strongly in property rights and capitalism. However, there are many ways social problems can be handled within the system if so desired. These bankers are parasites on our society and as such can give back to the same. They don't want to because people would not pay their mortgage so they could get a free home. However, strict standards of requirements to help people get trained, medical help, employed, etc. to get them back into a position to start paying for such a house would go far to rehabilitating properties and people. If someone is just not willing to work or try then they can be routed to multi-family housing units that are also repossessed.

I don't have all the answers by far, but it is awfully difficult for a family or anyone really to get presentable, find gainful employment, etc. while living under a tarp in the woods. Due to economic reasons, we see many entire families left homeless who have worked and paid their bills all their life. The BS government employment numbers are not a true picture of unemployment in the US. It is actually around 24-27%. That many have given up after being unable to find work and then are not counted as unemployed. It also doesn't count the under-employed. It is almost impossible to work 30 hour part-time work weeks (many the result of ACA) and afford a roof over your head.

I know why the police were sent in to get rid of these units, but places can be found for the units. For example the huge amount of land the federal government owns in the western US. If the government doesn't like it, then improve the economic conditions and quit shipping jobs overseas and signing bogus trade deals to make corporations rich and the citizens homeless. They want us to emigrate to raise development in 3rd world countries and emerging markets. It is all a fixed game by the globalists that have caused the problems in countries that earned their positions and built their countries. It is wrong to break the people and their countries because others have not done the same.

We love to hate the poor and less fortunate here in America. If your not perceivable successful you are rejected and looked upon.

Welcome to the new world!

Elvis Summers is a freakin' hero...

Thanks OP for sharing this story.

I was once homeless in LA years ago and I can personally tell you it sucks.

I just noticed that the GoFundMe page is doing awesome ($18k of $250k goal)...

A few of the videos that they have made:

EDIT: I just now watched these, the comments from the second video by someone who received one of these homes is incredible.

DAMN... it takes a lot to move me to tears and that lady just did it...

After hearing what she said, I think I may just get involved with this.

I used to work in construction and still have my tools...

This is why building Specs per area need to be changed.

Tiny Homes are becoming a huge movement, but the biggest issue is legally building them. They are completely sustainable, far greener than a standard sized home, and provide financial benefits for an ever more fragile economic system.

My wife and I want to build a home under 500 square feet, but even that may be too small to do legally in many areas where we live.

So long as it's a safe structure, electrical, heating, and so forth, I don't see why there are any legal issues to begin with.

If it's aesthetics reasons, why not dedicate some land with a maximum building size of 800 sq/f? Everyone wins!

God forbid they should have the tiniest place to shelter from the elements, a door to secure so they can sleep without fear of criminals pouncing on them or stealing their stuff.

Oh, never mind…

a reply to: RainbowPhoenix

Surely they can find a vacant lot the city can use to set up rows of these tiny houses? Shelters are often places where people are robbed and assaulted, small wonder many avoid them. Many are also addicts of various kinds and that doesn't fly in shelters either.
OOH! They found GUNS! If I lived on the street I'd have one too if possible. Why do the homeless not have the same rights the rest of us have?
Give them a lot to set up, put in showers and porta potties, garden areas and let people crowd source ideas for these people to make money making various things. Have some lights put up and maybe a security guard at night. How much would that cost versus all the other ineffective programs and having the cops round them up from time to time?

The man who built these houses has done more for our country than Hillary, Trump or any of the candidates. God bless him.

Councilman Curren Price, who requested the cleanup, said the structures posed a serious health and safety problem.

"Police have identified firearms, drug activity going on," Price said. "A box of plywood is still a box."

Price said the homeless people had been offered alternatives, including shelter beds.

Health and safety problem ?

Right right... because sleeping on the sidewalk in the rain is much healthier and safer.

And his solution is to offer them a bed in a homeless shelter ? Has this idiot ever spent a night at a homeless shelter ??

There's a reason why even the homeless won't sleep at a homeless shelter... you have to sleep with one eye open for fear of getting shanked in the middle of the night. And if you do manage to wake up in the morning still breathing, consider yourself lucky if you still have a pair of shoes on your feet.

"Councilman Curren Price, who requested the cleanup, said the structures posed a serious health and safety problem.

"Police have identified firearms, drug activity going on," Price said. "A box of plywood is still a box." "

I'm sure Curren Price's nice house, and the nice houses of the police, could also be called boxes.

I'm torn on this. On the one hand building codes are a thing, there's also an issue of public utilities. Electricity was taken care of, but without being hooked up to the sewer system it's not going to be sanitary, and homes do need running water. Being California there's also the issue of building codes so that the dwellings are stable in an earthquake.

Unfit dwellings just make the problem worse, but so many homeless are so distrustful of the system that they can't be reintegrated. I think about Leo Grand, a homeless man who was given a real hand up, learned a valuable skill, and started making a lot of money. But he's distrustful of the system so he has no bank account to get the money and better his situation. He doesn't want to buy into the idea of renting a home either. Many homeless people are like this, from what I've read Utah is running into the same problem with their homes they gave out. When you're ostracized from society, reintegration even with basic items like shelter becomes really difficult and I think I can see it from their perspective. Why would anyone want to join a society of people who up to that point didn't even look at them as people?

In the end I suppose I would have to fall on the side that any shelter that they're willing to use and start to form some sort of community from is a net positive even if they're unsanitary and dangerous.

originally posted by: Lazarus Short
"Councilman Curren Price, who requested the cleanup, said the structures posed a serious health and safety problem.

"Police have identified firearms, drug activity going on," Price said. "A box of plywood is still a box." "

I'm sure Curren Price's nice house, and the nice houses of the police, could also be called boxes.

Jesus H Christ, "gun and drug activity going on"!? They just described 80% of American households lol!