Reader Simon L. shot this video at 6am on Saturday morning of a coyote scrounging for scraps near the corner of Funston and Clement.
And yes, that is a homeless camper just a few feet away, completely oblivious.
Sarah B.
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He’s the one that throws his trash away in the street right there. Unfortunately, he’ll probably never see this video so he won’t know what’s happening two feet away from him to make that connection. I will tell him the next time I see him.
I’d be more concerned with the grime and trash and traffic of the street than the coyote.
I encounter this man several times a week; he’s a sweet guy who’s quite obviously challenged with mental illness of some sort. He has slept in that spot for at least the last few years, almost nightly. He never asks for money and can often be seen hanging on the corner of Clement where Walgreen’s is located, standing adjacent his grocery cart that is loaded down with his living paraphernalia.
While Sarah’s caveat about camping in the Greenbelt is well-taken and appreciated, the scene presented in the video represents a far more deep-seated problem in San Francisco, our state, and our nation – i.e. how to deal with the complex problem of mental illness.
A lot of these folks have been shunted off to the Richmond as SOMA has been receiving more enforcement attention, mostly due to the loud noise that our newly minted gentrifiers have been making about SOMA homeless populations. So, they get chased out of SOMA, Sue Bierman Park, Civic Center Plaza, etc. and end up in, near, GG Park and drifting down from there to the Richmond on a daily basis. Homeless “traffic” has definitely increased the last few years and most of it is mentally ill individuals.
There’s a guy who practically lives on the steps that about Ross, just as one turns the corner from 15th, heading west on Geary. That guy seriously need institutionalized help, but there nothing done. Same for the guy in the video.
I think the coyotes have it better than they do!
He’s not really in direct danger there. Coyotes are timid with humans, and will run rather than fight.
Here’s a great article about them:
http://www.sfgate.com/science/article/Protectors-of-S-F-s-urban-coyotes-try-to-calm-5339426.php
I’ve come across coyotes many times in parks around the Richmond.. and this very site is filled with spottings of them. The fact that not a single attack is reported demonstrates best how little danger there is. They have plenty of food, and only small dogs/cats would be at risk anyway. You’re far more likely to get attacked by a dog than a coyote…
The man in the video has a name. He is Richard.
@Mark T – if it’s the man Phil described, I thought his name was Thomas?
Sarah B.
@Administrator I know him as Eduardo.
I would read this before I made any comments on the aggressiveness or not of Coyotes:
Timm,, Robert M., University of California, Davis; Baker, Rex O., California State Polytechnic-Pomona (retired); Bennett, Joe R., USDA APHIS Wildlife Services; Coolahan, Craig C., USDA APHIS Wildlife Services (2004-03-03). “; Coyote Attacks: An Increasing Suburban Problem”. Hopland Research and Extension Center. pp. 47–49. Retrieved 2012-06-25. “From the information gathered, we now list 89 coyote attacks in California (incidents when one or more coyotes made physical contact with a child or adult, or attacked a pet while in close proximity to its owner) (Table 1). In 56 of these attacks, one or more persons suffered an injury. In 77 additional encounters (not listed), coyotes stalked children, chased individuals, or aggressively threatened adults. In 35 incidents (not all listed), where coyotes stalked or attacked small children, the possibility of serious or fatal injury seems likely if the child had not been rescued.”
@Phil- Thanks for the intelligent and thoughtful post. By now people seem to be conditioned to seeing homeless people as a fact of nature, like coyotes and pigeons. But they are human beings. I have learned that just because you are an alcoholic/junkie/schizophrenic, it does not automatically mean you are a bad person.
Very hard out on the street. even in our Richmond, our leaders have failed us.
I don’t think the man who camps on that corner is evil, but I do have an issue with the fact he’s allowed to camp there, and leave his trash, which gets blown/spread down the street. Our supervisors office just refers me to the homeless services people, who try to come out to talk to him, but can’t make him do anything. The police ignore him, I’m not sure why the myriad of services available to mentally ill homeless folks aren’t able to pull him in & get him housed & helped. From what I’ve seen in other areas, if one is allowed to “live” on the street, soon you have 2, then 4….. and not all are harmless as all who see/know this guy claim he is. I believe we have a sit/lay law on the books that is overlooked for him (as he doesn’t sleep in the park, which would be also illegal). If a homeowner allowed their trash to pile up / blow down the street, the city would be all over them…. what can be done to help this guy & get him off the street?
@susan “what can be done to help this guy & get him off the street?”
There is little anyone can do if there are no forced institutionalization laws on the books. That said, until a lot more progress is made in mental health service this will continue. Think about it: who would choose that lifestyle? Mental illness will impact 1 of 3 persons in their lifetime.
