WASHINGTON — National Park Service workers began clearing an encampment of people experiencing homelessness at McPherson Square in D.C. Wednesday morning. As of 3:30 p.m. two people who refused to leave the park were arrested.
The Park Service had originally planned to clear out one of D.C.'s largest camps for the unhoused in April, but the date was moved up because of growing safety concerns.
The DC Office of the Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services (DMHHS) and service providers were on-site at 10 a.m. Wednesday to assist unsheltered people with housing options, the NPS said in a statement.
About 60 people were in the park at the time the clearance began. By about 1 p.m. only two tents remained. One person we spoke with said he had no intention of leaving and expected to be arrested. He was taken into custody by Park Police around 3 p.m. Wednesday.
"Unfortunately, the city thinks they owe the allegiance to the rich," said Dan Kingery, who was arrested.
A second man also opted to be arrested rather than leave. As he was being led away, he told officers he found them to be treasonous and "in violation to the U.S. Constitution."
In a statement, the National Park Service said the two people arrested were ultimately released.
"Two people, who both declined any social service assistance offered by the District of Columbia Department of Behavioral Health, ultimately refused to leave the park and were arrested shortly after 3 p.m. for violating the closure of the park," the statement read. "They were cited and released shortly thereafter."
The National Park Service added it plans to reopen the park to public use later this year.
"Trained crews have cleaned the park and disposed of hazardous items," the statement reads. "The park will be restored, and the goal is to reopen to the public by this summer,"
The move to clear the encampment was met by backlash from many advocates and organizations.
The American Civil Liberties Union in D.C. issued a statement calling the clearance an "especially cruel decision":
“Evictions never solve homelessness and always traumatize residents who simply need a place to live. By scattering our neighbors from a single location, evictions also make it much more difficult to connect people with the safe housing and dependable services they need. Evicting our neighbors at the height of hypothermia season with very little notice is an especially cruel decision.
The forced evictions that the Mayor and NPS have carried out in the past have pushed people from park to park, destroying their belongings, and disrupting their remaining support networks. By using police officers to assist with and enforce these evictions, the Mayor and NPS have put our neighbors at risk of arrest and harassment simply for trying to survive.
The long-term solution to homelessness is safe and dependable housing, not forced evictions with no plan.”
Ahead of the clearance, the park was fenced off and only advocates and the unhoused were allowed in. Warnings were also given on loud speakers before NPS workers in white suits moved in to clear the park.
Members of the National Coalition for the Homeless were outside the park as the clearance was underway, voicing concerns that moving people out of encampments does not solve homelessness.
“Instead of finding solutions for homelessness, we’re doing this kind of action, which is myopic at best,” said Donald Whitehead, the executive director of the coalition. "We see here a tremendous presence of law enforcement at tremendous cost to the city. All of these dollars should be used to house people."
Many people in the encampment told WUSA9 they did not have new places lined up to live. Several people said they planned to go to another encampment in DC's Foggy Bottom neighborhood.
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