Life Inside a Sprawling Homeless Camp

Two New York Times reporters spent three months in the High Street Camp, a homeless community of 100 people in Oakland, California.

1 minute read

December 20, 2019, 5:00 AM PST

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


Homelessness

ja-images / Shutterstock

Thomas Fuller and Josh Haner report from the High Street Camp in Oakland, California, a homeless encampment that the reporters also describe as refugee encampment. The camp, home to 100 people, sprawls across in a Home Depot parking lot, 100 people living there.

Drone footage, portrait photography, and video on the ground provide the interactive piece a rare kind of access to this dire place—"the end of the world" as one resident describes it.

Personal disasters, natural disasters, and out-of-reach housing prices have brought the residents of the community here. As noted throughout the piece—all in the nation's wealthyiest state, just across the Bay from glass condominium towers. A United Nations official quoted in the article compares the camp, located so close to such incredible wealth, to similar conditions in Delhi.

Still, according to the article, a sense of community pervades the camp, despite the many risks involved in living there. Still, one of the worst things about living there, according to the reporters' knowledge of the residents, is knowing you could be forced to leave at any moment.

Tuesday, December 17, 2019 in The New York Times

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Get top-rated, practical training

Bird's eye view of manufactured home park.

Manufactured Crisis: Losing the Nation’s Largest Source of Unsubsidized Affordable Housing

Manufactured housing communities have long been an affordable housing option for millions of people living in the U.S., but that affordability is disappearing rapidly. How did we get here?

March 25, 2025 - Shelterforce

U-Haul truck on road with blurred grassy roadside in background.

Americans May Be Stuck — But Why?

Americans are moving a lot less than they once did, and that is a problem. While Yoni Applebaum, in his highly-publicized article Stuck, gets the reasons badly wrong, it's still important to ask: why are we moving so much less than before?

March 27, 2025 - Alan Mallach

Close-up of rear car bumper in traffic on freeway.

Research Shows More Roads = More Driving

A national study shows, once again, that increasing road supply induces additional vehicle travel, particularly over the long run.

March 23, 2025 - Road Capacity as a Fundamental Determinant of Vehicle Travel

Two white and red Stadler electric Caltrain trains next to each other on a sunny day.

Which US Rail Agencies Are Buying Zero-Emissions Trains?

U.S. rail agencies are slowly making the shift to zero-emissions trains, which can travel longer distances without refueling and reduce air pollution.

March 30 - Smart Cities Dive

Front of San Diego High School with students milling around.

San Diego School District Approves Affordable Housing Plan

The district plans to build workforce housing for 10 percent of its employees in the next decade and explore other ways to contribute to housing development.

March 30 - The San Diego Union-Tribune

Red crane in foreground with New York City skyline in background.

Lawsuit Aims to Stop NYC’s ‘City of Yes’ Zoning Reforms

A lawsuit brought by local lawmakers and community groups claims the plan failed to conduct a comprehensive environmental review.

March 30 - New York Post