Those with serious mental illness issues are usually harmless and fairly passive. What choices do they have? They are constantly ill and simply unable to be proactive about their illness most of the time – unlike a person who has their mental faculties.
Here’s a simulated video of what its like to be someone with rather elementary schizophrenia
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qb8wQjwVu2g
Most of the mental illness issues faced by “homeless” are self-induced over time by continued us of Crack/Meth/Alcohol/etc. Most have made bad choices that have gotten them into the mess they are in. Until we can force these people into treatment (“Laura’s Law”), we will be forced to deal with garbage and feces that they leave behind. They may not be “bad people” but they are bad for the neighborhood.
Meanwhile, my dog and I are regularly followed by coyotes, especially near the Polo fields. I have friends who have had their dogs attacked while on leashes. So be careful out there. Coyotes are wild animals.
Why don’t ask the city to put more trash receptacles in the community, maybe on that corner? There are not enough receptacles in the Richmond.
And there should be more public toilets. Not having more receptacles and toilets doesn’t make the problems go away.
@Richmondman said…”Most of the mental illness issues faced by “homeless” are self-induced over time by continued us of Crack/Meth/Alcohol/etc. ”
Nonsense! Please use the following links to get informed about the multifaceted and *complex* problem of homelessness. Also, a lot of the drug use you see on the street is a result of “self-medicating” to treat conditions that are not under the supervision of a medical facility.
Here are some facts:
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:Ql91Soo5K4YJ:www.sfgov3.org/modules/showdocument.aspx%3Fdocumentid%3D4819+&cd=4&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us&client=firefox-a
http://money.howstuffworks.com/homeless.htm
http://www.sfgate.com/homeless/ (see the series links, to the right)
Aside from those facts, I can tell you from personal experience working at a volunteer at a homeless soup kitchen in another large city some years ago that roughly 40% the people we served were *working* persons who did not have enough money to afford shelter. Many of these people had kids with them; it was heartbreaking.
I agree that I’ve seen coyotes in that location and they don’t cause harm, in fact they look nervous to have seen me, the exact opposite. This video also proves how unlikely they are to attack.
I think it’s hilarious that someone tried to lecture about a name and it turns out he may be known by several; don’t be a sanctimonious d–k. On the other hand, a lot of the other points were interesting and valid regarding mental illness and the homeless. Thank you.
It costs money to maintain receptacles, it seems many have been removed. If you wonder about public toilets in San Francisco then I recommend a recent article from SF Weekly:
http://www.sfweekly.com/2014-03-19/news/public-restrooms-ppod-pplanter/
The homeless man that has taken up residence at Clement/Park Presidio is indeed Thomas. After noticing him for so long, I introduced myself one day and offered to buy him some groceries. He is soft spoken and kind. I’ve never seen him cause any trouble or get into any. He does not seem to be self-tortured the way so many mentally ill homeless are.
I, and many of my neighbors, have known him for the last few years. I like to think we all look out for him. At least I do.
The homeless situation in the Richmond is getting out of hand. Garbage and human feces throughout GG Park by MLK Drive. Garbage and human feces strewn about just below Sutro Park. Garbage, camps, drugs and human feces below the Lands End Trail. In just the last 2 years it has gotten much, much worse. Our local representatives and law enforcement are failing us. Mental illness or no, forced institutionalization needs to be considered if any serious discussion is to be had about this growing problem in the Richmond.
Coyotes are indeed timid and would rather eat garbage than children, but rare incidents do occur and fights with dogs and cats are a hazard. They are a natural part of the environment we plopped ourselves onto, remember they aren’t encroaching on our territory, it is the other way around. You can hear that the one in this video is getting a sound scolding from the crows, they are trying to scare him off and wont be above mobbing him to get him to move on.
As for the homeless in the Richmond, it is the shouting of the crazed person outside of 711 keeping us up at night that is really bothersome to me. But some of you are correct in that it is an incredibly complicated issue and not all homeless people are the same. It is easy to dismiss them as having caused their own misfortune, but that is largely untrue. You would be amazed how quickly your sanity can slip when suddenly you have to poop outside – when you are seen as disgusting or ignored by your fellow man, when you have to beg for money. Any one of us could find ourselves in that place under the right circumstances.
Ben, compassion is all well and good but it’s clearly not enough to solve this problem. In GG Park by MLK Drive, the City has cleared a literal dump that one homeless guy created 3 times in the last 2 months. Yet, he keeps returning, keeps strewing garbage everywhere, keeps defecating in the area, has written in chalk graffiti “respect coyotes or die”, and not to mention is aggressive with dogs. So much for a serene peaceful walk. The City is NOT serious about this problem, at least not in our hood.