An Issuance by Food Not Bombs Atlanta in solidarity with the Taskforce for the Homeless during a time of great struggle:

Debi Starnes, the owner of Sugar Magnolia Bed and Breakfast, benefits from private corporate sponsorships[1] in her role as the privately funded homeless advisor to the mayor.  Her actions have done more to criminalize Atlanta's homeless than it has to help them by lobbying for the passage of “quality of life” legislation and by the creation of a new system that does not account for the 700-800 residents of the Task Force for the Homeless.  She has compared human beings to stray cats and pigeons, instituted a program wherein police officers pose as tourists and arrest people who ask for change, and set up 'homeless meters' to encourage people not to share their spare change.

Starnes continues to undermine actions that help people.  The Gateway Center promotes and practices a plan denying further service to anyone who has been previously granted shelter placement. This allows for the denial of shelter even under freezing temperatures. In contrast, The Taskforce for the Homeless operates under the long-standing premise that no one will be denied service, particularly during such conditions, as decreed by Mayor Andrew Young at the Task Force’s 1981 conception, following the death of 17 homeless people during a cold night that year.

Her efforts for The Gateway Center notwithstanding, Starnes has initiated denials of funding and resources to other homeless support organizations. Although both the Gateway Center and Taskforce practice overflow services, Gateway (whose permit allots for 310 occupants) does so only for women. Taskforce, operating with a 1,000 person permit offers overflow services to both sexes. Further, Debi Starnes actively organizes homeowner's organizations and business associations against community-run efforts to help people – particularly when these efforts take place in public spaces.

[1] She has amassed, in her own words, “Over 25 partnerships”, mainly corporate, who fund both her work at Gateway and her personal gain. Starnes refuses to disclose specific corporations funding her salary, and the amount she allots herself, although city records indicate that she was paid $96,000 in her position of homeless advisor, before moving to private funds.

Twelve Days of Debi

(To the tune of Twelve Days of Christmas)

On the first day of Christmas, Debi gave to me:

One converted jailhouse

THE GATEWAY CENTER!

Thousands without water

Two shut off mains.

Donation meters instead of helping people.

Plain clothes cops arrestin'

SEVEN-HUNDRED-THOUSAND IN WITHHELD FUNDING

On the next day of Christmas, Debi gave to me:

Poor mental health care.

Stray homeless people

Like cats and pigeons

There's room for you at PetCo

Files on all the homeless

Lines all night and day

Thousands turned away

Games of good cop/bad cop

You can feed them –

AS LONG AS I DON'T SEE THEM
 

I Don't Poop In Your Yard Because I Eat

Is there any room for us all in your Inn?