On Wednesday, the Point-in-Time
Count will take place across Santa Barbara County, a census of homeless
residents that takes place almost every year. While conducting a brief tally or
demographic survey of the county’s unsheltered population could serve as a way
to distribute resources, the Point-in-Time Count goes too far in its data
collection by amassing detailed geographic data on where unsheltered people are
sleeping, even if they do not consent to participate in the count.
The app used by volunteers to survey those sleeping outside
requires volunteers to drop a pin at the exact location of the unsheltered or
car-living person. Creating an expansive dataset of the exact locations of
people sleeping outside is extremely dangerous to those people. What if law
enforcement were to demand the geolocation data from the count in the name of
public safety? Can people sleeping outside rely on the organizers to protect their
data from abuse or mismanagement? When asked about this during the training,
United Way presenters did not have a clear answer, then said that volunteers
did not have to collect data that they felt uncomfortable collecting. This
issue should not depend on the comfort level of volunteers. United Way should
already have a survey method in place that prioritizes participant safety
instead of creating a dataset can and will be used against the people it is
trying to help.
Volunteers participating in the count are also encouraged to
take data on people sleeping outside and in cars even if they do not want to be
surveyed. During the training, volunteers are taught how to “gently” wake up
people sleeping on the streets and incentivizing them to take the survey by
offering socks or a cereal bar. Once awake, if somebody declines to take the
survey, volunteers are supposed to do an “observational” survey where they drop
a pin and record as much information as they can remember about the person,
including demographic information. What if the person did not want to be
surveyed because they do not want their location published in a database? If a
prospective participant declines to participate in the count, the observational
survey is a violation of their free will and privacy.