— By Kevin Montgomery (@kevinmonty) |
Years ago, Mission District prostitutes were simply known as “Capp Street Hookers” for their preferred blocks of rape limbo. Then came a series of police crackdowns, which more-or-less made the situation manageable. But now they're back in force, so says an unsigned petition created by “residents” located near the 20th and Capp hooker parklet:
We, residents of the Mission near the intersection of Capp and 20th streets, are very concerned by the sudden increase in prostitution in our neighborhood.
As you know, Capp Street was once a locus of organized prostitution, but the hard work of the police and the community put a stop to that intolerable situation years ago.
But now, suddenly, it is back — complete with other types of associated criminality, fighting and yelling in the streets, and trash.
We find it unacceptable that we are woken up at night by screaming hookers, that we are endangered by the reckless driving of their customers and associates, that we have to step over used condoms in the morning with our children, and that we feel a sense of menace when we are walking home at night.
Since this is a sudden and new blight in our neighborhood, a criminal enterprise operated by people who are not from the community, we believe it should be relatively easy to nip it in the bud: simply patrolling Capp street frequently—especially on Friday and Saturday nights—and establishing a visible police presence here will scare off potential customers and make our streets an unprofitable place to undertake prostitution.
As a Capp St. resident, I haven't really noticed the problem getting any worse over the last few months (although I've certainly noticed it). Are they just exaggerating the scene to get some condoms cleaned up, or is this really getting out of hand?
Comments (12)
Uh oh, Leland Yee must be back in town.
Sounds like someone who just moved here, who doesn’t understand that: (1) being awakened by screaming folks (of all types) is standard throughout the Mission, (2) reckless drivers on the side streets are also standard, and are usually gang kids screwing around, (3) that a condom on the sidewalk can happen pretty much anywhere in the City, and (4) that she’d probably have that “sense of menace” anywhere other than her native Walnut Creek.
Anything that increases cycling, We support.
Twelve years ago when Douglas Chin got so fed up with the SFPD doing nothing for ten years about the all night street party at 19th/Capp that he tried to stop it on his own. Tossed chunks of rebar from his rooftop onto the johns.
The SFPD put him in jail. Not the hookers, not the johns, just the resident.
Nothing is new out there, it’s just damped down a little as the west Mission becomes the Marina.
What do you expect? Its spring time!
The birds are out chirping and the street hookers are out slurping.
In the mid ‘90’s, fed up by hookers, a regular Charles Bronson wannabe ran down several side walk hostesses at Capp and 16th. If memory serves, at least one was killed. May I ask, when did they move up to 20th?
I’m so tired of all the pussies that have moved into this neighborhood
I used to teach at city college on saturday mornings and I’d skate by 17th and Capp on my way to BART. One morning (about 7:30am) a nice lady asked”hey, Mr. Skateboarder, you want a date.” I said, “Sorry, prom’s not for a few more months.” She laughed and said “aww, you’re cute.”
A few weeks later, I saw a hooker with beating her pimp with her walker. Like the kind you put tennis balls on the bottom.
Oh, Capp St.
I’ve lived in the neighborhood for 4 years and bartended in the inner mission for 3. There’s definitely been a rise in prostitution in the area.
Are there more chewed up orange slices in the street? I learned the other day that the hookers like to chew on orange slices after they’ve performed the oral.
I’ve absolutely been seeing more hookers on 20th, walking between SVN and Capp. Over the past few weeks to a month.
I hate it when newbies get all Gent-Bent.