Homeless men in Seattle have reportedly set up an encampment resembling the White House to make a statement against the city's homeless policies.
Jason Lantz, host The Jason Lantz Show on KTTH Radio in Seattle I met a homeless man named Danny and wrote an op-ed about what inspired him to build a replica of America's most famous home in Seattle's SoDo district.
Danny told Lantz he was handy and used to work on the Space Needle and other city structures, but he developed carpal tunnel syndrome, could no longer work and lost his home.
“I feel kind of embarrassed about how I got here, but it's hard to get out of here considering the situation,” Danny said. “My hands are a mess, I've lost my car…”
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A homeless man named Danny built a replica of the White House as a homeless encampment on the streets of Seattle. (@JasonRantz/KTTH Radio)
Danny told Luntz that, among other reasons, he built the White House replica to show that homeless encampments can look nice, too, and that he doesn't have high hopes for the services Seattle provides to the homeless.
The city runs a tiny house village system that's meant to provide shelter for homeless people and keep them off the streets, but Danny claims money that was meant to help the homeless is actually going to those in charge.
“I think there are people out there trying to help the homeless and get them off the streets… but all the money is going there and not to the homeless people here,” Danny argued.
Danny, who used to work with his hands, said carpal tunnel syndrome meant he could no longer work and had to lose his home and car. (@JasonRantz/KTTH Radio)
He also criticized the city's tiny home program.
“Everyone I know who lived in a small house, except for a couple of people, moved back here,” Danny says. “They got kicked out for not logging in and out one day or something stupid.”
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After speaking with Danny, Luntz said the White House replica builder “is the epitome of the homeless problem,” speaking in incoherent, hard-to-understand sentences and blaming someone or something else for his current situation.
“He always seems to make excuses but doesn't seem to realize he's part of the problem,” Luntz said in the op-ed. “He really shows no desire to ever function as a member of society again.”
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In May, The Seattle Times reported. More than 16,000 people were experiencing homelessness on any given day in King County in 2024, a 23% increase in homelessness compared to 2022, the last time data was collected, according to federal data.
