On his walk to work Wednesday morning, Bill McKinney watched as police flex-cuffed 10 people and loaded them into a police van on Kensington Avenue and Cambria Street.
“They were definitely unhoused folks,” said McKinney, the executive director at neighborhood nonprofit New Kensington Community Development Corporation (NKCDC).
The arrests were part of an ongoing enforcement effort under Mayor Cherelle Parker’s Kensington policing plan.
By 9 p.m. on Wednesday, 34 people had been arrested along G Street and the Kensington and Allegheny corridors for “narcotics violations,” including drug paraphernalia and possession, as well as outstanding warrants, according to the Philadelphia Police Department (PPD).
The city did not provide social services or send anyone to the Police-Assisted Diversion (PAD) program during the operation, PPD spokesperson Sgt. Eric Gripp confirmed in an email to Kensington Voice.
“We have been in the law enforcement phase since June,” said Gripp, referencing the five phases of Parker’s plan. “Individuals violating the law are subject to arrest.”
The city’s prison system was notified ahead of the action by the police department, said John Mitchell, spokesperson for the Philadelphia Department of Prisons (PDP).
“We received advance notice,” Mitchell wrote in an email. “We were prepared.”
On Wednesday morning, police taped off the area between E. Westmoreland Street, Allegheny Avenue, G Street, and F Street, allowing only residents with identification to pass through. The Philadelphia Parking Authority (PPA) and Community Life Improvement Program (CLIP) were also on site.
Angel Cruz, who works for the PPA, witnessed two of the arrests on G Street Wednesday morning.
“They were loitering and they were asked to move,” Cruz said. “We don’t know where they’re from. They were here, they were asked to leave, they became resistant, so [PPD] patted them down, got ID, and some of them showed up with warrants.”
Cruz said PPA was there to remove abandoned vehicles with tow trucks.
“This is the Mayor’s ‘initiative’ program, and they’re removing cars, removing trash, doing what needs to be done, but some people are refusing to cooperate,” he said.
The PPA towed 20 vehicles, according to PPD.
People who were arrested were taken to either the 24th District Headquarters at 3900 Whittaker Avenue or the Philadelphia Public Services Building (PPSB), depending on their charges, outstanding warrants, and medical condition, Gripp said.
Merakey, a city-contracted addiction and behavioral health services provider, had no advance notice, according to Dave Malloy, Merakey’s mobile services director.
McKinney said he only saw police and sanitation workers and no support services during the arrests.
“This is a sanitation and policing strategy,” McKinney said. “... It means we are bodies in a police state and we're part of a sanitation project.”
On Wednesday afternoon, Annette Mears sat outside her home on Willard Street, which was cordoned off by police for the enforcement initiative.
“This is a good thing,” she said. “It's letting the dealers know that the citizens of Philadelphia are tired of their crap. We're tired of being held hostage in our houses or having to look over our shoulders when we leave for fear of getting robbed.”
Mears said about 30 kids live on her block, but parents are afraid to let them play outside unsupervised.
“You gotta be able to grab these kids and run, shove them somewhere, because you never know when a gunshot is going to pop off,” she said.
Just last week, four people were shot around the corner on G Street, and Mears said she regularly hears gunfire in the neighborhood.
While she supports arresting people for drug sales, Mears doesn’t believe arresting individuals for drug paraphernalia or drug use is the ultimate solution. She believes that people living with addiction and other complex mental health issues need better access to treatment and care.
“The city should care about that. These are people that have problems,” she said. “When are you going to start helping them?”
McKinney echoed some of the same concerns, saying that the recurring police-led initiatives represent a “strategy of displacement” rather than of solutions.
“There isn’t legislation that's being introduced to add anything. Everything is about, ‘How do we take more away,’” he said.
McKinney pointed to the lack of additional resources for workforce development and housing, for example.
He said NKCDC’s new report suggests that a more comprehensive, trauma-informed approach that engages with the community will lead to better results for everyone in the neighborhood, both housed and unhoused.
“We're going to keep spinning in the same cycles that we've been in,” McKinney said. “I’ve been through this cycle numerous times as a resident over the past couple of decades, and we’re still there.”
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