This is why Oakland is one of the most dangerous cities and will continue to get worse.

It is getting dangerous! Thieves jumped over the gate at my job, shattered my glass and stole my battery. When AAA arrived, some other would-be bandits attempted to shake me down.... Been in the area for 20 + years, and I dont feel comfortable on dark blocks anymore. Something needs to be done!

I agree I have also been in Oakland for over 30 years and the homeless, drugaddicts that dont even have a job to maintain their habbit use our city and abuse it!

It seems that none of the public officials they cared all East Oakland, is a disaster. Citi councils neither the police nor the citizens do nothing, if we report the police takes more than a day to reach, the councilors of our districts I think they are sitting all day , they should walk between the neighborhoods them and work on it, every day east Oakland looks more dirty, piles of trash everywhere is a huge garbage dump, and people living on the streets for months, the parks are the biggest outdoor casinos, police goes out there and never says anything.

Sadly, it seems that this is still going on. Even made the news back in DC when I was on vacation. Oakland has decided that it's more important to keep the homeless and the trash/drugs and other issues that go along with it, than to provide a safe environment for its' tax paying citizens.

It is a sad state of affairs. it appears to be more important to look out for the "undocumented" than the citizens. One less Libby fan here, I was disappointed in that. As a two year resident of the east side we can only try to keep our own spaces tidy. Check out "Adopt a Spot". One spot at a time will improve our neighborhoods and encourage responsible citizens to move in. It is tiring cleaning up other peoples garbage over and over but it will not be forever. Shame that more local people choose not to take pride on their neighborhoods, but one person doing something often encourages people around them to think and act differently.

As long as they are seen as homeless than they are "untouchable" Seems like they have more rights than the tax paying working citizens of this city. It will only get worse.

Crimes are being ignored to promote gentrification! Once we get fed up and move out, they will swoop in and make this area gorgeous!!! They’re not creating that fancy new rapid bus service for nothing!!!

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How many voted are needed to get some type of results?

You just got my vote!! City needs to do something and clean up! I am not just talking about certain areas..I am talking about ALL of Oakland!!

Has Larry Reid responded to this? Why does our community have to be abandoned like this! We need help.

It's seem like Larry Reid is not the person for our community as you can see. It's like East Oakland doesn't have a council person. East Oakland look terrible garbage everywhere, sewers full, streets seem like there never cleaned on a regular, parking on sidewalk have gotten so out of hand. Trash in same place for months on in.

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I have emailed Larry Reid several times...He doesn't respond to me at all. Are these people just receiving a check and not doing the work? Taxes and utilities are too high for us to have to live in all of this that we pay to have it handled. Why are we being ignored?

I've lived in east Oakland for over 20 years and I have to say that I'm saddened by what our neighborhood looks now. People think it's ok to dump their trash in our area and just move on. Why, because our city has abandoned us. They respond rapidly when there's a complaint in the nice parts of Oakland, but leave us behind. Oklanders need to start caring for their city. Let's complain and make noise!

This is what defund the police looks like. The police department recieves guidance from this city council. The are afraid to enforce anything lest the be labeled racist, again. I am sorry, out neighborhood is one of minorities doing crimes against other minorities. Because we do not enforce any laws we have fallen into lawlessness. People know they will not be punished so they do what gives them the most immediate benefit.
I pick up trash everyday from people opening the door of their car and pushing out the trash onto the ground. There is an empty trash can 20 ft away. That is a culture thing. Mothers need to teach their children better. That is not poverty or racism, that is pure disrespect for themselves and their neighbors. So the truth is that a big reason that other neighborhoods are cleaner are becuase those residents have more respect for themselves and their neighbors. Sad reality. It cost nothing to not be rude.

The undocumented receive more monetary help and free food than the USA citizens. Also, the city Oakland has decided that it's more important to keep the homeless and the trash/drugs happy by picking up the trash and providing portable toilets on the taxpayers dime. The city of Oakland does not care to provide a safe environment for its' tax paying citizens.
The homeless are "untouchable". The homeless have more rights than the tax paying working citizens of this city. It is so sad,

Only you city of oakland, can resolve this problem that you have allowed to get out of hand. We resent the fact that we have to pay for this mess while paying our bills, on time . Lord knows if we don't you put a lien on our property. GARBAGE PICK UP SHOULD BE FREE FOR THE PROPERTY OWNERS IN OAKLAND BUT NO...INSTEAD IT'S ONE OF THE HIGHEST BILLS COMING ON A REGULAR BASES

Prostitution and drug use are not real crimes. Please do not waste taxpayer resources persecuting people for these things. It is a futile crusade. Have we learned nothing from the failure of the "War on Drugs" and mass incarceration?

