Dump, violence and drugs: how a wealthy Los Angeles neighborhood became a homeless camp
American Venice - that’s what the town was once called, and now the Los Angeles area on the Pacific Ocean, says "Voice of America".
Built at the beginning of the last century in the style of Italian Venice, with canals along which you could walk on gondolas, the town served as a resort for the wealthy. More than 100 years later, the Venice Beach area is still a resort for local tourists. And now the homeless.
The beach has long been settled by people who do not have permanent housing, and during the pandemic, about 200 tents appeared on the street along the beach. Along with them, numerous problems arose.
The golden sand has become a dump, and the ocean view is blocked by numerous tents.
Greg has lived in Venice Beach for 25 years. He says that he has not seen such chaos as it was formed during the pandemic even in the most criminal times.
“It’s crazy, there are knife fights, people get shot,” he says. “Two days ago I was walking my dog and a young man with a bicycle chain threatened that his dog would eat mine. And he will beat me with a chain. And this happens often.”
Fires, fights and drugs. The area has become dangerous not only for locals and tourists, but also for the homeless themselves.
Homeless Jesse says there are many people here who use methadone and many who know nothing better than to steal things. Jesse himself moved to Los Angeles a month ago from Ohio and stopped at Venice.
“I was just walking from downtown Los Angeles and landed here. I want to be by the ocean. There is a shower here. “I stayed here,” he says. - I think I'm unable to work. I tried regular work, but due to nervous tension I break out in hives.”
California attracted him by the fact that you can legally smoke marijuana here. And Jesse, although familiar with street life, doesn't feel safe on Venice. His sneakers and speakers have already been stolen.
On the subject: How homeless people live in the USA: a difficult story of one man
Jesse introduced the journalists to other residents of Venice. For example, with a man called the Drummer. He is a drug addict, drinks and takes methamphetamine. The drummer moved to Los Angeles a year ago. He says they help the homeless like nowhere else in America.
“Just today they gave me a sleeping bag, a Christian Dior shirt, a Barney’s shirt,” he says. “They are all new.”
The drummer drums all day, sleeps, or rests in his tent. And at night he prays that nothing will happen to him. He saw someone beaten with a baseball bat and is almost certain he witnessed the murder.
Venice remains one of the most expensive neighborhoods in Los Angeles. Local residents live literally a few meters from the tents of the homeless. And they pay a lot of money for housing. Renting a one-room apartment in this area starts at $ 2500. And now the locals are afraid to walk their dogs here.
“We just hired security guards to guard our complex at night because the situation here is just crazy,” said resident Stacy. — There is a cluster of tents near our house. We see them from the window, their number is constantly increasing. The monthly rent for our apartment costs $3400.”
“We can no longer use our city. Most of us have spent a lot of money on cameras, barriers and new locks. I had two home invasion attempts and once my life was at risk,” said local resident Vicky.
Residents blame local authorities for allowing the homeless to camp on the beach. Representatives of the Venice area in the Los Angeles City Council argue that the problem is the number of homeless people and the lack of affordable housing. According to Michael Bonin, district spokesman for the city council, there are 30 people in the district who said they wanted housing.
“Let's offer them housing and then we can solve the problem with those who remain,” he says.
But residents believe that the promises don't work.
“You promised us to restore order when the bridge collapsed, and I live very close. This is a disaster zone. We no longer believe everything he says,” said resident Vicki.
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Bonin says he is ready to find any solution.
“We can no longer simply say no to alternatives to homelessness,” he said. “We have to say yes to something else.”
Practically every day there are consultants in the area who are trying to find shelter for these people, but the consultants say that many simply do not want to leave. ABC7.
Robert is one of them.
“Shelters are just prison camps for the homeless. I'd rather be free than have it all. I get up when I want, I go to bed when I want, no curfew or anything like that,” he said.
The drummer says, even if the majority of the homeless here are offered housing, they may end up on the street again.
“The biggest problem here is mental illness,” he says. — And drug addiction, which very often leads to mental illness, and vice versa. So sometimes it’s hard to tell what it is.”
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