Occupy SF: Mission District Residents Don't Want Protesters in Their Backyard

Lauren Smiley

You tell me: Is this guy an Occupy camper or just another Mission District resident?

​The feeling is mutual between Mission residents and Occupy SF protesters: Neither group wants to see the encampment relocate to the Mission District, despite what city officials say.

The Chron's Matier and Ross report this morning that Mission District residents are pulling the NIMBY card, saying they are worried about dumping more violence and filth in a neighborhood that's already challenged by violence and filth. Besides, isn't that precisely why the city wants to move the camp out of the Financial District -- to clear out the sanitary and safety concerns on Justin Herman Plaza?

"It's insane," resident Roberto Hernandez told the Chron. "Not one meeting to ask us what we might think. We have enough problems here in the Mission."
The city laid out its generous offer to relocate the camp from Justin Herman Plaza near the Financial District to a more appropriate setting along Mission and 16th streets -- on the grounds of a former high school. The city even offered to pay rent on the property, which belongs to the San Francisco Unified School District (we are certain SFUSD is eager to accept the much-needed cash). It's a hard deal to turn down, considering the site comes with running water and working toilets.

Yet Occupy protesters are divided on whether to stay or go; some say it's time to move the camp and weed out the bad seeds, while others believe they should be near the very banks they are protesting. Moving to the Mission would put the camp out of site, out of mind.

The city gave the camp a noon deadline last Wednesday to make a decision, but that day came and went and protesters remained camped out on the plaza. At one point, police barricaded the camp, leading protesters to believe a raid was imminent. But when it became clear that caging in protesters would only stoke chaos, police removed the metal fencing and retreated.

Since then, protesters have made no decisions about what is next for the movement. On a side note, protesters did cleverly create a monument at the site, using scraps of the metal barricades police had used to fence them in. Here's a video of it:


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