Investing in more public toilets, public trash receptacles, and more frequent trash pickup will do more to improve conditions than harassing those who are living on the streets and struggling to get by.

Starchild is right about the positive things she recommends, but I think the real point of the original complaint was the scandalizing of children. See Mt 18.

Thanks, John. You may be right about the point the person filing the complaint was trying to make. However there is no evidence that simply seeing sex workers is harmful to children. It's some of the adults who seem to be "scandalized".

I think Starchild and I are using the verb "scandalize" with two different meanings.

Studies have proven when communities are cleaner they are safer. We as citizens of the community need to be engaged. We need to report illegal dumping, abandoned vehicles, unauthorized graffiti, unruly behavior. The community can be engaged in a safe manner. Take your concerns to our elected officials. Call your city counsel member, county supervisor, state assembly member, state senator, member of congress, senator, and the governor's office. Be vigilant in terms of alerting those who have the public safety responsibility. Taking the law into your hands is not the vigilance we need. Let's be a collective that can trust each other to make our community a better place for all who live and work in the city of Oakland.

I’m totally agree with Lady49r, Concerned, geverettjr. sel17001, Claribel, Concerned neighbor,
1.) Legit vehicle got tickets when they forgot to move their cars on the street sweeping hours, but the homeless RVs are untouchable staying there for years.
2.) prop 47 ignites more crime, if the thieves steals $975, they will return the $75. That’s why we need to sit down with the thieves to compute first how much they got before letting them go. Hahaha.
3.) rent increase allowed only 3% but the utilities company and the government agencies are allowed to increase more than 10%.
4.) these elected or appointed politicians are just receiving salaries staying in power without doing anything other than helping the criminals. They are not blind or deaf but they can play blind and deaf.

Statistics show that when societies are freer, they are safer and more prosperous. We as human beings living together need to respect each other's right to live differently, and not try to use the law to criminalize people for living with different values.

The law is only good when it protects people against actually being harmed by others – against anyone who tries to physically harm another or take their stuff. Law *abuse* is when people use the law to try to force their aesthetic preferences on others – demanding that public space look a certain way, or that doing certain things be prohibited even when they aren't causing actual harm.

Public space belongs to everyone. We all have the right to exist in these spaces and to use them without asking permission, so long as we leave others likewise free to use them. We don't have a right to demand that others use public space only as we ourselves use it.

People who offer goods and services for sale, whether they have a store or are just vending on the street, are offering a community service. There are some businesses that engage in abusive practices such as wage theft, data harvesting (e.g. recording your phone call without your consent), etc., but most people engaged in commerce do so non-abusively.

Artists and performers who add their art and performance to public spaces, are also providing a community service. There are some artists who engage in abusive practices such as "tagging" public or private property with ugly scrawls that lack redeeming artistic quality, but most people providing art do so non-abusively.

People who recycle stuff left on the streets, whether by re-using it, or by taking it somewhere and getting money for it, are also providing a community service. As are people who leave items out for others to re-use, rather than just throwing them away to be sent to a landfill.

If we would like someone to behave differently in public space, the best way is to gently raise the issue with them, making clear that we respect them and have a benevolent, not hostile, attitude toward them. If their behavior isn't actually violating anyone's rights, then we must respect their right to do it even if we find it annoying or unsightly or whatever. But many people are willing to do something differently if approached politely.

Reporting people to the authorities is the opposite of raising an issue politely and respectfully. It is being aggressive. When we sic the authorities on someone, it may cost them money or even physical harm. Do we want to be a society of "schoolyard bullies and schoolyard toadies" as Hakim Bey put it, or one of free people who respect each other?

Reporting should only be used to report public infrastructure that needs repairing, along with pickup of actual trash, or actual safety issues. Too many people are victims of civic bullies who make a hobby of trying to get other people ticketed, cited, towed, arrested, etc., because they don't approve of how they are living.

