Bike. Two generators. Chair. Table. Bike, wheelchair. Walker. Crutches, cooler, baby stroller.
These are a few of the items taken during recent sweeps of homeless encampments in Portland, according to the city’s latest data.
In the first six months of Mayor Keith Wilson’s tenure, homeless sweeps by month outpaced those conducted in former Mayor Ted Wheeler’s final year in office. Wilson maintains that his plan will provide care and compassion for those in need. But the actions his administration is taking — increasing sweeps and emergency shelters while deprioritizing permanent housing affordable to those with the fewest resources — are the same actions that a Street Roots/ProPublica investigation showed were linked to a four-fold increase in deaths among people living on the city’s streets…