Tents Torn Down for Trails and Tourism: Who Really Benefits? - Joint Statement on Stopping the Sweeps

The Great Redwood Trail Agency’s decision to evict people from their last refuge under the guise of beautifying trails and promoting tourism is cruel, short-sighted, and unacceptable.

We recognize the region faces economic challenges. But displacing vulnerable people to “clean up” for visitors is not just misguided, it’s inhumane. Humboldt County has been under a declared shelter crisis since 2017. Eight years later, the situation remains dire; there is still a severe lack of safe, accessible housing.

Humboldt’s housing crisis is especially stark given its size. Cal Poly Humboldt draws from one of the smallest catchment areas of any California State University, meaning many students must move far from home to attend and face intense pressure finding housing. Meanwhile, Humboldt County’s homelessness rate stands at 96 per 10,000 people higher than San Francisco’s (95) and Los Angeles County’s (78), according to the 2022/2023 Point-in-Time Count.

Sweeps aren’t just a misallocation of resources—it’s a failure of leadership.

Beautification should never come at the expense of basic human rights. Tourist dollars won’t solve this crisis. Only bold, principled action will.

We demand an immediate end to the sweeps, adequate shelter for all, and creative compassionate solutions to support our unhoused community members.

Table 1 Number for how the per capita value was calculated.

County	PIT Count	Population (2022)	Rate per 10,000
Humboldt County	1,309 (Jan 2023)	136,310	≈96.0
San Francisco County	7,754 (Feb 2022)	815,201	≈95.1
Los Angeles County	75,518 (Jan 2023)	9,721,138	≈77.7

Signed,

North Coast Progressive Alliance

Divest Humboldt

Humboldt Area Center for Harm Reduction