A Target store in San Francisco is keeping tents behind locked cases — and the internet thinks it's because homeless people are stealing them

pulse

February 21, 2018 9:57 PM

San Francisco's homelessness crisis is so dire that a Target store has started keeping tents behind locked cases.

A Target store in San Francisco has started keeping tents behind locked cases.
San Francisco has a dire homelessness crisis, with an estimated 7,499 people living without permanent shelter in 2017.
A Target spokesperson confirmed to Business Insider that tents are a "high-theft item" at this store location.

San Francisco has a serious homelessness crisis.

It's gotten so bad that a Target store downtown has started keeping camping tents behind locked cases to prevent people from stealing them, according to a company spokesperson.

The company did not say if the policy is meant to deter homeless people in particular.

Earlier this week, Jane Natoli, a financial crimes analyst at payments startup Stripe, stopped into the Target Metreon store in San Francisco's SoMa neighborhood and was surprised to find tents in locked cases that are typically used for safeguarding alcohol and medicine in stores.

She posted a photo in a tweet that has since gone viral.

Target in San Francisco has... @ Jane Natoli #emo##emo#

A spokesperson from Target's headquarters in told Business Insider in an email, "

The representative did not say how many tents have been stolen from the Target Metreon store, but the move is not standard practice across Target locations.

prevent homeless people

People responded to the tweet about the Target store with more disappointment in the city's response to the homelessness crisis than anger at the company.

@wafoli that's really sad. ... @ amy nguyen

@wafoli @chrislhayes Though... @ #emo#,#emo# #emo# Miss Murphy

@wafoli Gentrification at i... @ Ana Banana

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