sidewalk sleeping San Francisco

Yesterday, on a bus at a bus stop in San Francisco, I noticed a homeless-appearing man sound sleep on the sidewalk. He was curled up in a fetal position, leaning against a garbage bag that seemed to be his belongings. His face was weathered, as if he spent lots of time outdoors. And this guy was sound asleep.  It was my sense that he was sleeping from exhaustion, not that he had passed out from drinking or drugs but who knows? This human being looked as thoroughly tired as a person can. And he was sleeping so soundly, as if he was in a private, cosy bed.

It looked as if he had sat down, leaning against the wall of a restaurant, and fallen asleep, then fallen to the sidewalk.

It is against the law to sit on the sidewalk in San Francisco, and it is also against the law to sleep on the sidewalk. This law has been strongly debated. The homeless challenge San Francisco in many ways.  I think most decent humans have empathy for homeless people. I certainly do. But it can be intimidating to be approached for money by drunk or high people. And if they are unclean, maybe smelly because they have no way to bath regularly or launder their clothing, well, you get smelly, messy, vaguely intimidating and unpleasant humans, which is bad for the tourism that is important to the San Francisco economy.

It's a complex issue. I am mindful that anything I might say can sound condescending.  I have empathy for homeless people. And I know there is a wide range of homeless. People who lose their jobs and then their homes because they can't pay rent or mortgage payments are a different category of homeless than the chronically homeless with addiction and/or mental health issues.

The sleeping homeless guy that I saw yesterday looked like chronic homeless, homeless by choice. But I don't know.

The bus was stopped longer than usual because a wheelchair passenger was getting on. As I observed the guy sleeping on the sidewalk, I became aware of the SF police officer as he pulled out his citation book, then took out a pen and started filling out his form. He was going to cite the sleeping guy.

I guess the cop was going to do whatever paperwork he could do before awakening the guy.  And I thought it unusual for the cop to be alone. Nowadays, it seems cops always show up in pairs. Maybe the reason the cop had not yet approached the sleeper was because he was waiting for another cop.

I don't know what the SF official response to sidewalk sleepers is.  I think I have read, in the news, that cops issue warnings first.

It was a calm, quiet moment. I imagine as the incident proceeded in time, the cop would have awakened the sidewalk sleeper. If the guy was unconscious, I suppose the guy would be hauled off in what used to be called a paddy wagon.

Modern life.

Someone swaddled that sidewalk sleeper when he was a baby, changing his disapeers, encouraging him to learn how to walk and talk. At least I hope so. And he went to school, probably learned how to read and write, probably had jobs at some point.  There lots of unhappiness in this world.