The Power of Homelessness as an Icon in San Francisco

Tents are pitched on Fifth Street down the block from the largest homeless shelter in San Francisco, Calif.,

Saturday, March 21, 2020. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)

San Francisco has long held a reputation for being rife with homelessness. The ever-growing visibility of the problem has turned the images of homeless encampments that litter the sidewalks into iconic images of not just the city but of the apparent failure of liberal democracy. As “the principle of equality is necessary for both legitimacy and social cohesion in a democratic society” (Hariman & Lucaites, p.43), we see the lack of equality in these images as representative of a greater breakdown of social order. 

These issues are more evident than ever as the global COVID-19 pandemic has sent the nation into lockdown, leaving those without a home exposed to the deadly virus, while the rest of society is afforded relative safety as they isolate. Recent images of the ballooning homeless population in San Francisco show rows and rows of tents along sidewalks as the homeless try in vain to shelter against the invisible virus. The images of homelessness in San Francisco have been effective in the past in promoting change through their emotional currency. In the last 15 years, San Francisco has housed over 27,000 homeless people, and doubled their budget to target the issue, increasing annual expenditures to over $300 million. (Fagan, 2019) In spite of these efforts, however, the homelessness issue persists and the city's ritualized culture of “being charitable with the homeless” (Matier, 2020) has made the city a congregation point for homeless individuals from across the state seeking assistance during the pandemic. 

Images of these congregating individuals have an iconic quality such that “they are believed to provide definitive representation of political crises and motivate public action on behalf of democratic values.” (Hariman & Lucaites, p.45) And there is already evidence of their success: residents and business owners sued the city in an effort to force the city to address the dangers posed by a lack of social distancing among the homeless, and a lack of adequate access to sanitation in the wake of many closures of homeless-aid programs to protect employees from exposure. (Fagan, 2020) The focus of all liberal-democratic movements is to challenge and expand “conceptions of citizenship, social justice, and political community.” (Hariman & Lucaites, p.45) The effect of these images on public culture and feelings of collective obligation can be seen in the sudden funding for the almost 1,000 tents that have been handed out by homeless advocates since the crisis began. (Fagan, 2020)

Iconic images are important in their emotional appeal, which is established through their origin in times of conflict or confusion. (Hariman & Lucaites, p.36) The emotions held within the photographs serve to generate “the fusing of public and private sensibilities, the heightening of intensity, [and] feelings of solidarity and empathy.” (Hariman & Lucaites, p.37) As a result these emotions become political in nature and directly lead to the enactment of political change. Currently the outcry of public opinion has meant that there is increased pressure on Mayor London Breed to provide emergency housing and to get people into their own rooms regardless of their infection status. (Matier, 2020) Hopefully these images will serve to further galvanize the public into addressing the homeless population of San Francisco even as the crisis abates in the future.