Hundreds of people protested in San Francisco on Wednesday to demand a federal court reverse an injunction that prevents the city from removing homeless encampments off its streets.
The protesters gathered outside the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, where attorneys for the city asked three federal judges to end the injunction.
Protesters on both sides of the issue showed up, but those in favor of removing the injunction and clearing out the homeless made up an overwhelming majority, according to local reports. The controversy stems from late last year when a federal judge issued an emergency order that the city cannot remove homeless shelters and tents because there are more homeless people than available shelter beds.
Now city officials are attempting to have the injunction reversed, claiming that homeless people are refusing shelter in light of the order.
"The challenge with the court's order is that it has created an impossible situation for us to implement and the order has been so vague that it's been very difficult for us to figure out where they hit the mark," David Chiu, San Francisco city attorney, said.
The city's Democratic mayor London Breed wants the order lifted.
"The fact that the courts have crippled our ability to do our job to help get people into shelter is criminal," Breed said."If we have a place for someone to go. They need to go. There has to be accountability."
Activists who support the homeless say the city should not have the power to remove them from the street.
"What we are trying to do with this lawsuit is get the city to stop abusing people's basic rights. We are trying to get them to stop illegally confiscating property and criminalizing them when they have no choice but to be on the streets," Jennifer Friedenbach, executive director at the Coalition on Homelessness, said, according to a local ABC outlet.
The conflict comes as San Francisco continues to lose businesses amid rising crime and homelessness.