So much for the “compassionate” elite politics of Los Angeles.
A leading left-wing contender for mayor of Los Angeles, Los Angeles City Council member Nithya Raman, suddenly found herself doing what millions of ordinary Californians are forced to do every day: waking up to a homeless encampment right outside her home—and not liking it one bit.
Raman, who represents a brand of progressive governance that has repeatedly resisted tougher enforcement of anti-camping laws, was left rattled after protesters allegedly staged a “mock encampment” outside her $2 million Silver Lake-area home in Los Angeles over Memorial Day weekend.
🚨 WOW! Fed-up Los Angeles residents are now FORMING their OWN homeless camps directly outside Nithya Raman’s house because she said it’s not an issue when the homeless camp outside schools and children’s locations
FAFO! Spencer Pratt is the man for LA!
“We brought it to HER…
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) May 29, 2026
Footage circulating online showed tents, people emerging from them, and what appeared to be a deliberately theatrical setup—complete with barbecue-style activity—turning the quiet neighborhood into a political stage.
On a podcast appearance with comedian Adam Conover, Raman described the scene with visible frustration.
When it’s her own kids, Nithya Raman suddenly cares where homeless encampments are set up.
But when it’s your kids near schools and parks? She votes to keep the tents there. pic.twitter.com/l3vba2byws
— jay plemons (@jayplemons) May 27, 2026
“I woke up this morning to a sound of commotion outside my window and I looked out the window, and I realized that there were people setting up what was, I think, a fake encampment, like a homeless encampment outside of my house,” she said.
She added: “I have two little kids. They didn’t see it, luckily, this morning. But you know, I feel bad that I’m even subjecting them to that at all.”
And then came the real tell.
“This has gone far beyond what I expected the campaign to be about,” she said—lamenting that she thought her mayoral run would focus on “bike lanes and transportation,” not chaotic scenes outside her front door.
That comment alone lit up social media.
Critics quickly pointed out the obvious contradiction: this is a politician who has long opposed expanding stricter enforcement of anti-camping rules around schools, parks, and libraries—yet appears shocked when the consequences of widespread street camping become personal.
Her opponent, Republican candidate Spencer Pratt, amplified the clip online, alongside reminders of earlier footage showing Raman being booed at a homeowners association meeting after downplaying concerns about encampments near children’s facilities.
At that 2024 meeting in Sherman Oaks, she had argued bluntly: “I don’t think a kid’s gonna be safer if they are 10 feet or 500 feet away from a school.” That quote has now come back with a vengeance.
Online reaction was swift and unforgiving. One user summed up the frustration: “When it’s her own kids, Nithya Raman suddenly cares where homeless encampments are set up. But when it’s your own kids near schools and parks? She votes to keep the tents there.”
Another wrote: “So it’s fine for homeless encampments to be around other people’s children, just not her own.” Others blasted what they saw as tone-deaf governance from LA’s political class—arguing that while residents deal with visible street homelessness daily, elites only seem to react when it lands on their doorstep.
Absolutely crazy she doesn’t want her kids to see what’s going on, but she wants the rest of us to live it
— Krosey63 (@krisco63) May 28, 2026
She doesn’t want her kids subjected to a fake encampment. Wow—Then just imagine real ones!
— Amalia Kuebbing (@akuebbing13) May 28, 2026
“Outside of my house.. I have two little kids”
I can’t believe she says this unironically after rolling her eyes at her constituents for those exact concerns
Unbelievable
— L (@liora_) May 28, 2026
Los Angeles has the second-largest homeless population in the United States, with a particularly visible street presence compared to cities like New York, where a larger share of homeless individuals are placed in shelters under long-standing policy frameworks.
Raman’s role also puts her squarely in the spotlight: she chairs the City Council’s Housing and Homelessness Committee, which recently secured a $4 million state grant intended to address a sprawling encampment along the LA River.
That site—home to roughly 90 people—has been the subject of years of city promises, outreach plans, and relocation proposals. Yet residents and reports suggest little visible progress, even as conditions deteriorate and fatalities have occurred in the encampment.
Officials had pledged to move most residents into interim housing and eventually permanent placements. But progress has stalled amid what a spokesperson described as bureaucratic delays, saying the funds have been “caught in administrative and contracting processes.”
In classic LA fashion, the money exists—but the execution doesn’t. And that’s exactly what critics say defines the city’s broader approach: endless rhetoric about compassion, paired with paralysis when it comes to actually restoring order on the streets.
For voters watching the 2026 mayoral race, the optics are hard to ignore: a candidate who minimizes concerns about encampments in public spaces suddenly alarmed when a version of that same reality shows up outside her own home. In a city exhausted by homelessness, crime fears, and deteriorating public order, that disconnect may prove politically radioactive.
