'Old-school junkie' says he moved to woke city because he gets $620-a-month that pays for his Amazon Prime and Netflix and 'cops are like neighbors' James, a self-proclaimed junkie living in San Francisco, says the city's soft-on-crime policies and government assistance make it 'easy' to be homeless
He shared how he receives $620 cash and 200 food stamps each month while he sells Narcan to addicts and enjoys streaming services on his phone
‘This right now is literally by choice, literally by choice. If we’re going to be realistic, they pay you to be homeless here,' James said
San Francisco is plagued by drug addiction and homelessness
Mayor London Breed recently launched an emergency campaign to crackdown on open air drug use and drug dealing in the city's crime-ravaged downtown Tenderloin neighborhood
The city also opened a new linkage center that connects homeless addicts with rehab facilities on January 18
Meanwhile, President Biden also aims to battle drug addiction with his $30million grant program intending to provide funds to nonprofits and local governments to make drug use safer, to advance 'racial equity'
A self-proclaimed' old-school junkie' who moved from Texas to San Francisco because 'it's f*****g easy' to be homeless there claims he's being paid by the city government to live on the streets, getting $620 in cash per month and hundreds of food stamps while he sells Narcan and enjoys Amazon Prime and Netflix on his phone.
‘This right now is literally by choice, literally by choice. If we’re going to be realistic, they pay you to be homeless here,' James, a homeless man with face tattoos who has been living in San Francisco since June, told Michael Shellenberger, author of 'San Fransicko,' a book about how the city's progressive leaders are worsening homelessness, inequality and crime.
James said it only took one phone call to receive government assistance, including hundreds in cash and food stamps worth approximately $100, and notes that the 'free money' is motivation to remain homeless.
‘F*****g phone call bro... Two hundred food stamps and $620 cash a month. Forget about it. Why wouldn’t I do it? You know, it’s f*****g free money dude,' he explained. 'Why would I want to pay rent? I’m not doing s**t. I’ve got a f*****g cell phone that I have Amazon Prime and Netflix on.'
The interview comes as the city's homelessness and drug problems have worsened amid the national opioid crisis that escalated over the course of the pandemic. Both local and federal leaders say they're working to implement new strategies to combat the drug crisis. San Francisco Mayor London Breed has declared a state of emergency in the city and has vowed to crack down on open-air drug use and drug dealing. Similarly, the Biden administration seeks to limit infections and fatalities among drug users and has created a $30 million grant program to reduce substance abuse to underserved communities.
James said the drug crisis in San Francisco has become incredibly 'disgusting,' with dealers providing impure substances to users who then overdose because they take drugs alone.
He also blamed the cops for failing to arrest foreign-born dealers, alleging the police are 'getting paid with fentanyl.'
‘I’ve talked to the cops here. “I’m literally 10 feet away from the drug dealers talking to you guys, why don’t you go arrest them right now?”' he said. 'And they’re like, “arrest them for what?... San Francisco is a sanctuary city. We arrest the Hondurans and we put them in jail, they’re out two days later.”'
'If they’re letting the Hondurans deal on the corner every day, somebody getting paid with fentanyl,' James added.
A new 'linkage center' aimed at connecting homeless street addicts with drug rehab facilities opened in San Francisco last month, but distressing images show an open-air illicit drug consumption site that is now littered with needles and crowded with addicts shooting up in broad daylight.
The center, which opened on January 18, is part of Breed's Tenderloin Emergency Intervention plan introduced last year, which aims to clean up the crime-ravaged downtown neighborhood. When declaring the state of emergency, Breed also pushed San Francisco officers to get aggressive and 'less tolerant of all the bulls*** that has destroyed our city.'
The San Francisco Human Services Agency (SFHSA) has a wide variety of services to support Californians experiencing homelessness. Through the federally funded CalFresh program, all individuals who meet certain income requirements can receive up to $250 monthly for food assistance. Through County Adult Assistance Programs, a person with no income or shelter can receive up to $619 in financial assistance per month, after being a San Francisco resident for at least 30 days.
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