Homeless squatters organize building takeovers in Seattle

Homeless squatters in Seattle are organizing amid an effort to oust them from vacant buildings throughout the city.

Related: John Curley on why Seattle squatters keep coming back

In a post on Craigslist, an organization called Common Cents argues that Seattle’s approach to the homelessness issue has been off target. It proclaims, “You sweep, we occupy,” and “Sweeps make squats.” Specifically, the group promotes that vacant Seattle buildings should be used to house homeless and low-income individuals while they await demolition.

Common Cents does not see tiny houses, legal encampments, RV parks, enhanced sweeps, expanded private housing development or the devout practice of Housing First as solutions to the housing crisis. These reform measures satisfy our desire to see that something gets done. But these solutions divide us, they ask us to presume that the homeless are not like everyone else and deserve special treatment (for better or for worse!).

The group advocates for all vacant buildings in Seattle to be used to house the homeless, but it focuses on the former, now vacant, Seattle Times building that has experienced a cycle of squatters and sweeps.

Cory Potts, with Common Cents, told KIRO 7 that he has organized legal takeovers of buildings in Brussels, and wants to do the same in Seattle.

KTTH’s Todd Herman said that the movement to squat is just an extension of Seattle’s problem of being too “good-hearted.”

“There’s a story behind why the buildings are vacant. It’s not necessarily the business owners’ decisions to keep them vacant,” Herman said. “It’s another sign in Seattle that we invite chaos. We invite it when we don’t demand behavior modification. We import homeless people because we are good-hearted people. We import heroin addicts because we are good-hearted people.

“We import them when we say, ‘come here and we will fund you and help you continue to live this lifestyle … but we are not going to insist that you change your life or take better care of yourself,'” he added.

Herman noted that Seattleites treat the homeless in a way that is much differently than they would a friend or neighbor.

“Imagine if you had a neighbor addicted to drugs or alcohol, would you continue to buy them said items? You would not,” he said. “Are you helping when you perpetuate the problem this way?”