This kind of behavior makes everyone more distrusting and anti-social, which reduces community harmony, and encourages abuse of public space. Ultimately it negatively affects our safety and our freedom, and creates a vicious cycle in which one form of aggression leads to others.

One way to start is by practicing having a benevolent attitude toward others, regardless of whether they are richer or poorer than we are, whether they look like us or not, where they live, where they are from, what kind of vehicle they use, or what they do to earn or obtain money as long as it is voluntary.

There is room for all sides of the conversation. but we can't say we want to have a safe city and yet we are willing to let our city continue to be unsafe. If you don't live near the encampments your opinion matters but as far as I am concerned, you are speaking from a privileged position that is very different than those who are dealing with the madness in front of their homes and directly in front of their children.

What we need to do is to come up with solutions for what is happening on our streets and crime must be addressed. note: Prostitution is illegal and is FUELED by bigger crimes including Child abuse and human trafficking

We continue to experience the consequences of a situation where young people are aware that there are insignificant consequences for reckless behavior and adults who are exploiting them are aware of it too. Chat Rooms like this are just like an extension of Social Media, with meaningless usernames and big comments written anonymously. (not to mention there are only 4-5 people here sharing their thoughts. We need to be at the Boring City Council meetings discussing these topics regularly.

I randomly saw this email today about this conversation and I debated whether to write something. I will be sending this thread to my local representative and the mayor.

Thanks, Ashanti. I agree free speech matters and that all views in the conversation should be allowed to be heard. The ability to comment and engage in public civic discourse anonymously is an important part of free speech that we need to respect, but I think we should draw the line at filing anonymous reports with the government against others. This encourages a culture of sn!tching, harassment, the malicious targeting of people to pursue personal vendettas, and the like.

Regarding your remarks about safety, I think a similar paradox applies to freedom – saying we want to live in a free city (or country) yet allowing it to continue to be unfree.

If you are a high-level politicians or bureaucrat, your opinion matters, but as far as I am concerned you are speaking from a privileged position that is very different from that of the ordinary folks who are dealing with the madness of out-of-control government in their lives and too often feel powerless in the face of it.

The laws are not the work of some neutral divinity handing them down from on high, and applying them fairly and evenly; they are disproportionately made by some people with more political power, who have their own biases and interests, and are often quite corrupt, and are disproportionately enforced at the expense of others with less political power. "Laws are for the little people," as the saying goes.

Laws against prostitution are a good example of this. They are wrongfully criminalizing ordinary working people and our clients, in part by the false conflation of consensual adult prostitution and crimes like child abuse and human trafficking (Oakland for instance has the same "tip line" for both prostitution and trafficking, despite them being vastly different things!). Real problems are made WORSE by criminalizing the "world's oldest profession", pushing it into a black market status where both prostitutes and clients, as well as minors and victims of trafficking, are more likely to be preyed upon by violent criminal elements and have less recourse when this occurs. Respected human rights organizations Amnesty International and Human Rights watch have said that criminalizing prostitution is a violation of basic human rights (see e.g. https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/08/07/why-sex-work-should-be-decriminalized).

Many young people are disillusioned with establishment politics like that which runs the 2-party cartel in the United States, and are aware that there are insignificant consequences for the reckless expansion of government power and intrusion into all aspects of our lives. The adults who are taking their resources (including via the accumulation of debt to burden future generations) in order to fund what benefits themselves, either personally or politically or both, are aware of it too.

Thanks, Ashanti. I agree free speech matters and that all views in the conversation should be allowed to be heard. The ability to comment and engage in public civic discourse anonymously is an important part of free speech that we need to respect, but I think we should draw the line at filing anonymous reports with the government against others. This encourages a culture of sn||tching, harassment, the malicious targeting of people to pursue personal vendettas, and the like.

Regarding your remarks about safety, I think a similar paradox applies to freedom – saying we want to live in a free city (or country) yet allowing it to continue to be unfree.

If you are a high-level politicians or bureaucrat, your opinion matters, but as far as I am concerned you are speaking from a privileged position that is very different from that of the ordinary folks who are dealing with the madness of out-of-control government in their lives and too often feel powerless in the face of it.

The laws are not the work of some neutral divinity handing them down from on high, and applying them fairly and evenly; they are disproportionately made by some people with more political power, who have their own biases and interests, and are often quite corrupt, and are disproportionately enforced at the expense of others with less political power. "Laws are for the little people," as the saying goes.

