Austin group moved '115,000 pounds of trash' due to homelessness crisis
After the City Council in Austin, Texas, voted to legalize camping, sitting and lying in public spaces within the city in June, the presence of homeless people in the reportedly skyrocketed, so Texas Gov. Greg Abbott stepped up and ordered a clean up of homeless camps in the capital city.
A homeless advocacy group leader spoke with FOX Business' Melissa Francis on Tuesday about the effort. The Other Ones Foundation, he said, has been cleaning up the homeless encampments for a year now.
SAN FRANCISCO REMOVES SIDEWALK BOULDERS INTENDED TO KEEP TENT CAMPS OUT
"We've moved over 115,000 pounds of trash in the last year out of parks and green spaces in Austin."
IS AUSTIN ON THE VERGE OF A HOMELESS CRISIS?
"One a very, very zoomed out level, we actually have the same goal as this project, however, we think it's being poorly executed because it's displacing people," The Other Ones Foundation community engagement coordinator Max Moscoe said on "After the Bell." "We're asking them to leave, and there's nowhere to go."
Moscoe said all the homeless shelters in Austin are at capacity and have long waiting lists.
"We're also displacing these people suddenly without enough warning, and people are losing vital objects to them, things like medication, warm clothes, tents, sleeping bags and ID," Moscoe said.
READ MORE ON FOX BUSINESS BY CLICKING HERE
Abbott's administration claims they are taking the homeless to a shelter, but Moscoe said the shelters are turning them away since there isn't room for them.
"So, everybody is just having to go back to the woods, out of sight, which is a more dangerous place for them to be," Moscoe said.
According to Abbott, the city's homeless population is approaching a 10-year high. Even with the economy thriving currently, Moscoe said the reasons behind why people are homeless are complicated.
AMERICA'S HOMELESS CRISIS IS SPIRALING BUT COMPLETELY FIXABLE
"There's still a disconnect between people who have experienced trauma and who need social services; there's a disconnect between them and those social services," Moscoe said. "Social services are extremely hard to access."
Moscoe said his organization has a two-tiered approach to combating homelessness: get them low-barrier employment and get them case management to navigate social services.