'Housing is a human right': Julian Castro visits homeless encampment in Oakland

Democratic presidential candidate Julian Castro spoke about homelessness, immigration and police violence while taking a tour of Oakland's Fruitvale District on Wednesday. ONE TIME USE. Democratic presidential candidate Julian Castro spoke about homelessness, immigration and police violence while taking a tour of Oakland's Fruitvale District on Wednesday. ONE TIME USE. Photo: Courtesy Of Julián Castro For President 2020 Photo: Courtesy Of Julián Castro For President 2020 Image 1 of / 42 Caption Close 'Housing is a human right': Julian Castro visits homeless encampment in Oakland 1 / 42 Back to Gallery

Democratic presidential candidate Julian Castro spoke about homelessness, immigration and police violence while taking a tour of Oakland's Fruitvale District on Wednesday.

On the invitation of Oakland City Councilman Noel Gallo, Castro took a tour of a homeless encampment in the neighborhood.

"Here in Oakland, throughout the state of California, the West Coast, and really throughout the United States, we have an urgent need for more housing for people who are homeless," Castro, who served as the secretary of Housing and Urban Development under President Barack Obama, said in a video his campaign released on Wednesday afternoon.

"We have a rental affordability crisis out there in the United States. More people these days are sleeping in the streets. More people are seeking shelter. More people are sleeping in their cars or doubling up with relatives. It's time to address this crisis in full."

After visiting Fruitvale Station, @JulianCastro is touring a vast homeless encampment in Oakland.



“Housing is a human right. In my administration, we will end homelessness by 2028.” pic.twitter.com/Agb3pxjv3D — Sawyer Hackett (@SawyerHackett) September 25, 2019

GABBARD QUALIFIES: Gabbard qualifies for next Democratic presidential debate

He then spoke about his housing plan, which includes trying to build 3 million affordable-housing units and putting in place "a refundable renter's tax credit."

Castro also spoke about immigration policy during his tour of Fruitvale, a neighborhood with a large Latino population. In one moment captured on video by Chronicle reporter Sarah Ravani, 14-year-old Omar Vasquez asked Castro, "Will my family be able to stay here?"

"I'm going to make sure if I'm president that families can stay here, they get to stay together and they get to get on a pathway to citizenship," Castro responded. "I'm sure that your parents work very hard and you're studying hard in school.

HARRIS MEMO: A Kamala Harris memo got left behind in a restaurant, revealing some of the campaign's worries

"We're going to get to a time where all families feel safer and they can feel more rooted here with an administration that actually respects everybody and treat people with real compassion," he added.

During his tour, he also stopped by the mural of Oscar Grant, a black man who was killed by a BART police officer in 2009 at the Fruitvale BART station. He called the killing of Grant "sad," and then spoke about his plan to reduce the number of police shootings, according to Doug Sovern of KCBS.

Drew Costley is an SFGATE editorial assistant. Email: drew.costley@sfgate.com | Twitter: @drewcostley