Laws against prostitution are a good example of this. They are wrongfully criminalizing ordinary working people and our clients, in part by the false conflation of consensual adult prostitution and crimes like child abuse and human trafficking (Oakland for instance has the same "tip line" for both prostitution and trafficking, despite them being vastly different things!). Real problems are made WORSE by criminalizing the "world's oldest profession", pushing it into a black market status where both prostitutes and clients, as well as minors and victims of trafficking, are more likely to be preyed upon by violent criminal elements and have less recourse when this occurs. Respected human rights organizations Amnesty International and Human Rights watch have said that criminalizing prostitution is a violation of basic human rights (see e.g. https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/08/07/why-sex-work-should-be-decriminalized).

Many young people are disillusioned with establishment politics like that which runs the 2-party cartel in the United States, and are aware that there are insignificant consequences for the reckless expansion of government power and intrusion into all aspects of our lives. The adults who are taking their resources (including via the accumulation of debt to burden future generations) in order to fund what benefits themselves, either personally or politically or both, are aware of it too.

If you are a high-level politicians or bureaucrat, your opinion matters, but as far as I am concerned you are speaking from a privileged position that is very different from that of the ordinary folks who are dealing with the madness of out-of-control government in their lives and too often feel powerless in the face of it.

The laws are not the work of some neutral divinity handing them down from on high, and applying them fairly and evenly; they are disproportionately made by some people with more political power, who have their own biases and interests, and are often quite corrupt, and are disproportionately enforced at the expense of others with less political power. "Laws are for the little people," as the saying goes.

Laws against prostitution are a good example of this. They are wrongfully criminalizing ordinary working people and our clients, in part by the false conflation of consensual adult prostitution and crimes like child abuse and human trafficking (Oakland for instance has the same "tip line" for both prostitution and trafficking, despite them being vastly different things!). Real problems are made WORSE by criminalizing the "world's oldest profession", pushing it into a black market status where both prostitutes and clients, as well as minors and victims of trafficking, are more likely to be preyed upon by violent criminal elements and have less recourse when this occurs. Respected human rights organizations Amnesty International and Human Rights watch have said that criminalizing prostitution is a violation of basic human rights (see e.g. https://www.hrw[dot]org/news/2019/08/07/why-sex-work-should-be-decriminalized).

Many young people are disillusioned with establishment politics like that which runs the 2-party cartel in the United States, and are aware that there are insignificant consequences for the reckless expansion of government power and intrusion into all aspects of our lives. The adults who are taking their resources (including via the accumulation of debt to burden future generations) in order to fund what benefits themselves, either personally or politically or both, are aware of it too.

For various reasons, which I will not go into here, I no longer respect either Amnesty International nor Human Rights Watch - although I was an Amnesty International signature gatherer in the 1970s.

I'm sorry to hear that John, and I'm sure the "prisoners of conscience" sitting behind bars as we type, often victims of the most horrendous abuses, who these organizations fight for, would be sorry to hear it too, as no doubt would their families.

Starchild - why are you, a resident of San Francisco, obsessed with trolling the members of the Oakland community on 311? Everyone, please take note that Starchild is a libertarian troll, and not a member of this community. I recommend that everyone case all discussion with Starchild as they are not a good faith actor.

https://www.kalw.org/show/crosscurrents/2016-11-01/starchild-star-of-the-san-francisco-libertarian-party

JM – As I've said repeatedly, my comments in this forum are heartfelt community engagement, and not about tro||ing anyone.

I've also consistently said that where I live doesn't matter, and that having a sound view on an issue doesn't depend on geographical proximity. I never claimed to be an Oakland resident, and nothing I've posted here has been in bad faith. In any case, I consider San Francisco and Oakland to be part of the same Bay Area community, with similar cultural values, and I'm in Oakland frequently, so I reject the "not a member of this community" accusation.

Finally JM, your allegation that I'm "not a good faith actor" is extremely ironic given that you just doxxed me, quite possibly in violation of the law:

https://joindeleteme.com/blog/is-doxxing-illegal-in-california/

If I am further harassed as a result, I will hold you responsible. I also think using an anonymous account to dox someone who is an ordinary private citizen and not a government official is a cowardly and reprehensible act.