San Jose City Council Member Tam Nguyen spent a night under the stars at a controversial tent city in Portland Friday in a bid to better understand the pressing issue of homelessness. The councilman documented his experience at the city-sanctioned encampment on social media, saying it had "opened my eyes, my soul and my heart."
Nguyen believes the Right to Dream Too camp could be a model for San Jose, which shuttered its largest tent village two years ago. Unlike the one in Oregon, that village was illegal. Its closure left hundreds without a place to go.
But are sanctioned encampments really the way to go? Some city officials, including Vice Mayor Rose Herrera, remain skeptical.
"We have to be careful if we take tent cities and stick them in neighborhoods that are already stressed," Herrera said. "We don't want to create a situation where we are adding a burden to a community that's already stressed."
Nguyen acknowledged that an undertaking like that would be no easy feat. It would require collaboration with knowledgeable nonprofits and "a willingness to see through the red tape," he said.
The councilman is expected to provide the city with a report on his experience soon.
Read more about the councilman's stay at Right to Dream Too here.
Image Credit: Flickr User roughgroove, https://flic.kr/p/4Ly3F6 via (CC BY 2.0)