The city of Boston has officially declared homelessness and drug addiction a public health emergency in wake of the ever growing tent city at the intersection of Massachusetts Avenue and Melnea Cass Boulevard, an area known widely as Mass and Cass. Officials plan on removing around 150 tents belonging to homeless individuals in accordance to an executive order by Acting Mayor Kim Janey, and moving the occupants into shelters and treatment centers for opioid addiction. Janey stressed that the change will be a gradual one, requiring cooperation between city and state officials, as well as organizations that serve homeless and addicted peoples.
“It requires ongoing outreach to individuals,” Janey stated, “It requires work between the city, the state, and other partners to make sure there are alternatives.”
As the weather gets colder, living conditions in those in temporary shelters will become more dangerous. Janey spoke on the lack of proper hygiene and clean water, saying, “Tents are not appropriate for housing.” The city has been insistent that the declaration and order have not been placed to criminalize homelessness and addiction, but that such shelters will no longer be allowed on public sidewalks and streets in Boston. Individuals are to be granted advanced notice before the removal of their tent, and offered a space in either a treatment facility or shelter before anything is taken from them. The enforcement of the order was said to be a “last resort” effort.
About 170 beds are open in shelters around the city, and those who have their tents removed will not only be informed on the availability of beds, but will also be provided with options for temporary storage for their belongings. The undeniable need for treatment and counseling regarding substance abuse, alongside those beds, has been emphasized by local organizations as well as city officials. “There is an urgent need for evidence-based, clinically appropriate shelter with daytime recovery supports,” stated RIZE Massachusetts, a nonprofit organization that focuses on addiction support and recovery. RIZE approved of the city’s plan of action for those at Mass and Cass, and their inclusion of treatment plans. “A bed, without the appropriate services, is simply a bed, and that will not support people on the pathway to recovery,” the organization wrote.
However, other organizations and public health advocates are claiming the order will do more harm than good. Organizations like the ACLU of Massachusetts are expressing their skepticism of the plan, saying that the city should focus on handing out necessities such as personal hygiene products and water instead of removing temporary shelters. “The solution should include expanded access to low-barrier treatment options and more robust harm reduction services,” said Dr. Todd Kerensky, president of the Massachusetts Society of Addiction Medicine. “Criminalization or coercive ‘therapy’ increases harm and will not provide the results our community desperately needs.” Mass General Brigham’s medical director for substance use disorders, Dr. Sarah Wakeman, also spoke out against the tent removal, saying that forced addiction treatment is less effective than voluntary, and has led to more fatal overdoses.
Suffolk County Sheriff Steve Tompkins is following a plan to take those who opt to remain in their tents into custody, and house them temporarily in the South Bay correctional facility. From there, they would be processed in “stabilization court” to determine whether or not they should be sent to the facility’s treatment center for addiction.
In 2018, the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) found Massachusetts to be among the states with the highest rate of opioid overdose deaths. Only four other states were categorized alongside it, New Hampshire, Ohio, Maryland and West Virginia. 90% of all opioid deaths in Massachusetts are caused by synthetic substances such as fentanyl, which is 50 to 100 more potent than typical morphine. Though fentanyl is found in multiple prescription medications, the prescribing rate for opioids in Massachusetts is among the lowest in the country. Fentanyl has also been found to be mixed with other drugs like cocaine and methamphetamine, according to NIDA speaker Dr. Wilson Compton, so drug users may ingest it completely unaware.
Before Janey’s new order, other strategies have been floated to assist those living at Mass and Cass, including one to house around 30 people to the Quality Inn hotel in Revere. One resident of Revere, Anthony Springer, described the plan as feeling like the “city is following us out here.” Revere Mayor Brian Arrigo said of the matter that while the city was ready to support those in need, it would not solve the underlying problems they face.
“Putting people in a hotel isn’t going to be the solution that’s going to help the people that are struggling,” said Arrigo.
On average, first responders are seeing four to five drug overdoses a day in the area. With the use of substances also comes increased crime and risk of sexual assault and trafficking, officers having arrested 71 repeat offenders since 2019, according to the order. The Greater Boston Food Bank, an organization serving up to 6,000 residents a month who face food insecurity, are finding that their employees are no longer feeling safe going to and from work.
“This is just moving closer and closer to our front door,” Chief Operating Officer Carol Tienken told NBC 10 Boston, “We’re feeling like the city has really failed this neighborhood.”
“We’re fighting to stay alive out here,” said Reginald Gumes, a 58 year old resident who has been homeless for almost a decade. He now resides in one of the tents in the large encampment. “This is really living in a jungle.”
