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- Author, Jake Horton
- Author's title, BBC Verify en Washington DC
The president of the United States, Donald Trump, was driving in his delegation through Washington DC last Sunday, on the way to his golf club, when he saw something that clearly bothered him: a homeless people camp on the grass.
“Homeless people have to leave, immediately,” he published that morning in Truth Social, along with four photos.
One of them showed a man sitting in a campsite chair next to his store, which later I knew he was Bill Theodie. Four days later, Theodie was forced to leave after the president announced drastic measures against homeless people in the country's capital.
“That is me,” he said when I showed him the photo Trump had published. It was the first time I saw her.
“It is madness to look out the window, I took a picture and then publish it on social networks in a negative way, using it as a political tool.”
On Monday, Trump announced that his administration “would eliminate the camps of homeless people from all our parks, our beautiful, beautiful parks.”
“We have marginal neighborhoods here, and we are going to get rid of them,” he said from the podium of the White House press room.
After the announcement, BBC Verify decided to investigate the photos that the president had published.
We compare the visual tracks of the photos of the campaign stores, including a curve on the road next to the grass area where they were installed, with a location on Google Street View.
The camp was about 10 minutes away from the White House and less than that of the BBC office in Washington, so I went there to see what had happened to the place that had caught the president's attention.
When I arrived, local officials were there warning people that they could soon be forced to leave.
I also found Theodie, a 66 -year -old man from Missouri, sitting in the same chair of camping.
I had seen Trump go before.
“The president's delegation is quite long,” he said. “I've seen her pass through here three times.”
“You know, I understand that I don't want to see disorder, so we strive to keep it clean. We are not trying to disrespect the president or any other person who passes through here.”
He told me that he had been living in that place for years and that he worked in construction, although he had a full -time employment since 2018. Normally, he only gets a few shifts a month.
On Thursday, Theodie and the rest of the residents told them to collect their things and leave immediately.
A local reporter recorded how they sent an excavator to dismantle tents and other belongings that people had left behind.
“They said that everything had to be collected or they were going to destroy it with an excavator. They did not come to speak, just to give orders,” Theodie said.
Wayne Turnage, ViceAlcalde of the Department of Health and Human Services of Washington DC, reported that the municipal authorities had already evicted camps throughout the capital.
This is usually done at least a week in advance, he said, but the process has accelerated after Trump's announcement.
Offers and punishments
The homeless people camp was the largest in the city, according to local authorities, with 11 people living next to one of the main ways of exiting Washington D. C. C. C. C
Before the most recent eviction campaign, this year there were 97 people living in camps in the city, which represents a great decrease with respect to the 294 of 2023, as the figures show.
The estimated number of homeless people in Washington DC globally during this 2025 is 5,138, compared to 5.613 of 2024, according to the annual city report.
The latest data from Community Partnership, an organization that works to reduce the lack of housing, show that some 800 people have no refuge, while another 4,300 have some type of temporary accommodation.
The White House has announced that it will offer people who sleep on the street a place in shelters for homeless people and access to mental health and addiction services, but if they refuse, they will face fines or penalties in jail.
“You can't simply grab people and threaten it to arrest it or force her to go to a shelter,” Theodie said. “I don't want to go to a shelter, they are horrible places.”
Organizations that work with homeless people affirm that the system is defective, since the capacity of shelters is usually limited.
Since he left the place, Theodie has spent three nights in a Virginia motel after someone who saw the eviction gave him money to pay it.
“If that person hadn't helped me, I don't know what I would have done. I would probably have sat on the sidewalk all day,” he said.
“This room is full of things, my tent and my belongings … but it is so pleasant to sleep in a bed, take a shower, use a private bathroom, it feels absolutely incredible.”
Theodie said she will try to find a new place when she leaves the motel: “My best option is to try to find a safe place to set up my tent. I don't know where it will be, but I would like to stay in Washington DC.”
Image source, Photo sent by Bill Theodie
I also met George Morgan, a 65 -year -old man from Washington DC, in the camp. He said he was only living there for two months, after having to move from an apartment he could no longer pay.
When I called to know what had been of him after the camp was dismantled, he was at the reception of a motel with his dog, Blue, after someone also paid the night there.
“We are here waiting to see if we can get another night. I had to pay $ 15 for the dog, which was all the money I had left.”
The last time I talked to Morgan, I had managed to prolong his stay in the motel during the weekend, but said he did not know what would hold him the following week.
“I have to improvise, since I have no money. God has always helped me, so I will see what I hold now.”
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