Silicon Valley’s ruthless expansion strikes again, this time targeting some of the Bay Area’s most vulnerable residents.

In a heartbreaking display of corporate callousness, San Jose just swept dozens of unhoused individuals from an encampment near a future Microsoft data center site, leaving people with nowhere to go. The area, which had grown to around 70 residents, became a makeshift community for those displaced by neighboring cities like Milpitas and Fremont, who criminalized sleeping in public spaces.

The Corporate Displacement Game

Mayor Matt Mahan claims San Jose shouldn’t “bear the weight” of other cities’ unhoused populations, threatening legal action against municipalities pushing vulnerable residents out. Meanwhile, Microsoft - sitting on a cool $73 million plot of land - remains conveniently detached from the human cost of their expansion.

A Housing Crisis Deepens

With only two safe parking sites capable of hosting 128 RVs - and an estimated 1,000 lived-in vehicles citywide - San Jose’s “solution” looks more like shuffling human beings around than genuine support. District 4 Councilmember David Cohen admitted the city “cannot legally deny a private property owner access to their land,” effectively prioritizing corporate real estate over human dignity.

Empty Promises and Displacement

While the city promises 1,000 new beds and motel leases this year, these resources are largely reserved for those already in specific encampments. Advocates like Yolie Garcia from Hope for the Unhoused call the sweep “inhumane,” highlighting the systemic failure to genuinely support our community’s most marginalized residents.

Tech companies continue to expand, and our unhoused neighbors continue to be pushed further into precarity. Welcome to San Jose, where profit seemingly trumps people every single time.