Yes, no, yes. I also realize that increasing police presence is not going to address any of these things, but rather will cut off transit access for the people who most rely on it, lead to more of those people being incarcerated, and deepen the terror the most at-risk communities are facing in this time of violent state-sanctioned oppression.
We live in a city that cares about community, self-expression, and anti-authoritarianism. I want us to live up to those ideals, and that means letting go of police mentality.
You can believe in police reform while also believing that offering people the “freedom” to live in flammable and filthy encampments and do fent, meth and alcohol in urban centers with no effective mechanism for forcing people to get help against their will is neither “compassion” nor effective police reform. And again the reality is Vancouver enjoys a river and only busses they have jurisdiction over of buffer room from that and I cannot bring myself to blame them for wanting to keep it. That said, god I want a congestion tax on the bridges for Washington drivers. (I also, to be clear, want the Max system expanded, I just get their perspective)
Also side note, ticketing is pretty ineffective on the TriMet system. It’s essentially a tax on people who can sort of afford to pay fare but don’t. It does not deter addicts etc because they aren’t getting kicked off, just getting a ticket they won’t pay and there’s no real mechanism for enforcing beyond that point.
The whole problem is your use of words like “offering” and “forcing”. Public transportation is a public good. It belongs to everyone. No entity is “offering” anything because it isn’t anyone’s to offer. We need to get away from the idea that public spaces are things that can be provided or withdrawn.
Yes, no, yes. I also realize that increasing police presence is not going to address any of these things, but rather will cut off transit access for the people who most rely on it, lead to more of those people being incarcerated, and deepen the terror the most at-risk communities are facing in this time of violent state-sanctioned oppression.
We live in a city that cares about community, self-expression, and anti-authoritarianism. I want us to live up to those ideals, and that means letting go of police mentality.
You can believe in police reform while also believing that offering people the “freedom” to live in flammable and filthy encampments and do fent, meth and alcohol in urban centers with no effective mechanism for forcing people to get help against their will is neither “compassion” nor effective police reform. And again the reality is Vancouver enjoys a river and only busses they have jurisdiction over of buffer room from that and I cannot bring myself to blame them for wanting to keep it. That said, god I want a congestion tax on the bridges for Washington drivers. (I also, to be clear, want the Max system expanded, I just get their perspective)
Also side note, ticketing is pretty ineffective on the TriMet system. It’s essentially a tax on people who can sort of afford to pay fare but don’t. It does not deter addicts etc because they aren’t getting kicked off, just getting a ticket they won’t pay and there’s no real mechanism for enforcing beyond that point.
The whole problem is your use of words like “offering” and “forcing”. Public transportation is a public good. It belongs to everyone. No entity is “offering” anything because it isn’t anyone’s to offer. We need to get away from the idea that public spaces are things that can be provided or withdrawn.